Sevan Matossian (00:00):
What do you wear? Glasses?
Caleb Beaver (00:02):
Uh, not normally. I’m just having some, I think I got some sand in my eye, so I kept wearing
Sevan Matossian (00:07):
’em. Aha. A clue. Bam. We’re live. Some sand in your eye. Hmm? You’re at the beach. You’ve been, uh, deployed in Miami the entire time.
Caleb Beaver (00:15):
Yep. It’s been a pretty dope, pretty dope spot to deploy.
Sevan Matossian (00:18):
We figured you out the way you just poured whatever you just poured. It looked like you, like, had just done a, a little grinder with some weed and you were just pouring it. <laugh>.
Caleb Beaver (00:28):
There’s plenty of that around too.
Sevan Matossian (00:30):
Uh, we had a guy named Micha Mickel Mickel, who is the, uh, founder of the most popular, uh, game in the country of Denmark. Uh, Clak. Uh, I own both versions of, which is actually a quite a fun game. My power went out a few days ago and the, the whole family played Clak at New Year’s Eve. And then we had that guy on who wrote, who writes a book. Oh, he’s gone. Then we had that guy on, or before that we had a guy on who wrote a book, like every week. Do you remember that guy? He wrote like my big Black Hawk.
Caleb Beaver (01:01):
<laugh>. Yeah.
Sevan Matossian (01:02):
<laugh>. And, and that was pretty cool. And, uh, I think we’ve had on some other, uh, I’m trying to remember who else we’ve had on, but I kind, I like this entrepreneurial, entrepreneurial, it’s pr, entrepreneurial. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Entrepreneurial. Entrepreneurial. Someone spelled entrepreneurial. Entrepreneurial class of guess. And in a way, Patrick Bed. David was his own. Entrepreneurial. Entrepreneurial. Per or per, is it PR or P? God
Caleb Beaver (01:37):
Damn it. I think it’s p r e
Sevan Matossian (01:39):
I’m saying goddammit a lot. I think I need to go back into, uh, entrepreneur. It’s pr entrepreneurial. It’s entrepreneurial class of guests. Tha Thank you. Entrepreneur. Like Roe. So the, the, the guy who invented the boards, the author. Now we have, now we have Roe Dunkelman. Crazy. How’s it
Roee Dunkelman (02:04):
Going? What’s up? Dude, did I, did I jump in a bit early
Sevan Matossian (02:06):
Here? No, no, never. It’s ok. No, no. My, my door’s always open. You just walk in. If you catch me naked. If you catch me naked, it is what it is. I’ll run in to my bedroom. Just,
Roee Dunkelman (02:17):
Just zoom in?
Sevan Matossian (02:18):
Yeah, yeah, just zoom in. Just hold, just hold your breath.
Roee Dunkelman (02:23):
<laugh>. It’s, uh, it’s Rowe by the way.
Sevan Matossian (02:25):
Rowe?
Roee Dunkelman (02:26):
Yeah. Okay. It’s like Joey with an R.
Sevan Matossian (02:29):
Duh. Roe. I, I’ve never met a Rowe.
Roee Dunkelman (02:31):
It’s, uh, yeah, yeah. First, I guess first of it’s gone for you, but yeah, it’s his, it’s Israeli.
Sevan Matossian (02:36):
Have you ever met a Rowe besides yourself?
Roee Dunkelman (02:39):
Yes.
Sevan Matossian (02:40):
Ha. Have you been to Israel?
Roee Dunkelman (02:42):
Yes. That’s my dad’s from there.
Sevan Matossian (02:44):
And so is that pretty common name there, Rowe?
Roee Dunkelman (02:46):
I don’t think it’s like a Josh, but it could be like a, I don’t know. I’ll try to think of something that’s comparable.
Sevan Matossian (02:57):
My name’s Savon and it’s a lake in Armenia. And when I went to Armenia, the people there looked at me like, Hey, no one names their kid after the lake. Yeah. <laugh> like, what, what did you like, what did your parents do?
Roee Dunkelman (03:08):
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know, I know. The, uh, the foreign names are tough, but I love while we’re here,
Sevan Matossian (03:14):
Um, just, just to, uh, appease my ego, how many people have ever gotten it right and say Rowe instead of Roe?
Roee Dunkelman (03:23):
Uh, upon first glance, most people go with Roe. Uh, if you’re taking it back to like,
Sevan Matossian (03:29):
Non-res, by the way, that’s cheating. I mean, just like regular ding Dons like me.
Roee Dunkelman (03:34):
Yeah. Yeah. So most people do go with Roe. Me personally, I, I see it. If we’re throwing it back to like elementary school conventions of like two E’s next to each other.
Sevan Matossian (03:43):
Uhoh, I’m getting schools
Roee Dunkelman (03:44):
Here. I would, I would think, I would hope that, you know, you could, you could, uh, infer how to pronounce it, but, um, oh yeah, there’s no, no wor no worries there. That’s okay. There is, we’re learning lessons today.
Sevan Matossian (03:56):
Caleb, did he just say if you paid attention in the second grade, you would never fuck my name up. I think that’s what I heard too. <laugh> something. We’re off to a wrong foot. Didn’t you read the pamphlet? How to get on a podcast? Always placate the host Ego. Damn it
Roee Dunkelman (04:14):
Is that. No, I I I must’ve skipped that chap. I, I too, I, I too must have been dozing often in school.
Sevan Matossian (04:22):
Um, second grade podcast class, uh, ro Yes. Yes. You weren’t paying attention during podcast class Rowe
Roee Dunkelman (04:28):
<laugh>. Yeah, well, I would’ve been on the cusp. I just would’ve missed the podcast class, but I would be surprised if that’s, uh, soon to be an elective.
Sevan Matossian (04:36):
Yeah, right. Uh, especially in Canada. Sorry. Couldn’t help that. Especially.
Roee Dunkelman (04:41):
Yeah,
Sevan Matossian (04:42):
No worries. Um, where are you in Canada? You’re in Ontario?
Roee Dunkelman (04:46):
Yeah, Toronto.
Sevan Matossian (04:47):
Toronto. You know, um, the, I’m, I’m 50, uh, Rowe and I still sometimes get like nervous, like that my mom’s listening and like this podcast that I’ve been doing for two years now is kind of an exploration of just accidental shit that falls outta my mouth. And like, um, and I get a little, like, I’m like, oh man, how do people become comedians at 25, knowing that, like, don’t they feel that pressure from their parents to still like, so you invent this board, that’s the, um, cock board may, maybe I’m getting ahead of myself, but I really want to know how the first time you said that, uh, your parents aren’t like professional comedians or anything, right? I’m guessing you’re Jewish. They’re like, you have a, a psychologist and you have two psych, you have a psychologist and a lawyer. They’re both academics. Am I close? Uh,
Roee Dunkelman (05:37):
Uh, both academics, not psychologists and lawyer. My mom’s a social worker at, at a, at a hospital.
Sevan Matossian (05:43):
I’m giving myself a point for that psychologist social worker. I’m giving myself a point. No,
Roee Dunkelman (05:46):
That, that, that those are the same camps. Thank you. Um, and my dad is a, uh, he’s a graphic designer, but uh, he’s been teaching at the, um, it’s called the Ontario of Art Design for like, uh, the last like 35 plus years. He, he recently, he retired last year, but he’s a, he’s a like a private designer and then also has taught graphic design for like, the bulk of his career.
Sevan Matossian (06:09):
And, and so, um, wow. He’s probably seen some, there’s been crazy changes in that field. Crazy. Yeah. In terms of, in terms of tools, right?
Roee Dunkelman (06:18):
Yeah, for sure. For sure. I mean, like, you know, just the whole transition from like, uh, an like, just everything analog to like, now everything’s Adobe Suite, so that kind of idea.
Sevan Matossian (06:27):
Yeah, just straight adobe. Crazy.
Roee Dunkelman (06:29):
Yeah, yeah, yeah,
Sevan Matossian (06:30):
Yeah. Just print and cash over there. Uh, sign up for your, uh, subscription.
Roee Dunkelman (06:34):
Pretty much, yeah.
Sevan Matossian (06:36):
Oh, um, and how do you break the, uh, the, the board to them? Is it, is it easy? How old are you?
Roee Dunkelman (06:42):
I will be 27 in April, and I started this when I was 25.
Sevan Matossian (06:48):
Okay. So you have this idea. We’ll, we’ll get to the idea if you don’t mind. Uh, eventually, we’ll, we’ll backtrack, but I’m just curious. Like, for my own personal, um, since I’m 50 and I’m still haven’t mastered the art of being myself around my parents, how, um, uh, yeah, it’s, it’s like coming out and being gay is, but it’s hard. I think it’s even harder to release the cockie board. <laugh>, uh, I’m gay. Are you really? No, I just wanna see how you react cuz I got this other crazy idea. Yeah, exactly. It’s this cutting board shaped like a caulking balls.
Roee Dunkelman (07:18):
Uh, yeah. So I kept this a secret for a very long time. Oh, good. Uh, yeah, as long as possible. Like, I was tinkering in the basement, uh, you know, like with the prototype, like initially, so I, I asked my dad one time to pick me up just like some foam core, uh, like a foam board from do like the dollar store on the way home. And I, mind you, I was like 25 when I asked him for this. So like, uh, he had every reason to ask me why, what I could possibly need it for, but like, God bless him, he just answered the call, didn’t asked any questions. He goes, here’s your stuff, like, enjoy your arts and crafts and, uh, didn’t follow up. And then I take it to the basement and I, I took like different pots and pans, like smaller ones, big ones to like experiment with the circumference for like what testicles would be
Sevan Matossian (08:04):
And just try to Oh, like you draw the circle for the balls
Roee Dunkelman (08:06):
For the nuts. Yeah. Uhhuh, <affirmative>. So I, so that’s how I started. Um, and then I started sketching it out, uh, you know, relatively familiar with the shape and, uh, had different sizes. And then they were just like, ja, like, they were just like pieces of jaggedy cutout foam board in the shape of, of dicks. And I’m like, is should the shaft be skinny or fat? Or should it be longer? Like, how does everything work? Once I fi narrowed it down, you know, mind you like, it wasn’t like huge process. Like I had like maybe six cutouts with a few inches shaved here and there, and I finally, I’m like, yeah, like I feel like if this was a board, this would look good. And then I started reaching out to local manufacturers and I probably hit up about like 70.
Sevan Matossian (08:46):
And your parents still don’t know, you have this, uh, experimental, uh, cockie going on in the basement. Is that normal to have basements in? Um, in, uh, where Toronto,
Roee Dunkelman (08:57):
Yeah. Yeah.
Sevan Matossian (08:59):
Okay. We don’t have them. I’m in California. We don’t have those.
Roee Dunkelman (09:01):
Yeah, not none, eh, is it just, just a bungalow style?
Sevan Matossian (09:04):
I guess it’s just cheap, shitty homes that are expensive.
Roee Dunkelman (09:07):
Where in California?
Sevan Matossian (09:08):
Uh, Santa Cruz.
Roee Dunkelman (09:10):
Okay. Very cool. I was, uh, I I, I went to California for my first time in 2019, and I love it.
Sevan Matossian (09:19):
Oh, those boards would be so popular here.
Roee Dunkelman (09:21):
Yeah, I mean, actually, uh, cal like the US is my, we’ll get into this, I’m sure, but the US is my biggest, biggest market far, far and away. And California is a very loyal, our very loyal customers there. I, I think I probably shift the most out there.
Sevan Matossian (09:35):
Yeah, li uh, the liberal people love, uh, cock balls, uh, and, and vaginas. They, they like to parade them around, put them on elementary schools and all sorts of shit. <laugh>. So cock guty is no, uh, no stretch. So when you’re doing those shapes, I know we’re gonna get to the parent thing, but I, I guess it also has to be practical, right? Like you’re like, okay, this might not be to ratio the thickness or the circumference of the penis, but it also has to hold, it has to be functional to, to like bring out the cheese and crackers.
Roee Dunkelman (10:06):
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, like, you know, uh, it would be like in terms of like thickness and like durability, like in the ballpark of what your typical cutting board would be. So I think cutting boards usually run like an inch thick, maybe inch and a half. These are three quarters of an inch. So, uh, they’re more like plat, they’re more resemble like a platter.
Sevan Matossian (10:25):
Okay.
Roee Dunkelman (10:26):
Uh, so anyways, um, I started reaching out to manufacturers. Uh, I didn’t hear from most of them. The ones that I did hear back from were like, not interested. Um, and, uh, so like initially I, uh, that was like my first series of nos. Um, I felt like maybe someone would gimme a look, but eventually I started just like trying to leverage the, the little network I had in, in the woodworking community. And it was someone that referred me, you know, a few rungs through the grapevine. Um, and I ended up finding a manufacturer in a town called Kingston, Ontario, which is about like two and a half, three hours. Oh, is it east? I think east of Toronto.
Sevan Matossian (11:12):
Roe can I, I don’t, I don’t wanna forget this question. Uh, sorry, I’m gonna interrupt a lot. It’s what I do. Yeah, go
Roee Dunkelman (11:18):
Ahead.
Sevan Matossian (11:20):
When you get the nose, is it because, because have they seen the shape of the board? Is there any, are the nose Oh, it is because of that. It’s not, Hey, we don’t do uh, uh, char tu or char tu boards.
Roee Dunkelman (11:33):
I, I sup. Good question. I, I think like, like, okay, I’ll say this in the introductory email, like, I didn’t shy away from anything. I’m like, Hey, this is my idea. Here’s the sketch, here are the dimensions I’m thinking. Um, just to like package it up in one shot. Uh, and like, again, I didn’t hear from a lot of them. A bunch of them were pro. I were like, no, we don’t do this type of stuff. Um, and then sometimes like there was someone who was like, I don’t feel comfortable doing this. And then I tried to like level with them. I’m like, this is just a, you know, this is just the shape. It’s kind of irrelevant, like trying to develop a business <laugh>. And then I like it. And, and then, and then like, you know, I said for like, that was my one like time I did, I did some like pushback, but I also told myself from the beginning, like, I think this is a funny idea. I know it’s gonna be polarizing. There’s gonna be people that get it. Think it’s funny. There’s people who
Sevan Matossian (12:21):
Hate penis out there
Roee Dunkelman (12:22):
And there’s people who’s gonna be like, this is dumb. I’m not engaging in this. And like, I’m not trying to make a believer out of anyone. Like Right. It’s, it’s like, it’s polarizing. Either love it or you hate it. And for those that hate it, that’s fine. Uh, so I’m not trying to like make a believer to convince anyone. This is funny. I, so anyhow, um, I get referred to this guy in Kingston, so it’s like a town, you know, two hours away from Toronto. And, uh, and um, he, he was like, yeah, we could do it. And like, uh, yeah. So yeah, there you go. Um,
Sevan Matossian (12:52):
Uh, nice lake people still Lake
Roee Dunkelman (12:53):
People. Yeah, exactly. Um, and uh, yeah, he’s like, yeah, we could do it. Like, he gave me like, yeah, this would roughly be like, I’d have to, you know, do some prototype. Oh, sorry. I gapped one crucial step. Um, when I was reach to that initial batch of 75 that were like more local, uh, some guy like, thought it was a hilarious, loved it and was like, I can’t make it for you, but I can at least give you a, like a prototype and I can improve the design. Cuz the initial design was just like a very like, cartoony one. And he is like, do you mind if I like make it more anatomically correct? I’m like, yeah, for sure. Go for it. So, uh, and then he made me two prototypes out of, uh, material called mdf Dunno what it stands for, but it’s kind of like compressed like paper, uh, and it’s very cheap and like pretty much resembles like what the sturdiness would be of like, you know, you’re given species of wood.
(13:46):
Um, so then I, then I had the physical, like I actually held it like proper dimensions and that’s when I could like really visualize if this thing had legs. Um, so I took those files. Uh, he gave me a file, it was like a universal file, so that’s what I was sending it out to all these manufacturers. So anyways, this kicks and guy’s like, yeah, I can do it. Uh, I can either like, make them completely done, ready to sell, like sand it, you know, treat it with food, safe oil, all that stuff, or I can give it to you like rough. And then like you can absorb some of the labor, obviously I was like just getting this off the ground. I had the time. So I’m like, you know what? I wanna keep my costs low. I’ll do as much labor as reasonable, which is like some light sanding, cleaning up the edges, uh, and oiling these things. Um, so I started there, I started with like 50 boards. Um, and then I, I got them, I sanded them, I oiled them, I, I engraved them. I ha I bought like a hobby kind of level, tabletop engraver, um, so I could put my logo on it and then offer custom engravings, which like I have on the site. Um, now I have two, but initially it was just the one. And then I, my dad,
Sevan Matossian (14:54):
I mean two, like two locations in the center, like up on the scrotum.
Roee Dunkelman (14:57):
No, I could do any location. I meant two physical engravers cuz just like, one was a
Sevan Matossian (15:02):
Huge oh
Roee Dunkelman (15:02):
Oh one was a huge bottleneck. One. Like I kind of started yeah, moving these things. But anyway, so my dad obviously has a very good network in the like, design space. So he had a photographer buddy who came by and snapped some like, unbelievable photos to get some like assets for the site and for social. Uh, so I spot up the site like I did like nine, I’d say like 95% of it. I’m on Shopify. Like I just like, you know, just slaved over the stuff for like months and months and months. And then for some of the technical stuff, I just like hired, some people have fiber, um, but like most of it was myself. And then, uh, did like a pre-launch on social media and I was like really, really, uh, fortunate to have like a pretty good release, uh, sorry, like launch. It’s pretty successful. Like got a good following. Got like, my, my first ever post was a giveaway post and I got, I think it got like a thousand comments or something.
Sevan Matossian (15:52):
Wow.
Roee Dunkelman (15:53):
Yeah. It was, it was very successful. So
Sevan Matossian (15:56):
When did you, when did you come out of the, uh, when did you come out of the basement? When did you tell your parents? Oh,
Roee Dunkelman (16:01):
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, so, uh, I had, so it was after the prototypes, like the MDF boards, like I had like the physical board. And I think it was just time where like I was tinkering for long enough for I, like, I gotta make some like significant moves. And, uh, um,
Sevan Matossian (16:15):
Were your parents, like, were you just living at home and your parents like, Hey, you need to get a job. What are you doing? And you’re just like, uh, I’m working on something.
Roee Dunkelman (16:21):
I I I had a job at the time. Um, so I dunno how much detail you required, but I’ll, I’ll make this short. So there’s a company that I was working for at the time called Clear Bank. They’re now Clear Co. So we have a, uh, Canadian version of Shark Tank called Dragons Den. And one of the dragons was this co-founder of the company I worked for. And that the premise is non-dilutive capital specifically for D two C brands. Um, so kind of like subconscious
Sevan Matossian (16:50):
D to C is, uh,
Roee Dunkelman (16:52):
Direct to consumer.
Sevan Matossian (16:53):
Okay.
Roee Dunkelman (16:54):
Yeah. So it kind of like subconsciously like paved the way for me to, and that’s when I got this idea and, you know, I was fe speaking to these DDC founders day in, day out and like listening to their struggles and all this. And I’m just like, I could probably do this. Um, and like when I got the idea, I actually like was like a, this is done b it probably already exists and it did already exist. Um, uh, but I just saw like their social media and, and kind of where they were lacking. And I’m like, if this was my company that I would think I could do a significantly better job. So I’m like, you know what, let’s roll the dice on 50. So anyways, I was, I did have a job, uh, um, and uh, when I got the idea, so this was like a side thing. And then eventually, so
Sevan Matossian (17:37):
Your parents weren’t tripping, like you were just sitting in the basement smoking weed, like fiddling with wood? They you had already
Roee Dunkelman (17:42):
I wasn’t there yet. I wasn’t even there yet. Um, because I just had like the two prototypes. Yeah. And I was just like, okay, the time is now. I have the prototypes, I have my manufacturer, he’s ready to go, he is waiting on me. Um, and uh, like I just couldn’t, if I wanted to actually take the plunge, then it would have to be known, right? I’d be, you know, having like 50 board in the basement, I’d be standing these like, it, it had to be known, so I couldn’t go on much further. So I just had to sit them down after dinner. And I think my opening line was, so I have to tell you something, I don’t think you’re gonna like it. And then just like, let that sink in. And then I just like pulled out the prototype from like, behind the wall.
Sevan Matossian (18:24):
How much better was it that you set it up like that? Cuz they’re like, he has aids or like, he got a girl pregnant and instead it’s just a dick board.
Roee Dunkelman (18:32):
Yeah. I think that was like somewhat strategic, like, let them well done, let their mind, let their minds go to the worst possible place and like, oh, he’s gonna be an entrepreneur. Yeah. There’s worst things that could happen. So I thought, so like, my dad’s like Israeli dude, conservative, like whatever. And I thought
Sevan Matossian (18:49):
It was, I approve. I approve.
Roee Dunkelman (18:51):
Yeah. I thought he was gonna be the most resistant. And my mom like is like, we have this type of relationship where, uh, even if she like disapproved, like I was way more concerned about what my dad thought. <laugh>. Um, so
Sevan Matossian (19:02):
Your mom would support you, you’re a boy. Yeah, yeah. Even if, whatever.
Roee Dunkelman (19:06):
Exactly. So, uh, it was very much like that. Um, and they’re surprisingly like the, the any sort of resistance or reservation, like quickly went, quickly went away. Um, they’re like, you know what? I actually see it. I get it, and I don’t think it’s the worst idea you’ve ever had. And sure, go for it. So that was a huge relief because that, that was obviously like a, a big moment that I was must, you know, I was blowing up in my head, thought I was gonna be like this old flight and this whole eruption and all this pushback, but no, uh, they were super supportive and still are very supportive. And then, um, my dad, and this
Sevan Matossian (19:47):
Was, this was two years ago, right? Rowe?
Roee Dunkelman (19:49):
Yeah. So, so I released, like, my website went live September 15th, 2021. Okay. And then I, I would say like roughly like nine months prior to that is when like, I got the idea, I started prototyping. So like I, it was, I was working on it for quite a bit, um, just making sure like all systems were a go for the release and the launch and all that. Um, yeah. So,
Sevan Matossian (20:14):
Hey, do you remember, do you remember the first time? I wanna, I wanna show you something real quick. I I don’t even know if any of my listeners know this. I, I was, uh, I was growing a, I didn’t even smoke weed at the time, but I was, I, I, my friend was vaping, uh, like, not like vaping, like the way kids do it today, but like, they used to be
Roee Dunkelman (20:33):
This baking weed. Yeah,
Sevan Matossian (20:34):
Yeah. And he had this big pile of weed at his house, and I went over there and I’m like, Hey dude, why is there just a big pile of weed sitting down? And he’s all, I’ve already smoked it. I’m like, you already smoked it? And he’s like, yeah, I vaped it. And so I’m digging through it and I found a seed.
Roee Dunkelman (20:47):
Oh,
Sevan Matossian (20:48):
Okay. And he is like, Hey, you can’t grow that. I’m like, okay, fine then can I have it? He’s like, yeah. So I grew it <laugh> in, in, in a closet, and I, and I, and I took, at the time I didn’t plan on doing anything, but step by step, I took pictures every single day and wrote down everything I did. And then I glued all the pictures to pieces of cardboard and I made this book <laugh> out of cardboard in like those, those big steel metal rings. Okay. Yeah. And I called and, uh, and I called it this. And then finally one day, I, I, I was reading in the newspaper that the largest, uh, um, publisher of marijuana books in the world was in my neighborhood in Oakland, California. So I just took ’em over this cardboard book and I’m like, Hey, do you want to?
(21:28):
And they picked it up and, and now I, I have this book, marijuana Buds for this. I mean, I, this is like 15 or tw I don’t know how long ago I made this. I hadn’t hadn’t thought about this in years until just now talking to you. But when I told my parents about this, I was like, holy shit. Yeah. And then I wrote a follow up book, let’s Grow a Pound. But brings me to my next question. I remember, and I, I didn’t even use my real name. Look at the name I used Seymour Buds.
Roee Dunkelman (21:52):
Nice.
Sevan Matossian (21:53):
Yeah. Just a fake author name. Yeah. Get your copy now. People a, anyway, uh, that’s nice. Did you know that about me, Caleb?
Caleb Beaver (22:03):
Yeah, I think, yeah. I didn’t know that you, do you, it has been a few years since you told that story though,
Sevan Matossian (22:07):
So. Oh, it has. Okay. Good. All right. Thank you. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Uh, so, uh, yes, I am, uh, Jeffrey Berkfield, uh, he’s a beacon of diversity and inclusion with numerous types of guests He has on Yeah. From, uh, the KKK to a nice Jewish boy making Cock Kari. It’s a, we’re all one on planet Earth
Roee Dunkelman (22:25):
<laugh>.
Sevan Matossian (22:25):
And it’s hard to remember that. Um, do you remember the first time you heard your parents tell, like, they’re on the phone with your aunt and they’re like, yeah, we’re so excited a Rowe started a business. Cause I remember when my parents would like, I’d just overhear them be like, yes, Seon has a book. I’m like, holy shit. They really do love it. Yeah. You know what I mean?
Roee Dunkelman (22:44):
<laugh>, they, you know what, they they are, they were, and still are very quick to gloat.
Sevan Matossian (22:50):
Oh, good. About your ka guie boards. Yes. Yeah. God, I love parents.
Roee Dunkelman (22:54):
Yeah. Yeah. They’re, they’re very surpris, very supportive, very proud. Like, you know, I, I’ve done a handful of like those mar like popup markets and whatever, and they’re riding it with me like, you know, it’s, they’re like three day events, morning till night, and we’re lugging stuff and they’re in it with me. They’re in the trenches with me. So, you know,
Sevan Matossian (23:10):
You like your dad’s there setting up like your, your canopy with you and your mom’s bringing you coffee, all of it. Oh God,
Roee Dunkelman (23:16):
I love it. All of it. Yeah. All of it. Yeah. Yeah. No, they’re, they’re, you know what, like once, uh, once you can come to terms with the shape, and this is something that like, <laugh>, I think people also at first glance, like they probably discount it. Uh, and this is my favorite part, right? Like, people probably don’t give it the credit that I think it could, it, it should deserve. Cuz like, you know, I’ve grown it pretty substantially. Um, and, uh, which is fine. So my favorite part that people think it’s kind of like a, you know, like a here and there kind of thing. But like, this is my full-time job. Um, and like I’ve experienced like some pretty good growth in like the 16 months that I’ve been doing it. And, um, and it still has, like, despite the shape, it has all the growing pains of a regular business.
(24:01):
Hmm. Um, which people probably don’t give it credit for because they think it’s like, you know, it’s like a gimmick. It’s a gag thing. Uh, how, you know, how many of these could you really be moving? But, you know, like I tell you, like, it’s really tough as a, you know, it’s my first time doing this, I’m completely by myself. So it’s really tough, like when you have these like significant business decisions and this all this reinvesting in this budget and cash flow, and you have to like, you have to reinvest it properly and wisely. And like, I, you know, it, it’s, it ha it’s, it’s a, it’s a business. It has its pains, pain points and, and, and growing pains like, just like any other business. So, which people probably don’t recognize immediately. Uh, so that’s kind of, I always find interesting. But, um, back to like what you were saying, yeah. Parents huge support, quick to gloat, uh, all the time. Um, like when they have friends over, they wanna like entertain on one. Um, they’re always looking for opportunities to use it. So Yeah. They, uh, they’re my, they’re my biggest cheerleaders.
Sevan Matossian (25:06):
I love it. I love it. Hey, uh, it could be worse. You could marry an Armenian girl.
Roee Dunkelman (25:11):
Could be worse.
Sevan Matossian (25:12):
Yeah. You could marry one of the Kardashians. I’m Arm, I’m Armenian and my, and my wife is Jewish. And there’s, you know, your parents go through, they go through these phases where they’re like, we want you to marry an Armenian, we want you to marry a Jew. And then you reach a certain age and they’re like, they don’t give a fuck. They just want you to get married. Married, yeah. They just get married. Just, yeah. And then it’s like, have kids please have kids. Right. Uh, um, a a titty or vag board Next there is a, a booby board.
Roee Dunkelman (25:36):
There is, yeah. New release. Um, so I c I get a lot of flack for this because people are like, it, it should have been shark pity. Like it’s right there. Writing is on the wall. I get it. I personally find like despite the, the kind of field I find myself in the world, I find myself in. Yeah. I find titty, titty a little crass.
Sevan Matossian (25:57):
I agree. I agree.
Roee Dunkelman (25:59):
You know, like,
Sevan Matossian (26:00):
Yeah,
Roee Dunkelman (26:00):
I agree. Boobys more playful. Yes. Uh, a little more inclusive, more fun. So, uh, that’s what I’ve decided on. Uh, the biggest request fired away is a ucci board. Oh. Um, and you know, that comes with its complications just given kind of the, the intricacies of the region. Yeah. Um, and, but I, but look, it’s, it’s certainly on deck. I mean,
Sevan Matossian (26:27):
It’s got ape, it’s got the, the vagina’s kind of like a Sharpe, it, it, it’s, it’s not conducive to the, uh, the medium of wood. Well, you’re just gonna, it’s gonna
Roee Dunkelman (26:36):
Yes. Yeah. Because, because cock is silhouette, but yeah. The vagina is, is is all
Sevan Matossian (26:42):
About the, the detail. Well says silhouette.
Roee Dunkelman (26:44):
Yeah. I like it. So, uh, but, but look, it’s
Sevan Matossian (26:47):
Doable. I mean, you could be staring straight out of vagina and not know what it is. <laugh>, that’s, it’s usually the
Roee Dunkelman (26:54):
Position I find myself in.
Sevan Matossian (26:55):
Yeah, exactly. Me too. Oh, what is that? What happened to you down there? Are you okay?
Roee Dunkelman (27:00):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sevan Matossian (27:01):
Um, uh, all that stuff. How, it’s funny cuz I was thinking also of like, you probably, you can’t remember the last time you’ve gone a day without saying the word caulk.
Roee Dunkelman (27:10):
Yeah. It’s, it’s pretty all consuming. Uh, yeah. Yeah. It’s, it’s, it’s all day every day. It’s like full commitment, full priority, all that.
Sevan Matossian (27:21):
What about, um, uh, the, is it all, tell me, like we were talking about all the problems like a business has. So let me just take a stab at something. Have you changed, how did you decide what kind is there a standard, uh, wood people use for, um, like, I guess kitchen grade wood, that’s, and and have you had problems with supply chain? And like, tell me some of the things that are just like, holy shit, I would’ve never, or you have to buy like 12,000 trees to get started. You’re like, dude, all I want is hundred boards. Yeah. What are some of the issues?
Roee Dunkelman (27:51):
You know, it’s, uh, it’s pretty, it was, so this is the thing. I’m always kind of like subconsciously preparing myself for shit to hit the fan because like, it’s been a relatively smooth sailing attempt at this. Like, yeah, I’ve had my moments, don’t get me wrong, but like, it’s not like my basement flooded and all my inventory is to shit. Like, it hasn’t, like, I haven’t had anything like truly crippling, um,
Sevan Matossian (28:16):
Like all your boards got caught off the coast of Oakland during the pandemic and like, you couldn’t, nothing that think all that
Roee Dunkelman (28:21):
Shit. Like, I know there was a time where I think it was like just when I was getting started, like there was all this talk about like, uh, like wood prices are like, you know, three x what they used to be. So like, that was kind of like a o like obviously I decided to start this like right at like the time where wood is the most expensive it’s ever been. Like that was like, but again, it’s not a deterrent. It was just like a true and you just move on. But, um, um,
Sevan Matossian (28:46):
Yeah. Did what prices ever come down? Did they ever come down? They didn’t right
Roee Dunkelman (28:51):
It? No. Uh, no
Sevan Matossian (28:56):
Because like pl but four by eight pieces of like plywood around here went from like $20 to like a hundred dollars. It was crazy.
Roee Dunkelman (29:02):
Yeah. I think, um, I, I think I was, at the moment when I started producing, I was like already in the, uh, it was already when Wood was on the upswing, so I didn’t have like a stark before and after. Right. Um, so I, I can’t really speak much to that. Um, but like it, when you ask like what the, what are the growing pains of like, the business that I’m experiencing, it’s, it’s, it’s truthfully just like knowing what to do with the money and knowing what my next move is. I mean, I’d be, so the first year, the first 12 months of sales was completely organic. So it was like all through TikTok and truth be told, like TikTok and the ability to make content was, I think like the number one motivator for me is because like, I like, that’s like my favorite part of the business. Like the contents and like immediately when the stock came to mind, I’m like, think about all the funny content I could put out. Like TikTok is still very much a jugg or K not, but this was like right when TikTok was kind of surging. So.
The above transcript is generated using AI technology and therefore may contain errors.
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