38 messages · last: Kunal Lodaya, 2026-10-09 11:26
Quiet week with no real forward motion. Anthony promised a decision on the Tamper Evident Pop-Top Tubes "today" (10/5) and again nothing came in writing — the feedback is now weeks overdue. On 10/9 Kunal surfaced on the same thread saying he was loosely following and will discuss with the team, and asked us to confirm the economics: roughly 12-14 cents for tamper-proof CR tubes plus labels — that question is sitting unanswered with us. On Tyson2.0 RED [7R4K8N], Anthony only acknowledged our update; still no payment terms confirmation and no ACH, so the 3 cases / 13,500 units remain unreleased since art approval and the signed invoice back on 7/27. Kunal again replied "Done!" on the Stickers [C6X9RT] thread and then sent a second, completely empty message — scope and deliverable still unknown and no quote request has been issued.
Quiet week on Hamilton Farms — the only inbound was Amanda Gonzalez accepting Andrew's "Let's Talk SWAG!" discovery call for Thu Oct 1, 3:00–3:45pm EDT (Google Meet). That opens a new promotional/merch workstream (stickers, lighters, rolling papers, rolling trays and other giveaway items) where we need scope, quantities, timelines and SKUs/brands. No movement at all on the Tyson2.0 RED pouch payment/terms (3 cases / 13,500 units still not released to production), no written feedback on the pop-top tube samples, nothing new on Franklin's Futurolas cones (addresses, volumes, vendor spec sheet still outstanding), the 7pk/14pk carton concept, or the COA batch label samples.
Effectively a silent week on Hamilton Farms — the only inbound was Kunal Lodaya's "Maybe" RSVP to the Monarch PKG x Hamilton Farms call Andrew scheduled for Fri Sep 25, 2pm–2:45pm EDT (Google Meet), agenda centered on reviewing the recently received samples, spec/design changes, priorities and next steps. No movement on the Tyson2.0 RED pouch payment/production release (3 cases / 13,500 units), no Franklin's cone shipping addresses, volumes or vendor spec sheet, no pop-top tube sample feedback, and no carton concept feedback. The 9/25 call is the natural forcing function to unblock all of the above, but Kunal is only tentative and Anthony/Luana have not confirmed.
Quiet week — the only traffic was on the Franklin's blunt cone alternatives thread. Kunal asked where we sourced the alternative cones, we answered, and he came back on 9/2 with "let's see how they do," asking whether we've already shared the samples with Franklin's or whether Hamilton Farms should R&D them in parallel on their side. That question is unanswered as of the last message. Nothing moved on the Tyson2.0 [7R4K8N] pouch order (3 cases / 13,500 units) — still no payment-terms confirmation or ACH receipt — and no word on the pop-top tube samples, COA batch labels, or the 7pk/14pk carton concept.
Very quiet week — only acknowledgements, no substantive movement. Luana confirmed Hamilton Farms will review the tamper-evident pop-top tube samples once they physically arrive and send feedback; Anthony echoed thanks. On the Franklin's cone alternatives, Kunal replied only that they'll "keep an eye out," so the sample shipping addresses, annual cone volume projections and vendor spec sheet are all still outstanding, and the group call with Kunal and Ryan remains unscheduled. Nothing new on Tyson2.0 [7R4K8N] payment terms or the ACH receipt, nothing on the 7pk/14pk carton [3X8K7Q], and no mailing address exchanged for the COA batch label samples.
Very quiet week — a single email from Luana on 8/3 on the Tyson2.0 RED / Hybrid CR Zip pouch thread [7R4K8N], simply saying she expects Kunal to follow up soon. No payment terms confirmation, no ACH remittance, and therefore no production release on the 3 cases / 13,500 units. Nothing new on Franklin's Futurolas (still no sample addresses, volumes or vendor spec sheet), the COA batch label samples (still blocked on our mailing address), or the Hamilton Farms 7pk/14pk carton [3X8K7Q].
Quiet week, but the Tyson2.0 pouch order cleared its main blocker: Luana approved the art proof as shown (confirming the 'live rosin' typo removal) and returned the signed invoice on 7/27, instructing us to proceed with production on the 3 cases / 13,500 units. She noted ACH details were already shared with Kunal, but Kunal then asked us to restate the agreed payment terms — that question is still unanswered, so production release is now gated on our reply and on payment landing. Anthony Hagman is out on personal time through 7/28 (back 7/29), pointing urgent items to wholesale@, egensheimer@ and Kunal. No movement on the 7pk/14pk carton [3X8K7Q], Franklin's Futurolas cones, COA batch label samples, or the onsite visit.
Big week on Tyson2.0: Luana formally approved the order on 7/20 — 3 cases / 13,500 units of the RED Tyson pouch shipping via SEA — and confirmed the 'live rosin' typo removal. Andrew turned around an updated digital art proof the same day, plus an invoice; a first invoice went out at 3:54pm with typos and was superseded at 4:03pm by a corrected packet (art proof + invoice + ACH payment info). We're now waiting on written art approval ("Approved as shown. Please proceed to production.") and a signed invoice before production kicks off. Separately, Kunal introduced Ryan at Franklin's on 7/22 to open the cone-sourcing project: we're pricing alternatives to the current expensive cones for both Bangers and Minis, noting the chamomile tea leaf material and comparable burn flavor. Andrew asked Ryan for sample shipping addresses and annual/projected cone volumes across all Franklin's states, and proposed a group call next week (Andrew is on EST in Toronto this week). Kunal is also pulling a vendor spec sheet. No movement on the 7pk/14pk carton [3X8K7Q] or the COA batch label samples.
Quiet week on the actual packaging projects — all admin and a new side request. We chased Hamilton Farms for the NJ Resale Certificate (ST-3) after accounting rejected the ST-4 they'd sent; Luana returned the completed ST-3 the same day (7/13) and, when we flagged the "blanket certificate" box was unchecked, gave written permission on 7/14 for us to check it, so the certificate now covers all future POs. Separately, Luana responded to our COA batch label samples request: Franco will compile the labels and she'll try to include printed ones, but she's waiting on us for a mailing address — that reply is still outstanding. No movement at all on the Tyson2.0 pouch quote (Q-7R4K8NA01_v1), the updated pouch artwork, the 7pk/14pk carton concept feedback, the spacer-vs-matchbook decision, or the onsite visit dates — now a second straight week of silence on all of them, and our own 7/6 call recap still hasn't gone out.
Quiet week on deliverables — the only movement was scheduling. Kunal asked to move Monday's 2:00pm call 30 minutes earlier and accepted the rescheduled 1:30–1:45pm EDT slot on 7/6. The agenda covered a TBD onsite visit, Tyson 2.0 PR pouch art updates, Franklin's Futurolas custom work, and Franklin's supply chain metrics. No written response landed on the Tyson2.0 quote Q-7R4K8NA01_v1 (3 cases @ 4,500 units/case, plus 5-case alternative) and no design feedback or spacer-vs-matchbook decision came in on the 7pk/14pk carton, so both remain where they were at the end of last week.
Quiet week on the Hamilton Farms carton, but a new reorder quote went out. Luana acknowledged the 6/24 concept renders for the 7pk/14pk pre-roll carton on 6/29 and said the team would reach out during the week to keep it moving, but no substantive feedback (direction or spacer vs. matchbook) has arrived. On 7/2 Andrew sent a new quote, Q-7R4K8NA01_v1, for a Tyson2.0 RED/Hybrid CR Zip Pre-Roll Pouch reorder: 3 cases at 4,500 units/case, with a 5-case option also quoted since the sea-freight option costs the same as 3 cases. The quote includes a goodwill adjustment — the artwork error on the first batch ("Live Rosin" and other non-universal back-panel copy) will be corrected by Monarch with tooling costs absorbed. Luana confirmed 7/3 the team will review and respond Monday (7/6); both sides agreed to connect then.
Only one outbound message this week: Andrew kicked off development on the Hamilton Farms multi-pack pre-roll cartons (case 3X8K7Q, brand code 7G3), sending concept art renders for the 7pk and 14pk cartons sized for ⌀7mm Blackbirds. He asked the Hamilton Farms team to review the concepts and weigh in on which direction fits the brand. He also flagged that the 7pk needs either a spacer or a matchbook to fill the empty cavity, and that the matchbook — attractive as a promo giveaway — would run as its own separate development track if approved. No reply from the client yet as of week's end.