This interview details HYVE, an indoor farming company based in the United States. The interview is with Ken Bryant, Director of Marketing of HYVE.
What is the origin story of HYVE?
We are the American division of DASCOM, a prominent company with our Americas headquarters in Central Virginia and world headquarters in Hong Kong. We have several business units, one of which is dedicated to LED lighting. Our venture into LED lighting marks the starting point of our journey as HYVE.
In the early days, we attended prominent international lighting exhibitions where we showcased a wide range of lights, including floodlights, high bay industrial lights, and lights for various commercial purposes. Among our lighting products, we also had LED grow lights. Looking back, I vividly recall attending these large trade shows where the majority of inquiries about LED grow lighting revolved around one particular question: "Can I use it to grow cannabis?" However, there was a moment of realization for me at one of these shows.
A gentleman approached and surprisingly, his question was not related to cannabis. He introduced himself as a representative of UNICEF, working in Africa, and expressed a different need. He explained that he required LED grow lights to cultivate lettuce and provide sustenance for the people in his community. This encounter truly struck a chord with me.
We have an incredible opportunity to accomplish a multitude of things here. The cannabis industry has gained significant traction, and many individuals are embracing it, however it is not our focal point (although we could provide a solution). After continued exhibition at shows, including those more in the greenhouse and horticulture industry, we found something that came as a surprise. People were not only impressed by the lighting itself but also equally fascinated by the racking system we used in our display. This realization served as a second "aha" moment, particularly among our executive leadership team. They returned from one show with particular enthusiasm and decided that we should talk with our engineering team about a more fully developed, large-scale, integrated system that combined our lighting and a very robust racking system.
These ideas along with ingenuity of our engineering team marked the beginning of a new business unit. It was here that the genesis for HYVE actually began as we developed a hydroponic system based on combining our LED lighting with the racking, plumbing, and automation. Subsequently, we have further developed and refined the system and decided to brand the unit as HYVE, which is an abbreviation for “Hydroponic Vertical”.
What are some of the biggest challenges facing your team in the future?
What is unique about HYVE compared to competitors?
How do you measure the impact of your company so far? (Revenue, Employees, Customer Quantity, Production Volume) etc?
What have we learned and would do differently?
How can people connect with HYVE?
Website: www.growhyve.com
Phone: 540.904.4209
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