For Jason Ambrosino, manufacturing success is built on repeatability.

It is the principle that connects Veterans Holdings’ expanding New York operation, a house of brands that includes New York Honey, Spacebuds, Veterans Choice Creations, Pot & Head, and Mildly Moronic. Across three facilities, the Gloversville-based company manufactures a dizzying array of infused products. Veterans Holdings also provides contract manufacturing and co-packing services for other licensed cannabis companies in New York.

Ambrosino, the company’s founder and CEO, said Veterans Holdings has grown without outside investors into a vertically integrated manufacturer, processor, distributor, and cultivator. The company employs roughly 75 people and serves more than 350 licensed dispensaries across the state. Its third facility is being developed as a future cultivation and distribution center.

The scale and variety of the operation reflect Ambrosino’s background. A U.S. Army veteran who was injured by an improvised explosive device while deployed to Iraq, Ambrosino received the Bronze Star and medically retired as a 100 percent service-disabled veteran. The Army sent him to William & Mary to earn an MBA before he became a contracting and acquisition officer. After leaving the military, he built businesses in procurement and logistics before entering hemp following passage of the 2018 Farm Bill.

Those experiences shaped an approach to cannabis manufacturing grounded in procurement, logistics, systems, and disciplined execution.

“The common thread is repeatability,” Ambrosino said. “A product cannot just be good once. It has to be good at scale.”

In this installment of Manufacturing Success, Ambrosino discusses the manufacturing systems behind Veterans Holdings, the distinct roles of its brands, the challenge of matching plant material to finished products, and why long-term success will depend on more than a compelling brand.

How did you initially get involved in cannabis?

“Cannabis found me after everything else failed.

“Like a lot of veterans, I spent years relying on prescription medications after my military service. They kept me functioning, but they did not give me my life back. Cannabis became part of how I managed pain, sleep, and stress while still being present for my family and my work.

“Once I experienced that personally, I wanted to understand everything about the plant. That curiosity turned into Veterans Hemp Market, and then into Veterans Holdings.

“The mission was simple: make quality cannabis products more accessible, more affordable, and more trustworthy for regular people,” Ambrosino said.

What does cannabis mean to you?

“To me, cannabis represents opportunity,” Ambrosino explained. “It is an opportunity for people to improve their quality of life. It is an opportunity to rebuild manufacturing in communities like Gloversville. It is an opportunity to create jobs, educate consumers, and challenge decades of misinformation.

“I do not see cannabis as a trend. I see it as a legitimate agricultural and manufacturing industry that is still in its early stages.”

What makes you passionate about cannabis?

“The personal impact is what brought me into cannabis, but the manufacturing challenge is what keeps me engaged.

“I have experienced the benefits myself, and I have seen veterans, seniors, and everyday working people find products that genuinely fit their lives. That matters.

“At the same time, I love the technical side of the industry. Extraction, formulation, hardware, solventless, infused products, pre-roll automation, production planning, all of that requires real skill. Cannabis is creative, but at scale it is also highly technical. That combination keeps it interesting.”

In your opinion, what is the best way to consume cannabis?

“The best way to consume cannabis depends on the person and what they are trying to accomplish.

“For newer consumers, I think low-dose, predictable products are usually the best starting point. That might be a beverage, an edible, or a very controlled vape product. For more experienced consumers, flower, concentrates, solventless products, or infused pre-rolls may make more sense depending on the experience they are looking for.

“I do not think there is one perfect method for everyone. The right product is the one that gives the consumer the experience they want in a way that feels controlled, consistent, and enjoyable.”

What products or brands does Veterans Holdings produce?

“Veterans Holdings operates multiple brands because different consumers have different needs.

“New York Honey is one of our best-known brands. It is focused on quality, value, and accessibility. Spacebuds is more innovation-driven and built around infused flower, moon rocks, and higher-potency experiences. Veterans Choice Creations is our core house brand. Pot & Head and Mildly Moronic give us room to be more creative and reach different consumers.

“We produce concentrates, vape products, all-in-ones, flower products, pre-rolls, infused pre-rolls, beverages, solventless products, hydrocarbon products, and other infused products. We also manufacture for other licensed cannabis companies in New York through contract manufacturing and co-packing.”

Tell me about the processes used to create your products.

“Every product category has its own discipline.

“For vape products, the process starts with compliant, tested cannabis oil, but the real work is in formulation and hardware compatibility. You have to understand viscosity, terpene profiles, filling temperatures, oxidation, and device performance. A good vape is not just good oil. It is oil, hardware, formulation, and process all working together.

“For concentrates, the process depends on the input material and extraction method. Hydrocarbon extraction lets us produce products like live resin, cured resin, badder, sugar, sauce, and other concentrate formats. Solventless is a totally different discipline. With hash and rosin, the starting material is everything, and the process is about preserving the best parts of the plant without using solvents.

“For infused pre-rolls and infused flower, consistency is the challenge. You are combining flower, oil, kief, hash, THCA, or other cannabis inputs, and the final product still has to burn correctly, test correctly, and deliver a consistent consumer experience.

“For beverages and infused products, formulation, dosing accuracy, flavor, emulsion, and shelf stability all matter.

“The common thread is repeatability. A product cannot just be good once. It has to be good at scale.”

What is the biggest challenge you face in manufacturing?

“The biggest challenge is maintaining consistency in an inconsistent environment.

“Cannabis is an agricultural input, so every batch can be different. Potency, terpene content, moisture, age, handling, storage, cultivation practices, and testing results all affect what you can make from it.

“Then you layer on New York’s regulatory requirements, packaging rules, testing requirements, inventory tracking, supply chain pressure, pricing compression, and the reality of scaling a team. It is a lot to manage.

   

“The companies that survive are the ones that treat cannabis like a real operating business. You need process control, inventory discipline, quality assurance, compliance systems, cash discipline, and a team that understands execution.”

What are you doing to keep up with increased demand?

“For us, it comes down to planning, capacity, and focus. We are improving forecasting, production planning, inventory management, and communication between sales, operations, compliance, and finance. In cannabis, demand can move quickly, but production does not always move at the same speed. You have to plan ahead without overextending yourself.

“We are also expanding our infrastructure. Our third facility is part of that next phase and is being built out as our future cultivation and distribution center. At the same time, we try to stay disciplined with SKUs. We are not trying to chase every trend or make every possible product. We look at what consumers are actually buying, what retailers need, what we can produce consistently, and where we can deliver real value.”

Can you discuss how you source biomass or plant material?

“We source from licensed New York cultivators and evaluate material based on the product it is intended for.

“Not every input should be treated the same. Material that works well for live resin may not be the best choice for pre-rolls. Material that performs well for distillate may not wash well for solventless. Flower that looks great in a jar may not be the best extraction input.

“We look at potency, terpene profile, freshness, moisture, structure, cannabinoid content, test results, yield potential, price, and overall product fit.

“Relationships matter too. New York’s supply chain is still developing, and good manufacturing starts with good inputs. That means working with cultivators who understand quality, timing, storage, handling, and communication.”

As a vertically integrated company, are you exclusively in-house?

“No. We are vertically integrated in the sense that we operate across cultivation, manufacturing, processing, distribution, and brand development, but we are not exclusively in-house on biomass.

“We use internal capabilities where they make sense, and we also source from licensed New York cultivators. That flexibility is important. It lets us match the right input to the right product instead of forcing every product to come from the same source.”

What goes into selecting which cultivars you use to create products?

“We select cultivars based on product fit. A cultivar that looks great as flower may not be the best choice for extraction. A cultivar that performs well in hydrocarbon extraction may not wash well for solventless. A strain can have high THC and still not deliver the flavor, yield, stability, or consumer experience we want.

“We look at cannabinoid content, terpene profile, aroma, structure, extraction yield, color, stability, consumer demand, and how that cultivar performs in the final product format. The goal is not just to chase high THC. The goal is to create products that people want to buy again.”

What makes your products unique in this space?

“We are manufacturers first, and I think consumers can feel that in the products. We are very hands-on with product development. I personally spent years developing formulations, and I still test products myself. If something is not good enough for me, it is not good enough for our customers.

“We also build products for real consumers, not just for hype. Some consumers want value. Some want potency. Some want flavor. Some want convenience. Some want a product that feels fun or different. Our brands let us serve those different consumers without forcing one brand to be everything.

“For us, the goal is simple: consistent products, fair pricing, strong execution, and brands people trust enough to buy again.”

What is your top-performing product?

“Spacebuds has been one of our strongest-performing product lines, especially our infused flower and moon rock-style products. Consumers respond to products that feel different, deliver a strong experience, and still provide value.

“New York Honey has also been a major performer for us because it hits a very important part of the market: consumers who want a reliable, affordable, high-quality vape product without unnecessary gimmicks.

“Those two brands show the range of what we are trying to build. Spacebuds is more experiential and innovation-driven. New York Honey is focused on everyday value, accessibility, and consistency.”

What is your personal favorite product?

“New York Honey will always be one of my favorites because it represents the original mission very clearly: make a quality cannabis product that regular people can afford.

“I also love Spacebuds because it gives us room to innovate. It is fun, it performs well, and it lets us push product development in ways that consumers can immediately understand.

“If I had to choose one, I would probably say New York Honey because of what it stands for. It is practical, accessible, and built for real consumers.”

What lessons have you learned from day one to now?

“The biggest lesson is that cannabis is not enough by itself. You still have to run a real business.

“A great product matters, but so do cash flow, compliance, inventory, collections, hiring, logistics, packaging, production planning, sales discipline, and customer service. A company can have great cannabis and still fail if the systems are not there.

“I have also learned that the market changes constantly. Pricing changes. Regulations change. Consumer preferences change. Retailer needs change. You cannot build a company around assumptions. You have to keep learning, keep adapting, and keep improving. The companies that last will be the ones that build real operating infrastructure, not just hype.”

What is the best piece of advice someone has ever given you?

“One of the best pieces of advice I ever received came from the military: ‘Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. ‘ That applies directly to manufacturing. When people rush, they make mistakes. When systems are sloppy, quality suffers. When quality suffers, the customer feels it. The goal is not to move recklessly. The goal is to build a system that is so disciplined and repeatable that speed becomes a result of doing things correctly.”

What is ahead for Veterans Holdings?

“The next phase for us is about continuing to professionalize and scale. We are expanding our manufacturing capabilities, improving our systems, strengthening our brands, and continuing to support retailers across New York. Our third facility is an important part of that future because it gives us additional distribution and cultivation infrastructure.

“New York is still an early market. There is a lot of noise, but there is also a lot of opportunity. We believe disciplined manufacturers with strong products, strong compliance, and strong relationships will be the ones that survive.”

Share some parting wisdom.

“Cannabis is still a young industry, and I think people underestimate how much real manufacturing discipline it is going to require.

“The next phase will not be won by whoever has the flashiest brand or the biggest press release. It will be won by operators who can produce consistent products, manage costs, support retailers, comply with regulations, and earn consumer trust over time. For me, the most meaningful part is that we are doing that in Gloversville. This city had a tremendous industrial history. It was built around manufacturing, and then a lot of that disappeared. But the infrastructure, the workforce mentality, and the need for good jobs are still here.

“When locally owned cannabis manufacturers succeed, the impact stays in the community. Employees spend their money locally. Vendors benefit. Families benefit. The city benefits. That multiplier is very different from a national company coming in, extracting value, and sending the money somewhere else. That is what makes this bigger than cannabis for me. It is about building something durable, creating jobs, and proving that communities like ours can still manufacture, compete, and win,” Ambrosino said.