This article originally appeared in the February 2018 issue of Cannabis Dispensary. To subscribe, click here.
Go into a dispensary in each of the country’s adult-use states, and you will likely have very different purchasing experiences. This is to be expected, given the industry’s nascent stage and the fact that each state established the rules and regulations that govern its adult-use market. For example, Oregon budtenders can weigh and package flower in front of customers. Washington requires that products be pre-packaged into specific quantities.
Cannabis Dispensary connected Origins Cannabis, a recreational and medically endorsed dispensary with locations in Redmond and Seattle, Wash., with Jayne, a medical and recreational dispensary in Portland, Ore., to learn more about the similarities and differences of operating and competing in different state markets.
In this exclusive one-on-one interview, Origins Cannabis Product Curator Jon Sherman spoke with Jayne Owner Robb Arnold and General Manager Briana Burke about U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ decision to rescind the Cole memos, today’s industry trends, vendor selection, compliance and more.
Jon Sherman: How did you stomach the Jeff Sessions news, and is it a concern for you?
Robb Arnold: At first, I was really irritated because it’s another uncertainty in the industry. It seemed like it was going to have a little more effect, but I think it was just a blowhard move to appease his [supporters]. … It seems politically or corporately motivated. At the end of the day, it means absolutely nothing to our industry [as a whole]. It’s too big of a freeway to turn around at this point.
As a dispensary, I don’t want to be the low-hanging fruit with compliance. Those are the people that are going to have to worry about a possible fed-type situation—those who are not paying their taxes, not doing the right thing, not staying compliant. For most of us that are operating compliantly and doing our job, it shouldn’t be an issue.
To read the full article in Cannabis Dispensary's February 2018 issue, click here.
Top photo courtesy of Jayne
