As Alexis Major walked down the aisle to a violinist’s rendition of John Legend’s “All of Me,” she could see her beloved, Karim Butler, seated beneath the ceremonial white floral arch, crying. She settled into the chair across from him, wiped the tears from his face, and the traditional Muslim wedding ceremony commenced.
From the ceremony to the after-party, the entire evening was a lavish affair — and the logo of their cannabis company, Gumbo, was a motif throughout the wedding.
The idea for Gumbo — the couple’s “baby,” as Mr. Butler called it — started in October 2019, after they noticed that many of their friends in the music and major league sports industries were becoming addicted to opioids. Both had long careers in those industries: Ms. Major, 45, was a manager for N.F.L. players; Mr. Butler, 47, who goes by Luka, worked with various musicians and record labels in management, marketing and promotion.
They wanted to develop an alternative pain management option, Ms. Major said, so they created Gumbo, which sells cannabis products in a variety of consumption forms. “It’s a mixture of a bunch of different strains that we say melted in a pot and became gumbo,” she said.
The couple hadn’t intended to build a large business, but as word of the strain spread, there proved to be a demand. “We were just medicating the people we knew,” Mr. Butler said. “And then it metamorphosed because the people wanted it.”
From there, Gumbo took off, and today it is sold in dispensaries worldwide. Mr. Butler is the chief executive of Gumbo, and Ms. Major is the chief financial officer. (“He’s the beauty, and I’m the brain,” Ms. Major said, jokingly.)
