FlowerHouse CEO Greg Tannor on the cannabis industry — and working with Carmelo Anthony

Eighteen years ago, Greg Tannor rolled joints for his mother to help her get through chemotherapy and radiation during her treatment for breast cancer.

Today, the Old Westbury resident is the CEO of FlowerHouse, a cannabis company based in upstate Walden with products available throughout Long Island dispensaries.

“It’s not just a business for me, it’s also a passion,” Tannor said.

In April, FlowerHouse worked with Oregon-based cannabis company LOWD to  launch NBA Hall of Famer and former Knicks star Carmelo Anthony’s cannabis brand, STAYME70 (pronounced Stay Melo), to New York from Oregon with a highly successful launch that included an appearance at Strain Stars in Farmingdale.

FlowerHouse’s offerings go beyond STAYME70. They source products from around New York, including pre-rolls and flower, and Tannor said he’s open to working with Long Island growers, too.

Newsday spoke with Tannor about bringing STAYME70 cannabis to Long Island, as well as some of the challenges of starting a cannabis business.

How did you get into the cannabis industry?

I got into cannabis through real estate. I was a commercial real estate broker for over 20 years and in November 2020 I learned that cannabis was going to be legal. So I really started understanding the cannabis industry, and started to call landlords and did a number of deals with cannabis operators to open up their stores and find them real estate. But in the process of that, I thought: "there’s going to be all these stores that are opening up, there has to be cultivation."

How did FlowerHouse get involved with Carmelo Anthony's brand?

FlowerHouse didn’t create the STAYME70 brand, but we brought it to New York. We had a relationship with LOWD and through that started to build a strategy to launch it in April 2025, and had a really successful rollout of the brand. Carmelo himself is very involved, from picking the right flower, the packaging. ... He’s 100% behind it.

What are some challenges FlowerHouse has experienced as a company?

There were a lot of operational issues in the beginning. I was helping out with sales but I had a day job, as well. So [I gave] as much time [as] I was able to give FlowerHouse, which [meant] getting products into as many stores that were opening throughout the market [as I could]. Then, in January 2024 we made a change in organizational structure and I stepped in as CEO. We have a five-step program of sourcing flower: quality control, environment, genetics, grow tactics and culture. We want the right culture, and we want to be able to give the right product to the consumers, which is super important to me in terms of safety and quality.

What is the 'right culture'?

I’m talking about the organization of FlowerHouse in terms of the culture. We’ve had employees with us from Day One, people who have wanted to join us, and we’re one big family. We try to relate that to the cannabis market as being this friendly cannabis company that people want to work with. So culture is important internally but externally, as well. We all come together because we’re in this for the same reason — the love of the plant.

Where do you see the industry going in the next five years?

Five years is a really long time in cannabis. I like to look over the next six to 12 months, because we never know what kind of curveballs we’re going to see out there. On Long Island, I would love to see some of the municipalities flip, allowing cannabis retail in areas it’s not permitted now, predominantly in Nassau County. In Suffolk, you’re seeing tax revenue go through the roof.

What is something unexpected you’ve learned working in the cannabis industry?

That cannabis is not easy. It’s very challenging. Outsiders, friends, people are like, ‘Oh, it’s so cool, you work in the cannabis industry. It’s so cool, you get people high for a living.’ It’s a business. It’s a real business, and it operates like one. There’s attention to detail, constant focus, constant pivoting, figuring out what’s working and what’s not working. It’s not for the faint of heart.

It’s not all — what’s the pun? — smoke and mirrors.