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You will need an adequate amount of marijuana to start your store.
In addition, you are committing to long-term expenses in your store lease and
other areas, so you will need reliable sources of supply on a regular basis,
every month you are open.
How much will you need? That depends on your particular location
and plans, but the amounts could be considerable. A typical store in the Los
Angeles area might go through 50 pounds of marijuana a month. Some of them sell
far more than that.
Granny Growers
Many clubs report that they get offers from their own clients. Many
retirees, disabled people, and other people living on fixed incomes have
taken to growing a little marijuana on the side. They are often good for a
pound or two each every few months.
Grow Your Own
You can grow your own. If you choose to do this, make sure that you take
adequate security measures. As one example, remember that grows of 100 plants
or more are far more likely to draw the attention of the DEA. Smaller grows
will often be ignored, simply because there are so many people growing
marijuana now that the DEA couldn't begin to arrest them all.
Other Clubs
Owners of other clubs may have surplus that they are willing to sell.
"Traditional" Sources
Just because there are Marijuana Clubs open now doesn't mean that the
traditional marijuana black market has gone out of business. There are many
people who are now growing marijuana on what can only be described as an
industrial scale. In fact, our research shows that this underground market
is still probably much larger than all the marijuana sold through cannabis
clubs. You will have to figure out how to contact dealers of the appropriate
size yourself. In many cases, if you open your doors, they will find you.
Quality of Product
One of the problems you will face in acquiring inventory is the quality of the
product. Good products boost your business. Bad products will put you out of
business. It is easy enough to tell when marijuana is fresh, has a good aroma,
and has potency. It is not so easy to tell how it was grown, or exactly what
variety it is.
Some customers prefer organically grown marijuana. If you are going
to tell your customers that your products are organically grown, then you
better inspect the crop yourself, or have a grower that you really, really
trust. Additionally, you should be aware that growers have an incentive to tell
you that "Just Ordinary Kush" is really "Very Expensive Kush." Growers can
boost their own income just by changing the name.
The one thing you can count on is that you will have at least one
client who is a better connoisseur of marijuana, and more accurate at
discerning varieties, than anyone on your staff. Therefore, it behooves you to
insure the quality of your products, from whatever source they may come. If you
have regular suppliers you may want to personally inspect the crop, or
even pick particular plants. Growers will naturally be reluctant to have
visitors to their crop, but business is business so quality controls must be
worked out.
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