Puro’s big bet on organic cannabis and the Icehouse push that set Tim Aldridge’s path

When Tim Aldridge walked into the Icehouse Owner Manager Programme in 2018, he expected a framework for scaling his event and equipment companies. He left the Icehouse six months later with a plan to exit, space to re-think and with a new table to play at - his phrase for picking the right industry before you play the next hand. That choice became Puro, a Marlborough based medicinal cannabis producer, now exporting at scale and creating significant attention across the world, including a landmark $16 million deal signed in June, in London.

“It gave me courage and confidence to think big and fully back myself,” Tim says talking about his time in the Icehouse Owner Manager Programme. “If you want to know what is holding your business back, look in the mirror.” That one idea, paired with a clear sense of focus, pushed Tim to step away from successful companies and instead find an opportunity that matched his appetite for building new ventures.

Early days

Tim’s entrepreneurial spirit goes way back. Raised in Blenheim, he grew up immersed in a family nursery, serving customers and learning the rhythms of small business.

At 22, he borrowed $40,000 from his grandmother, bought a marquee and a truck, and started Party Warehouse from a garage in Christchurch. He grew that into a group that included a general hire company and co-founding large events including Electric Avenue Music Festival and the Great Kiwi Beer Festival.

By the time he reached the Owner Manager Programme, he had two hire branches and was planning a national roll out.

The Icehouse unsettled Tim’s plan in the best possible way. Facilitators and his Icehouse “crew” challenged his assumptions until he could see that his passion lay elsewhere.

“The Icehouse was a game changer,” he says. “I loved the people in OMP 43, the active listening, the culture work, the clarity about saying no. Know your niche, be the best at it, and do not try to own the whole value chain.”

Starting Puro and medicinal cannabis regulation

Tim spent time after the Programme mapping sectors he was interested in. Healthcare sat at the top, with a pull toward plant-based medicine.

An introduction to Sank Macfarlane and Tom Forrest, who had the idea to grow medicinal cannabis in Marlborough, was the start of what would become Puro.

Tim funded and led the early company work, fronting capital raising and stakeholder engagement. He says his job is to stay out of day to day growing, and focus on customers, government, investors, and partners. “We have an amazing team, my role is external.”

The market was never going to be easy. New Zealand’s regulatory settings left licensed growers with a small domestic channel and, until the middle of last year, no workable export path. Puro downsized from about 25 staff to 14, then invested through the lean years in genetics, product formats, quality systems, supply chain, and market access. When export rules shifted in July 2024, the groundwork was in place, and the team were well positioned to move fast, ramp up production, and hire again – now back to about 25 people and recruiting.

This summer it plans to grow five times last season’s production to meet demand.

Tim says Puro exported 75% of New Zealand’s medicinal cannabis last year, in a field of more than 40 licensed growers, and shipped three times more than all other growers combined. “The journey has been very hard,” he says, “but we have come out the other side with products getting recognition globally.”

Organic, outdoors, and live dried

Puro’s main USP surrounds a values decision. The company grows outdoors, under the sun, and it grows organic. That makes compliance with pharmaceutical quality standards harder, yet the result sets the flower apart. Outdoor organic cultivation delivers a terpene rich profile that buyers and customers want. Puro “live dries” its flower, an innovative freeze-drying process that locks in aroma and colour. “Our buds are bright green and spongy, they look fresh, they smell great,” Tim says. “We are the only company we know of producing live dried organic medicinal cannabis flower at scale in the world.”

That combination resonated with IPS Pharma, the United Kingdom’s largest importer and distributor of medicinal cannabis - the two companies signing a distribution agreement in June 2025, IPS will launch a series of Puro products from the end of this year and into next.

Brand New Zealand is very strong. “It was humbling to see how well New Zealand is regarded in the UK, the trust in our regulations and primary produce, and the willingness to do business with Kiwis – they love New Zealand!”

The organic stance also attracts talent and partners. It has supported a significant research programme with the Ministry for Primary Industries, through the Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures Fund. It has deepened relationships with local iwi, and it has given the company a clear internal compass. “It was a values call that proved to be smart business. Going organic has been one of the best decisions we have made” he says.

Focus by design, lessons from the programme

Tim is explicit about what the company is not. It does not manufacture finished medicines; it does not run distribution. Puro invests where Marlborough and New Zealand have an edge, growing quality product at scale and building quality systems and trust. Tim is delighted that co-founder Sank Macfarlane is now in the Icehouse Owner Manager Programme – “it’s great to be testing and validating our plans and processes and Sank is fizzing!”

Scaling the model

Puro currently cultivates about 5 hectares and is scaling toward 20 to 25 hectares to supply the UK and Australia. Germany, the world’s largest medicinal cannabis market, is on the roadmap once capacity allows. The company also sells into New Zealand indirectly, its organic cannabis underpins a widely prescribed local CBD product, however exports are the focus while domestic settings remain restrictive.

The next phase is about replication. Puro has developed cannabis genetics suited to outdoor conditions, production systems, post-harvest technology, and market channels. The plan is to partner with landholders through a contract growing model, beginning in Kaikōura, Marlborough, and Tasman, then expanding across the South Island, and later the North Island. Tim calls the setup years Puro 1.0, the current scale up Puro 2.0, and a national contract grow network Puro 3.0. “That is when we become the Zespri of medicinal cannabis,” he says.

The challenges and the opportunities

Tim is quick to thank government agencies that have supported the company. NZTE, MPI, and Treasury feature in his account of export progress, bank support, and research investment. He is equally clear about what still slows the sector.

Growers sit inside a health led regulatory system even though they operate as primary producers. He argues for a future where cultivation is regulated by the Ministry for Primary Industries, and for common sense fixes that do not require an overhaul. The example he offers is stark. Even CBD products, with no psychotropic properties, require weeks of permissions and thousands of dollars to send tiny samples offshore. “It has been cheaper to fly buyers here than to courier a matchbox sized sample,” he says. “We say that we grow two products, cannabis and documents, and the documents matter just as much.”

Puro is not just a company story - it’s a template for a new export category built on New Zealand’s strengths, primary production, research, and brand. The Puro name is unashamedly building on the100% Pure New Zealand brand and Tim says for good reason – “we’re taking New Zealand medicinal cannabis global and we have the support from MPI and government to make it happen.”

“We are right on the cusp of something special,” Tim says. “The opportunity is amazing and it’s right in front of us now - we have the team, the partners, and the products, it’s up to us to execute. We’re excited. Watch this space.”