Dave Morrow’s journey from champion lacrosse star to cannabis power player is a wild ride filled with unexpected twists and turns. As the CEO of Lume Cannabis Co., he has taken the Michigan-based company from $2 million in revenue to nearly $200 million in just four years, solidifying its position as one of the most successful vertically integrated cannabis enterprises in the US. But his story begins in an unlikely place – Michigan, far from the traditional East Coast lacrosse hotbeds.
Despite not having the same advantages as his East Coast counterparts, Morrow quickly rose to become one of the top players in the sport. “I was the first American player from outside the East Coast to achieve a high level of success,” he proudly recalls. His talent and hard work were recognized during his time at Princeton, where he was named Player of the Year as a defenseman – a rare feat in the history of the sport. Morrow also represented the US national team for seven years, cementing his status as a lacrosse legend.
But it wasn’t just his skills on the field that set Morrow apart. While playing the sport he loved, he also identified a need for better and lighter lacrosse sticks. In 1992, he developed an innovative titanium shaft that revolutionized the game. This invention laid the foundation for Warrior Sports, a company that Morrow would eventually turn into a global sports brand from his dorm room. His experience as an elite athlete gave the Warrior brand credibility, while his background working in his father’s machine shop in Detroit provided crucial manufacturing knowledge, including how to scale operations. After 12 years of hard work, Morrow sold the company to New Balance in 2004, but continued to serve as CEO until January 2019.
Morrow credits his background in lacrosse and building a global sports brand for shaping his approach to business. The high-pressure and competitive nature of sports taught him resilience and adaptability – qualities that have been crucial in navigating the ever-changing landscape of the cannabis industry. And it’s not just a coincidence that Morrow’s success in the cannabis industry has been meteoric – he has a personal relationship with the plant dating back to his college days. “I really enjoyed cannabis,” he admits. “In fact, I believe it helped me become an elite athlete. It kept me hydrated and allowed me to perform at my best, while my peers were struggling with the effects of alcohol. Of course, I took a lot of heat for smoking weed – it wasn’t exactly the norm for Princeton athletes.”
Morrow’s foray into the cannabis industry was sparked by a persuasive nudge from a trusted friend who was already invested in Michigan’s cannabis market. “I told him I would consider it, but only under certain conditions,” Morrow recalls. “It had to be legal, we had to obtain proper licenses, and I wasn’t interested in the medical side of things. I wanted to focus on the adult-use market. I saw it as a challenge to build a consumer brand, something I am an expert at – brand building and product development.”
And that’s exactly what Morrow has done with Lume Cannabis Co. In just four years, he has taken the company from a small player in the Michigan market to a major force in the industry. With his experience in building a global sports brand and his personal connection to cannabis, Morrow has proven to be a formidable force in the cannabis world. His unconventional journey from lacrosse star to cannabis power player is a testament to his resilience, adaptability, and unwavering determination to succeed.