Biggest Roadblocks Faced?

Hey everyone!

I hope everyone is doing great! Had a quick question for folks that maybe made the leap, or thought about it, from small time grower to establishing a legal commercial business.

For someone who has been a home grower and would love to participate in the industry legally, what are the biggest roadblocks the small guy or gal faces when taking the risk and leaping towards commercial operations within your state?

Was it the steep capital requirement? Lack of experience? No professional staff? Maybe beat out from the bigger companies for licensing?

Thanks for your time !

PS: If not many commercial growers then:
What are some of the biggest challenges you faced as a home grower journeying to produce potent high quality bud?

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A lot of people are having difficulty navigating the legal requirements - all of the paperwork, documentation and compliance - to get a legal operation off the ground. Different locations have different needs, so some are less of a problem than others.

Making a business that will be successful in the long term also takes a lot of planning and expertise. Things like a cash burn rate and break even analysis, and dealing with tax laws that apply to not only cannabis, but businesses operation and employees can be daunting. Finding a partner that knows the business world is definitely something I recommend.

I’ve got a few projects in the works, though none are at the point of being licenced and operable at the moment.

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You will find. The biggest problems will be the non stop bills, licenses , testing, permit’s, compliance, it goes on and on. It gets very expensive very fast. And on the bright side. Goes up evey year. Continuing to cut your bottom line. Eventually you will probably close. If you are not walking into this with major funds, like unlimited funds. Chances are it will destroy you and your love for the plant.
I suggest if you are dead set into this. Then consider becoming a micro growery. Small batch limited quantity type. However you will still face all those fees and fines from above. Just on a smaller scale.
Good luck to you. Keep us posted

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It is definitely a highly regulated industry to try to enter! On top of that, most of the laws, regulations and guidelines are only in their infancy and are constantly being updated and altered - and this will continue to happen as the industry matures.

The cannabis industry is highly competitive, and only the top operators are going to be around in the long run. If someone is trying to get into the industry I would recommend they start first with figuring out where their business idea fits in, and if what they are offering will be enough to fill the end buyer’s needs and keep you in business. Unfortunately just growing high quality bud isn’t enough. There are always going to be people outside of the regulated industry that can grow cannabis just as good, and their costs will always be lower.

Having a solid business plan and attainable long term goals are important. The price per gram is going down, costs of labour and inputs are going up, and regulations will continue to get more strict and require more time and money to stay compliant. If you’ve got answers to every question a potential investor or business partner or government agency can ask then you might be ok. Having a passion for staying ahead of the industry and constantly improving or updating your own ideas and methods is a must.

With that said, if you are able to prove to people that you are the kind of grower who wants to be in the industry and can take on all of the new challenges, there are some serious opportunities.

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I have a very cool business plan. What stops me? Money Money Money. If you have enough of that then this industry is wide open

Anyone with a extra say 20m?

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If you don’t mind my asking @MK3_Pharms , what kinds of things would set your business apart from others? As someone who has a great deal within the industry already, I value your feedback.

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Well for me its the way I do business. As well as where I have positioned myself. Try to stay away from trends. I just do my thing and not worry about the next mans grow

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For an individual who is doing their own thing and not tied to others with their business, that sounds great.

But for a $20M investment I would hope that the business knows exactly what is happening with the operators around it, and that it’s ready to take advantage of any kind of trend that might develop - not to necessarily deal only in what is hot and trendy, but to be ready to give the people who pay the bills what they want to spend their money on.

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Cannabis is only part of the business. But yeah totally correct

Right on guys, thank you for that! Definitely a fascinating thing to watch unfold as states open their doors to it. I like the idea of what you mention MK3 micro seems manageable. The idea of a nice income stream from it legally lol sounds quite nice but by the looks of it, quite daunting for someone with little capital…
Interestingly enough I do have family that runs and operates a large scale construction company so I believe I’d have the resources to build a solid team or hire the right people with their help… I guess it comes down to creativity, drive, and a blank check lol…

Thanks again!

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In Massachusetts they instituted a notion of community host agreements so the State kicked the issue to the cities and towns which forces the cannabis company to negotiate an agreement with the municipalities even before they start the roller coaster ride with the State. The FBI just stepped in and is contacting 6 cities that have over extended the law of 3% and shaking cannabis companies down for way more on top of that to get a CHA signed. So that is my big hurdle. I met with the Major over a year ago but he said I am not signing that so kind of dead in the water from the start. The zoning is horrible for cannabis companies and as if previously stated you don’t have deep pockets you better have deep creativity. Luckily good herb fosters that!

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Here in utah there is only 12 liscences to have and even if you get a liscence it $100,000.00 a year renewal fee. And it was on the news last night here our medical marijuana laws are designed to failin Utah. You cant get any doctors to reccomend cannabis even if you qualify! This lady said shes tried over and over again and she said also it’s illegal for her to be using her cbd and thc oils. But she also said shes not going to be in pain because of the law.

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Shame that they put in such outrageous criteria and throw the people through so many financial hurdles just to get started… Sounds like it will keep the black market going then… I feel like a lot of people grow tomatoes at home and that industry seems to be doing just fine, sad there is no middle ground. Either have a ton of dough or gooooooood luck…

Here in Oklahoma it started really really easy but 1 1/2 yrs down the road its getting complicated. Our DR’S are fantastic.but they are making 20g every weekend doing patient drive’s. Gonna be 300,000 patients b4 July . Those that be are trying to get to the green, lol, and regulating the sh!t out of it now. Surprise surprise! We are fighting but so difficult.

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