A breathtaking conversation with GT Dave, entrepreneur and founder of GT’s Kombucha creator of the Global Bottled Kombucha category on living a vibrant life, bringing real kombucha to the world, fermented foods, mushrooms, plant medicines, future health trends and more Bio: GT Dave is an American businessman who is the founder and CEO of the Kombucha company GT’s Living Foods/ GT's Kombucha. In the late 1990s, he was the first to put kombucha on store shelves and his company currently owns 40% of the U.S. kombucha market. Dave was the first to put kombucha on store shelves. His first sale of kombucha (which he marketed as GT's Kombucha) was to Erewhon Natural Foods in 1995, when he sold two cases (24 bottles) which nearly sold out in the first day. From his bedroom, he would call buyers, distributors and store owners, using different voices to pose as different employees. He continued to homebrew kombucha in his family home, which quickly outgrew the kitchen and expanded to the living room, and would sleep from 4 p.m. to midnight and work while his family slept. His mother Laraine helped him market the product by setting up tasting tables and sharing her cancer story. GT's Kombucha continued to grow and in December 1997, when he was selling 30 to 50 cases per day, he rented a 2,000-square-foot industrial space in Gardena and began to hire employees. That was when Whole Foods Market called to inquire about distributing his kombucha. He initially hesitated, but ultimately decided to accept their offer, stressing the importance of preserving the integrity of his product. GT's Kombucha was now in stores across the Southwest and he rented another 2,000 square feet space in Gardena. The demand continued to grow as Dave expanded to more regions and he struggled to keep up with demand but as he insisted on brewing the traditional way with close oversight over every batch. GT's Kombucha later rebranded as GT's Living Foods and now produces over one million bottles per year in its 100,000-square-foot campus in Vernon. Dave has declined multiple acquisition offers and remains the sole owner of GT's Living Foods which is worth over $900 million and owns 40% of the U.S. kombucha market. Topics discussed:
- GT’s Origin Story
- GT’s first Kombucha Brew
- Brewing Kombucha is like growing a plant
- GT’s Proudest offering
- The spirituality of Kombucha
- "Kombucha loves simplicity"
- Basic Kombucha Recipe
- Kombucha Fermenting Time
- Second Fermentation -“Permission to Play"
- Mothers and Daughters
- Mutant Kombucha Cultures
- Food as Medicine
- Plant-based eating
- Immersion in Nature- “Nature is the Greatest Healer"
- GT’s morning routine
- Morning Smoothies
- Meditation
- GT’s exercise routine
- Gratitude
- Empathy
- Homebrewing to Commercial Enterprise
- Staying true to Kombucha
- Keeping the Integrity of Real Kombucha and Kefir
- GT’s and Hannah Crum- Kombucha Standard of Identity
- Short Cut Kombucha
- State of the Australian Kombucha Market
- GT’s concerns about the Kombucha Market
- GT’s thoughts on Kombucha and alcohol
- GT’s health trends for the future
- Medicinal Mushrooms
- Water Kefir- More beneficial bacteria than Kombucha
- Wild Coconut Yoghurt
- Water Kefir - Bifidobacteria and Tryptophan
- Benefits of Water Kefir
- Mushrooms and PTSD
- Plant Medicines and Mental Health
- GT’s Top Health Tip
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