Scott Lambert
Co-Owner
The OG Collective
Cathedral City, CA
Another day, another dollar! Time is flying by in the crazy world of legal cannabis here in the great state of California. As I write this article we are just starting Q3 of the adult-use era and the fully compliant program has been merging into the system slowly but surely.
As of July 1, the six-month transition period from the old medical market to the adult-use regulations ended, and all products carried and sold through our retail locations now have to be packaged, labeled and tested according to state rules and regulations. The flip side of that coin meant that all inventory at our stores that did not meet those requirements had to be sold or destroyed by end of day June 30.
Suffice to say that we had quite the fire sale for our customers in the last week of June.
Lines were literally around the block as we moved through all our inventory as the clock ticked down. Customers couldn’t have been happier as the discount was a welcome reprieve from the increased taxes that they’ve been trying to get used to since the beginning of the year.
We prepared for the switch to a fully-compliant model to avoid any surprises and expect business as usual. The biggest issue for us has been the lack of preparation on the part of the brands. So many companies we usually deal with were unprepared to be on shelves July 1. The few brands that were ready have a golden opportunity to create separation between themselves and their non-compliant competitors.
The next steps in implementation include track-and-trace of all cultivation and manufacturing facilities as well as the new packaging and testing standards.
It’s going to be interesting to see how these testing facilities handle the massive onslaught of new business.