Edibles startup sweet on new facility; wants to grow own cannabis

Blue Kudu chocolates

BlueKudu, a cannabis chocolatier, plans to grow its own marijuana for use in chocolates. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

As if Willy Wonka wasn’t already trippy.

Local cannabis chocolatier BlueKudu is pouring $1.5 million into a 20,000-square-foot production facility that will include a big new kitchen and a greenhouse for growing marijuana in house.

BlueKudu founder and owner Andrew Schrot, 34, started making chocolate edibles out of a commercial kitchen in Five Points in 2012. Last summer he purchased a warehouse at 4805 Kingston St. in northeast Denver for $975,000, according to property records. The company hopes to move in by fall.

Andrew Schrot

Founder Andrew Schrot. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

Schrot said growing his own cannabis is more cost-effective than purchasing oils from other producers to use in his 10 flavors of chocolate.

“We want to get to the point where we’re completely vertically integrated,” he said. “We feel that will give us a lot more quality control as far as being able to stand behind the whole process.”

Right now, BlueKudu squeezes 3,000 chocolates a day out of a 1,500-square-foot kitchen where it has to pull double shifts.

The budget for renovating the warehouse and building a greenhouse will be about $1.5 million, Schrot said. BlueKudu hired Aaron Valdez of Cushman & Wakefield as the real estate broker, John Garner as the architect and Jay Melvey of MPB Contractors as the general contractor.

The name BlueKudu comes from a species of African antelope. Schrot said he chose the name because he liked “blue” as a more discrete alternative to the many marijuana products that go for a green twist.

Blue Kudu chocolate machine

The company currently produces 3,000 chocolates per day in a 1,500-square-foot space. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

The company also is doubling down on the name: Denver marketing firm BrandJuice redesigned BlueKudu’s labels to include a picture of its four-legged namesake.

The chocolatier has 15 employees full-time and expects to add five by year-end.

Schrot estimates BlueKudu is on shelves at 75 percent of the state’s dispensaries. While the brand is focusing on sales growth in Colorado for now, Schrot would like to license his recipes to manufacturers in Oregon, Washington, California and Arizona.

Schrot wouldn’t share exact sales figures, but said the company has sold over 1 million bars since opening, and last year’s revenue was 10 times what the company recorded in 2012.

Schrot said he’s excited to have more space for BlueKudu to experiment with new products, like brownies, fruit gummies and lotions.

Blue Kudu chocolates

BlueKudu, a cannabis chocolatier, plans to grow its own marijuana for use in chocolates. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

As if Willy Wonka wasn’t already trippy.

Local cannabis chocolatier BlueKudu is pouring $1.5 million into a 20,000-square-foot production facility that will include a big new kitchen and a greenhouse for growing marijuana in house.

BlueKudu founder and owner Andrew Schrot, 34, started making chocolate edibles out of a commercial kitchen in Five Points in 2012. Last summer he purchased a warehouse at 4805 Kingston St. in northeast Denver for $975,000, according to property records. The company hopes to move in by fall.

Andrew Schrot

Founder Andrew Schrot. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

Schrot said growing his own cannabis is more cost-effective than purchasing oils from other producers to use in his 10 flavors of chocolate.

“We want to get to the point where we’re completely vertically integrated,” he said. “We feel that will give us a lot more quality control as far as being able to stand behind the whole process.”

Right now, BlueKudu squeezes 3,000 chocolates a day out of a 1,500-square-foot kitchen where it has to pull double shifts.

The budget for renovating the warehouse and building a greenhouse will be about $1.5 million, Schrot said. BlueKudu hired Aaron Valdez of Cushman & Wakefield as the real estate broker, John Garner as the architect and Jay Melvey of MPB Contractors as the general contractor.

The name BlueKudu comes from a species of African antelope. Schrot said he chose the name because he liked “blue” as a more discrete alternative to the many marijuana products that go for a green twist.

Blue Kudu chocolate machine

The company currently produces 3,000 chocolates per day in a 1,500-square-foot space. Photo courtesy of BlueKudu.

The company also is doubling down on the name: Denver marketing firm BrandJuice redesigned BlueKudu’s labels to include a picture of its four-legged namesake.

The chocolatier has 15 employees full-time and expects to add five by year-end.

Schrot estimates BlueKudu is on shelves at 75 percent of the state’s dispensaries. While the brand is focusing on sales growth in Colorado for now, Schrot would like to license his recipes to manufacturers in Oregon, Washington, California and Arizona.

Schrot wouldn’t share exact sales figures, but said the company has sold over 1 million bars since opening, and last year’s revenue was 10 times what the company recorded in 2012.

Schrot said he’s excited to have more space for BlueKudu to experiment with new products, like brownies, fruit gummies and lotions.

Your subscription has expired. Renew now by choosing a subscription below!

For more informaiton, head over to your profile.

Profile


SUBSCRIBE NOW

 — 

 — 

 — 

TERMS OF SERVICE:

ALL MEMBERSHIPS RENEW AUTOMATICALLY. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR A 1 YEAR MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AT THE RATE IN EFFECT AT THAT TIME UNLESS YOU CANCEL YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY LOGGING IN OR BY CONTACTING [email protected].

ALL CHARGES FOR MONTHLY OR ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS ARE NONREFUNDABLE.

EACH MEMBERSHIP WILL ONLY FUNCTION ON UP TO 3 MACHINES. ACCOUNTS ABUSING THAT LIMIT WILL BE DISCONTINUED.

FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]




Return to Homepage

POSTED IN Cannabis

Editor's Picks

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *