Washington Bud Company
Shawn DeNae
Snohomish, Washington
Led by what we have lived through with zoning and land use codes, I do not see this as a feasible path right now in Washington. We certainly do need more retail outlets, yet the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board has rescinded its earlier decision to allow unlimited stores and let the free market decide.
A grossly inadequate BOTEC report (find more details by James MacRae at www.highintelligence.org) led the Liquor and Cannabis Board to the recent conclusion that only 222 more stores hemmed in by pre-approved localities will suffice in serving Washington’s cannabis consumers. Nearly two years after Washington opened its regulated market, only 197 of the 334 lottery-winning retail stores have registered sales, according to numbers in Liquor and Cannabis Board reports published in January. It is safe to assume the 222 will be stifled by a similar percentage and consumers will be left to wander.
This comes at a time when hundreds of medical retail locations are being forced to shutter. So as stores close and new ones are yet to open, wouldn’t it be nice to capture that underserved consumer at a tasting bar located on the farm? It sounds idyllic, but it took the beer and wine industries about 60 years to make it happen in this progressively liberal, yet ultra-regulated parochial state; it may come about for us, just not now.
Our state’s cannabis cart is so unsteady right now for many of the 720 producers, adding vertical integration to the mix could topple it over for the small farmers this state designed the system around. If ever the free market was needed, it’s needed here in Washington state to let capitalism reign — not at the expense of small businesses, but in support of them.
And one day, I do hope to host you at our farm for a sanctioned tasting.
Shawn DeNae is CEO of Washington Bud Company, an aspiring applicant for a producer/processor license. She is one of the founding members of the Marijuana Business Association Women’s Alliance.