Before creating PLUS, one of the leading edibles brands in California, Jake Heimark worked in the tech industry for Facebook and then with a startup called Gumroad. Having come from an entrepreneurial family, Heimark knew it was time to spread his wings and start his own business but had yet to settle on an industry. That’s when he received some direction from his father.
“He shared the ‘60 Minutes’ piece on cannabis and suggested that I look at what I could do in this completely new and undefined market,” Heimark says. “I headed to Colorado and joined Green Labs, a Denver accelerator focused on marijuana startups.”
While the industry in Colorado presented opportunities for cultivation, retailing and extraction, Heimark felt comfortable with edibles, since his family “has a strong background in that industry.”
Heimark analyzed future projections for the edibles market and then turned his findings over to his father, the former chief information officer at Swiss Bank UBS. They “both agreed that the business opportunity was unbelievably compelling,” Heimark says.
Heimark took what he learned to California and started PLUS in 2015. In 2018, PLUS revenue grew to $8.4 million, a 681% increase from 2017. Heimark says the company’s new goal in 2019 is to bring its gummies to shelves in other states.
“My entire family is involved in the company now and I know that they are fully invested in making PLUS a success,” he says. “We have seen amazing demand for our gummy products.”