On Coastal Front this week, two experts in the cannabis retail market, Jaclynn Pehota and Matthew Greenwood, share their thoughts on how the BC Government f*cked up selling cannabis.

As the Executive Director of the Association of Canadian Cannabis Retailers (ACCRES), Jaclynn represents people in the marijuana space. People like Matthew, who is the owner of Up In Smoke, a cannabis store located in Mount Pleasant, Vancouver.

In Jaclynn and Matthew’s discussion with Coastal Front host, Andrew Johns, they covered a lot of ground. They explained what they see as the main barriers to growth in this nascent sector.

What is wrong with the BC cannabis industry?

Three years after the decriminalization of marijuana came into effect, the promise of a booming trade generating massive amounts of tax revenue has not materialized. At the time, everyone celebrated and Girl Guides stood outside the first legal cannabis storefronts to boost cookie sales. Fast-forward to 2021 and British Columbia is struggling to stop illegal operators, while also failing to allow legal retailers to flourish.

Matthew, in particular, has faced a myriad of problems including red tape, long wait times, and a financial system either unwilling or unable to help him. His experiences function as a cautionary tale for any budding weed-trepreneurs out there.

BC Government nipping cannabis industry in the bud

Jaclynn and Matthew go step by step into exactly what is required to set up a compliant cannabis store. It can cost store owners upwards of $80,000 in licenses and business fees before they can even open their doors. On top of that, Jaclynn explains that business owners looking to operate in Vancouver should set aside 12 to 18 months for the City to process their application.

With so many barriers to entry, it’s no wonder only the well-funded can afford to set up shop. Matthew says the difficulty around growing his business has a lot to do with people’s attitudes towards cannabis.

“The stigma around cannabis is madness,” he said. “Because you have a whole bunch of people who haven’t tried the plant in years making rules for people that trade the plant.

“And they wonder why it’s not working.”

Enforcement

Another area that the Government is coming up short is enforcement. While many expected the unregulated market would disappear post-legalization, it hasn’t turned out that way. While it’s hard to know the exact scale of the problem, violent criminals appear to be thriving in the illegal market.

Is the answer more enforcement, or can the government do more to encourage consumers to buy regulated weed?

Answers to this question, and many more, are explored in this show.

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