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This in going to be so Big
September 13, 2016
Prominent Travel Writer: ‘Get Ready’ for Age of MJ Tourism
One of the most well-known travel writers in the world, Arthur Frommer, predicted recently that cannabis tourism is going to become big business after the November election, when up to five more states could legalize recreational use.
If accurate, marijuana tourism would present additional opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to capitalize on the legalization of marijuana.
“The prospects seem strong that marijuana is now about to be added to beer and wine as a permissible product to order,” Frommer wrote in a column last week, the Denver Post reported. “This seems about to happen. Get ready for the era of marijuana — and marijuana tourism.”
MJBizCrashCourseCannabis tourism isn’t new in Colorado and Washington State, which have been selling legally to tourists for over two years now. But with the addition of Alaska and Oregon, which legalized in 2014, and possibly Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada – which will all vote on rec in November – the tourism market could explode, Frommer wrote.
“We are on the brink of a major new travel movement,” predicted Frommer, a publisher of books for budget-conscious travelers.
In Colorado alone, “canna-tourism” accounted for roughly $100 million in sales in 2015, according to estimates by Marijuana Business Daily.
I'm loaded for Bear - Love, Holding almost a Million shares. I think there's something brewing in the "POT"
Lets keep this board alive with discussion, opinion and news.
Has anyone tried to contact Haas recently and ask right out, about the numbers of 2nd quarter sales and the Fins?
Will be buying more if stays below 0.05 tomorrow.
Anyone see how the market is responding to a possible rate hike.
Dow -323 S&p -44 Nas -113 WOW
Anybody still here, anybody still have any hope left.
Yet another celebrity is expanding her footprint in the cannabis trade.
Singer Melissa Etheridge will debut a second line of marijuana products for medical patients by the end of the year in dispensaries around the San Francisco Bay Area, Billboard reported late last week.
Etheridge Farms, as her company is called, is producing flower, edibles, oil cartridges, and topicals for dispensaries, on top of the cannabis wine tincture she already sells.
MJBizCrashCourseEtheridge said she’s aiming her product lines at consumers who are “looking to unwind at night and not have a couple of drinks and feel like crap in the morning.”
The product line will first be released in dispensaries in Oakland, San Jose and Santa Cruz, Billboard reported.
Other celebrities with their own cannabis products range from Whoopi Goldberg, Willie Nelson and Tommy Chong to rappers Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa.
Daily News | Briefs | California Medical Cannabis Business & Marijuana Legal News
September 7, 2016
MJ Freeway and Weedmaps Partner On New Service
September 7, 2016
Poll: Half of Arizonans Support Rec Marijuana Initiative
September 7, 2016
AK Board Set To Approve First Rec Marijuana Retailers, Manufacturers
Thanks TiTI
Excuse my ignorance on this but who or what is ASCM, only here a short while. Thanks
MMJ for PTSD
An outspoken opponent of legalized cannabis, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is coming under pressure to sign legislation that would add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of qualifying conditions for the state’s medical marijuana program.
The inclusion of PTSD would be a shot in the arm for the state’s MMJ industry, given that many military veterans suffer from the condition. New Jersey remains one of the most restrictive MMJ markets in the nation.
MJBizCrashCourseNearly 18,000 people have signed a change.org petition urging Christie to approve the PTSD legislation, which the state legislature passed overwhelmingly on Aug. 1, according to PhillyVoice.com. Change.org has set a goal of collecting 25,000 signatures.
Christie’s options are to sign the measure into law, allow it to become law without his signature, or veto it.
Although the state legislature passed the MMJ program in 2010, the first dispensary didn’t open until 2013. And only five of the six allotted dispensaries have been approved to open.
Illinois and Rhode Island are two states that this year added PTSD to their qualifying conditions lists, but several more also include it in their qualifying condition lists for MMJ.
September 7, 2016
AK Board Set To Approve First Rec Marijuana Retailers, Manufacturers
More proof on opioid addiction, medical MJ could solve this problem.
Why Is Opioid Addiction Happening to So Many of Us?
by MALCOLM THALER, MD | Last Updated: Aug 29, 2016
author image
The use of opioids in the U.S. has increased more than tenfold since the turn of the century, and death rates have more than tripled.
The use of opioids in the U.S. has increased more than tenfold since the turn of the century, and death rates have more than tripled. Photo Credit itakdalee/Adobe Stock
Death rates from opioid use have more than tripled since 1999, and by claiming the lives of favorite celebrities such as Prince, Heath Ledger and Philip Seymour Hoffman, opioids have made national headlines.
Plus, for the first time in American history, life expectancy in the U.S., which has consistently risen over the years, dropped for white Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC data also shows that the use of prescription opioids has skyrocketed, increasing more than tenfold since the turn of the century.
Forgive the morbid statistics, but the abuse of prescription and nonprescription drugs, primarily opioids has been thrusted into the national spotlight. And you already know the names of many of these drugs: morphine, fentanyl and oxycodone, which are available only by prescription, and heroin, which is a common street drug.
What Are Opioids?
Opioids are drugs that bind to specific receptors located on the membranes of nerve cells. This interaction initiates a series of biochemical changes within the cells that translate into pain relief. These cell receptors and the ensuing changes within the nerve cells are all part of the body’s own system for managing pain — you’ve probably heard the term “endorphin” used to describe these endogenous chemicals that help us manage pain — and when we use an opioid we are simply taking advantage of this preexisting system.
Opioids can be natural (e.g., morphine), synthetic (e.g., methadone) or semisynthetic (e.g., oxycodone).
Opioids bind to specific receptors in our brains to help us manage pain.
Opioids bind to specific receptors in our brains to help us manage pain. Photo Credit itakdalee/Adobe Stock
What’s So Bad About Opioids?
Pain relief, obviously, is a very good thing, but the problem with opioids is twofold:
1. They're Deadly
They can have serious side effects, including respiratory depression and death. In fact, more than half of these serious overdoses occur in patients using the drugs exactly as their health care providers prescribed them and within accepted guidelines. A majority of the overdoses also occur in patients taking opioids along with another psychoactive medication, such as a benzodiazepine (e.g., Valium).
2. Using Starts Out Innocently, Then Quickly Spins Out of Control
They are addictive, meaning that you begin to need more and more of the drug to feel its effects (the body essentially adjusts to the current dose and demands greater amounts to achieve the same results) and will go through the agonies of withdrawal if you stop. People become addicted to these drugs often quite innocently by taking them to relieve pain, but soon become hooked on them because they also reduce anxiety and can produce a state of euphoria.
Addiction often leads to illegal behaviors, such as “doctor shopping” to obtain more prescription medications or theft and prostitution to afford the cost of street drugs (usually heroin). The addiction can be so profound that a person’s entire day can revolve around getting more of the drug, foregoing the obligations of work and family life.
If These Drugs Are So Dangerous, Why Do Doctors Prescribe Them?
We just don’t have many good options for pain control. For minor pain, acetaminophen or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug like naproxen will usually suffice. For some specific types of pain, such as the pain caused by inflamed nerves that we see with shingles or diabetic neuropathy, antidepressant drugs (e.g., amitriptyline or fluoxetine) or antiseizure drugs (e.g., gabapentin) can be very helpful.
But for other kinds of pain, especially more severe pain or the chronic pain that we often see in cancer survivors, opioid drugs remain the most effective option.
Most people who take opioids for severe or chronic pain can do so safely and effectively under the supervision of their health care provider. Unfortunately, however, many people turn to street drugs like heroin when they’re unable to get a prescription refill, or they begin to misuse their prescription opioid — taking higher and higher doses or taking it more frequently — because of the high they get from it.
Many people get hooked when they ask to “borrow” a pill or two from a friend or family member.
Opioid drugs are the most effective option for severe and chronic pain. Unfortunately, many people who become addicted to opioids turn to unregulated street drugs, like heroin, when they're unable to get a prescription refill.
Opioid drugs are the most effective option for severe and chronic pain. Unfortunately, many people who become addicted to opioids turn to unregulated street drugs, like heroin, when they're unable to get a prescription refill. Photo Credit itakdalee/Adobe Stock
What’s Being Done to Reverse This Trend?
The CDC in Atlanta has issued new guidelines for the use of prescription opioids. Among the recommendations:
Whenever possible, nonopioid drugs along with nonpharmacologic therapy (e.g., exercise or cognitive behavioral therapy) should be used to control chronic pain. Opioids should only be used if they are necessary and prove to be beneficial (e.g., in patients with cancer-related pain or in those who are terminally ill).
1. When opioids are used, use the lowest possible doses. For acute pain (e.g., from a bad ankle sprain), they should not be prescribed for more than seven days.
2. Prescribers and patients must understand the risks of opioid therapy, and, except in rare instances, they should not be combined with other psychoactive drugs and alcohol.
3. Prescribers and patients must keep in close touch. The patient’s urine should be periodically monitored for the use of other drugs, and prescribers should be on the alert for evidence opioid misuse; naloxone can be offered to patients at high risk of opioid overuse.
4. It’s important to recognize that chronic pain can have a devastating effect on patients’ lives, but at the same time withholding medications that can relieve pain is also not acceptable.
If anyone has any news please post it, it would be to the benefit of yourself and the rest of your fellow investors. Thanks GLTA
Porky I'm in and have been accumulating for over a year. Waiting to see if the price drops some more before I buy more but have a substantial number now, so I'm good either way. I believe volume will come by the end of Sept. GLTA
When we get some real volume then we see the PPS skyrocket.
SoCal Marijuana Grower Raises $6.5M for Cultivation Facility
SoCal Marijuana Grower Raises $6.5M for Cultivation Facility
I hope we're ready when the MJ sector pops!
Although recreational marijuana legalization isn’t a foregone conclusion in Nevada, it seems like opponents of adult-use may think it is – given how little has been spent on opposition advertising.
That’s according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which reported that Nevadans “have heard little” from anti-legalization groups, although vocal opposition has emerged from the state’s attorney general and law enforcement officials.
As of Monday, the paper reported, the three groups registered in opposition to legalization had not purchased any TV ad slots, compared with the campaign behind the rec initiative, which has spent over $900,000 on TV ad space in southern Nevada alone for the month prior to Election Day.
MJBizCrashCourseThe only financial real pushback against rec has come from a Reno-based nonprofit, which has spent money on billboards suggesting that edibles could be a risk for kids who can’t tell the difference between infused and non-infused sweets.
The other three main groups – the Coalition Against Legalizing Marijuana, Nevadans for Responsible Drug Policy, and Protecting Nevada’s Children – have altogether done little to speak out against rec legalization.
September 1, 2016
Second Medical Cannabis Measure Makes Arkansas Ballot
September 1, 2016
The Improving MJ Investment Climate: Q&A With Al Foreman, Tuatara’s Chief Investment Officer
August 31, 2016
SoCal Marijuana Grower Raises $6.5M for Cultivation Facility
August 31, 2016
Proposed Rules Would Permit Ohio Lawyers to Help MMJ Firms
It's gonna start heating up soon
Although recreational marijuana legalization isn’t a foregone conclusion in Nevada, it seems like opponents of adult-use may think it is – given how little has been spent on opposition advertising.
That’s according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which reported that Nevadans “have heard little” from anti-legalization groups, although vocal opposition has emerged from the state’s attorney general and law enforcement officials.
As of Monday, the paper reported, the three groups registered in opposition to legalization had not purchased any TV ad slots, compared with the campaign behind the rec initiative, which has spent over $900,000 on TV ad space in southern Nevada alone for the month prior to Election Day.
MJBizCrashCourseThe only financial real pushback against rec has come from a Reno-based nonprofit, which has spent money on billboards suggesting that edibles could be a risk for kids who can’t tell the difference between infused and non-infused sweets.
The other three main groups – the Coalition Against Legalizing Marijuana, Nevadans for Responsible Drug Policy, and Protecting Nevada’s Children – have altogether done little to speak out against rec legalization.
September 1, 2016
Second Medical Cannabis Measure Makes Arkansas Ballot
September 1, 2016
The Improving MJ Investment Climate: Q&A With Al Foreman, Tuatara’s Chief Investment Off
August 31, 2016
SoCal Marijuana Grower Raises $6.5M for Cultivation Facility
Thumbs up 2times2
Do you think they're waiting for revenues from the new beverages to come in before releasing Fins.
Legal Marijuana Is Inevitable - Here’s Why You Should Vote In Favor
Sherry Gray Freelance writer covering all things digital business
The Huffington Post
Legal Marijuana is going to happen, the only question is when. The most recent polls show 54% of Americans favor legalizing marijuana. Here’s why you should get behind it, too.
Marijuana is packed with medicinal uses we can’t legally exploit here in the United States, but why? Are we still stuck in the Reefer Madness of the 30s? Or is the idea of a pain-curing plant you can grow in your backyard too great a threat to the powerful pharmaceutical industry?
Marijuana is not a gateway drug. The science is overwhelming. While some users do go on to use other drugs, most do not. No significant connection can be made.
The Medicine and the Science
The human body has a vast system of of cannabinoid receptors embedded in cell membranes. When stimulated, cannabinoid receptors respond with a variety of physiologic processes.
Cannabinoid receptors are stimulated by -wait for it- cannabinoids. The two cannabinoids that have been studied most are delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and cannabidiol (CBD).
The medicinal properties of marijuana are well documented. The earliest pharmacopeia documentation shows that marijuana was cultivated for medical purposes in 2,700 B.C. to treat rheumatic pain, intestinal constipation, disorders of the female reproductive system, malaria, and other health issues.
And many more serious health concerns. But legal issues continue to impede the progress of scientific study, and much of the science is contradictory.
Cannabinoids and Mental Health
In addition to the physical health benefits, cannabinoids in the form of CBD oil have been used to treat mental disorders like schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and the debilitating effects of chronic stress...without the psychoactive side effects of THC.
Nora D. Volkow, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, is cautiously optimistic on the subject of CBD. In a presentation to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, she said, “Rigorous clinical studies are still needed to evaluate the clinical potential of CBD for specific conditions. However, pre-clinical research (including both cell culture and animal models) has shown CBD to have a range of effects that may be therapeutically useful, including anti-seizure, antioxidant, neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-tumor, anti-psychotic, and anti-anxiety properties.”
Accessibility
Marijuana is a hardy plant that can grow almost anywhere. While it naturally adapts well to outdoor conditions, most commercial crops are grown and CBD oil is manufactured in greenhouses for faster maturation, using light deprivation techniques in a carefully controlled environment.
Small crops for personal use can be grown in a very small area. Laws vary; in the most lenient states like Colorado (for example), anyone 21 and older can grow up to six marijuana plants, with three at a time in the flowering stage. Even though it’s easy to grow, most people opt for commercially grown product, making legal marijuana a $1 billion industry.
The Opposition
With all this evidence about the positive aspects of legalized weed, low price, popularity, ease of access and use, you might be wondering who is against it. To answer that, it’s a good idea to follow the money. If chronic conditions can be managed with a plant you can grow in your yard, who loses profits? Pain management is roughly a $300 billion dollar industry that affects 100 million Americans. It’s not hard to imagine why the powerful pharmaceutical industry would put up big money to oppose a free treatment.
The Opioid Crisis
In 2014, 28,647 people died from opioid abuse. That’s 78 people every day. Tens of thousands of Americans are addicting and killing themselves with prescription drugs. In the same year, the number of marijuana deaths was...zero.
The opioid epidemic is significant in this discussion because the deadly addiction usually starts with a prescription for pain management. Marijuana is a viable and far less destructive option for people in chronic pain.
The Changing Tide
For the first time in history, the tide has begun to change. Legal Marijuana legislation is proposed in many states and voters are speaking up. Colorado collected $88 million in marijuana taxes last year, and used it to fund schools.
The reality is that people smoke pot - 49% say they’ve tried it. It’s easy to grow, easy to find, and relatively cheap. Decriminalization would give science the opportunity to study its medicinal properties and growers the leeway to produce marijuana’s relative, hemp, a fast-growing fibrous plant with tons of uses.
There is buying here today
July
Oregon’s recreational marijuana sales have passed the $100 million mark this year.
Although rec sales began at medical dispensaries last October, the state didn’t begin taxing those sales until January, at 25%. The 2016 sales figures for the first seven months are in line with the $180 million-$220 million in retail sales the Marijuana Business Factbook 2016 projects for the entire year.
The total sales figure at the end of July is an estimated $102 million, according to the Oregonian.
Sales numbers are likely to increase as the year goes on, given that dispensaries were allowed to begin selling edibles and concentrates to adult-use customers on June 2.
In addition, the full rec market is slated to launch in the fall, meaning an increase in the amount of MJ products rec customers can purchase as well as more storefronts from which to buy.
State economists are projecting roughly $44.4 million in state tax revenue from rec sales in 2016, which would equate to $177.6 million in sales for the year.
July
?
Oregon’s recreational marijuana sales have passed the $100 million mark this year.
Although rec sales began at medical dispensaries last October, the state didn’t begin taxing those sales until January, at 25%. The 2016 sales figures for the first seven months are in line with the $180 million-$220 million in retail sales the Marijuana Business Factbook 2016 projects for the entire year.
The total sales figure at the end of July is an estimated $102 million, according to the Oregonian.
Sales numbers are likely to increase as the year goes on, given that dispensaries were allowed to begin selling edibles and concentrates to adult-use customers on June 2.
In addition, the full rec market is slated to launch in the fall, meaning an increase in the amount of MJ products rec customers can purchase as well as more storefronts from which to buy.
State economists are projecting roughly $44.4 million in state tax revenue from rec sales in 2016, which would equate to $177.6 million in sales for the year.
August 24, 2016
Oklahoma MMJ Camp Gathers Just Enough Signatures
August 23, 2016
Ohio Commits Money to Implement Medical Marijuana Progra
New York’s health department is recommending several business-friendly changes to the state’s medical marijuana program, including one that would double the number of MMJ licenses.
If adopted, the recommendations – which are intended to improve patient access to medical cannabis – would help galvanize New York’s sluggish marijuana industry.
The health department recommends increasing the number of licensed medical marijuana businesses to 10 from the current five. Under New York’s medical cannabis program, licenses holders are allowed one cultivation site that is vertically integrated with up to four dispensaries.
The report also recommends streamlining manufacturing requirements for marijuana businesses, and allowing them to advertise and make more brands of MMJ products available to patients, according to the Buffalo Business Journal.
The report said the state should permit nurse practitioners to certify patients, consider home delivery, and explore ways for health-care facilities and schools to administer MMJ for patients.
As of early August, New York’s MMJ program had 6,415 patients and 656 registered physicians.
The program has gotten off to a slow start since its launch in January. In June, the Drug Policy Alliance issued a report saying patients and caregivers face significant obstacles to obtain medical marijuana because of geographic barriers, high product costs and a dearth of physicians certified to recommend MMJ.
Daily News | Briefs | New York Medical Cannabis Business & Marijuana Legal News
?
MJ is definitely Going to buck the Big Pharmaceuticals in the near future.
New York’s health department is recommending several business-friendly changes to the state’s medical marijuana program, including one that would double the number of MMJ licenses.
If adopted, the recommendations – which are intended to improve patient access to medical cannabis – would help galvanize New York’s sluggish marijuana industry.
The health department recommends increasing the number of licensed medical marijuana businesses to 10 from the current five. Under New York’s medical cannabis program, licenses holders are allowed one cultivation site that is vertically integrated with up to four dispensaries.
The report also recommends streamlining manufacturing requirements for marijuana businesses, and allowing them to advertise and make more brands of MMJ products available to patients, according to the Buffalo Business Journal.
The report said the state should permit nurse practitioners to certify patients, consider home delivery, and explore ways for health-care facilities and schools to administer MMJ for patients.
As of early August, New York’s MMJ program had 6,415 patients and 656 registered physicians.
The program has gotten off to a slow start since its launch in January. In June, the Drug Policy Alliance issued a report saying patients and caregivers face significant obstacles to obtain medical marijuana because of geographic barriers, high product costs and a dearth of physicians certified to recommend MMJ.
Daily News | Briefs | New York Medical Cannabis Business & Marijuana Legal News
WOFA better get it's Feet in the MJ sector pool soon, or we are going to miss the boat. It's gonna be HUGE
http://www.thecannabist.co/2016/08/23/california-marijuana-market-report/61494/
You know what they say no news is good news. I'm holding.
MM's do not want you to make big money, I have seen this many times before. They manipulate the price and scare off the weak hands, then they buy it up and make all the profits. Stay strong hold & buy don't sell, rewards are coming.
Anyone know about what time they will be releasing the Fins report. My guess a round or just after 4PM today.
The MJ sector is going to explode over the next few months, this company needs to find it's direction soon.
Why Microsoft wants in on the marijuana business and why the DEA won't stop it
Rajiv Rao
By Rajiv Rao | August 16, 2016 -- 19:17 GMT (12:17 PDT) | Topic: Microsoft
The last two months have been busy ones for the marijuana community. Most recently, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) declined to loosen restrictions on medical marijuana, and kept the drug classified in the same 'Schedule 1' category as LSD and heroin.
There was much handwringing before and after the decision was handed out over the pros and cons about marijuana's possible re-scheduling. Some thought that if it did get bumped down into Schedule 2 -- a more benign category of addictive substances such as methadone and fentanyl -- it would make the entire industry vulnerable to a whole new set of potentially crippling regulations. Others thought that it would finally de-criminalize the substance and free it from the yoke of the federal government.
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In reality, marijuana's classification has almost no impact on the industry. "Scheduling is a really misunderstood part of drug policy," said John Hudak, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and an expert on marijuana policy. "Classification simply changes the rules by which federal researchers, or researchers conducting federally approved studies, would have to abide by. It has no impact on the legal cannabis market." (You can read more about the implications of the DEA ruling in this piece by Hudak.)
In another key development for the marijuana industry, Microsoft announced earlier this summer a partnership with Kind, a Los Angeles company that makes 'seed-to-sales' software for tracking the journey of a marijuana plant all the way from its inception to the vaporizers and pipes of consumers.
To understand why Microsoft has made this move, take a peek at the annual sales that the business of cannabis generates: ArcView, a research outfit that tracks the numbers for the industry recently revealed that legal cannabis sales will mushroom to $6.7 billion in 2016, growing at a 25 percent-and-upwards clip, to reach $22 billion in 2020.
One reason behind the growing sales is society's changing attitudes. It also doesn't hurt that selling legal forms of the cannabis plant generates cold hard cash for some states. Apparently, Colorado netted a cool $70 million in 2015 from taxes on marijuana sales, almost double the amount it received from alcohol taxes during the same period. This in turn revived the economies of some small towns and provided a huge boost to social projects that deliver relief to low-income students and homeless people. Already four states in the US have legalized both the recreational and medicinal use of the plant.
Meanwhile, 25 other states allow marijuana sales upon the procurement of a doctor's prescription. Five others including California are expected to follow Colorado's lead in legalizing recreational uses. Canada, a bastion of marijuana production, will likely do the same by next year. Another research firm, GreenWave Advisors, figures that if all 50 US states were to give weed the green light, sales could top a staggering $35 billion in revenue by 2020, dwarfing what the NFL rakes in by then, according to Fortune. Somewhere, Cheech and Chong are slapping each other's backs and lighting up in celebration.
The problem amidst all this heady news is that rules for things like alcohol and marijuana differ from state to state, making compliance a problematic and complex affair within an industry that is viewed in many parts as decidedly shady. In Canada, for instance, there are strict regulations and quality controls on products. Companies need to establish crystal clear transparency on their sales and shipping and need to be ready to cough up all their information in regular audits. "We have the strictest regulations on medical marijuana anywhere in the world," said John Prentice, CEO of Toronto-based software outfit Ample Organics. "The reporting capabilities and record keeping requirements are extensive."
Enter Microsoft, whose Azure Government suite within its cloud service's Health and Human Services Pod for Managed Service Providers will link up with Kind to bid for state contracts. Kind will be part of eight software offerings within this group, but the only one linked to marijuana.
Kimberly Nelson, Microsoft's executive director of state and local government solutions, said, "Kind's strategic industry positioning, experienced team and top-notch-technology running in the Microsoft Azure Government cloud, made for an easy decision to align efforts." So far, Kind hasn't landed any state contracts but it has apparently applied with Microsoft for Puerto Rico's cannabis business.
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Still, Kind has competition. BioTrackTHC, for instance, just landed business from Hawaii's Department of Health as it has already from Washington, New Mexico, and Illinois. Hundreds of other firms continue to crop up and compete for this growing business.
But the Microsoft-Kind partnership is understandably special. What Microsoft's entry will do is attract more legitimacy to an industry still viewed as dodgy by many and boost the fortunes of thousands of start-ups that want to do business but have been stymied by the stigma that selling 'weed' brings with it. Already, as more people reach out unabashedly for their bongs, the tide is beginning to change for investments in the industry.
As Fortune reports, cannabis-focused Privateer Holdings, backed by investments from PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, recently attracted a whopping $75 million round of investment to plow into its subsidiaries: marijuana purveyor Marley Natural; a mail-order service for medical marijuana in Canada called Tilray; and a recommendations engine and listings site not unlike Yelp for dispensaries in Canada, called Leafley.
And what of the DEA's stance? This is the fourth time that the DEA has chosen not to reschedule marijuana into a less pernicious category and yet the industry has ballooned in size with more and more states stepping up to the ballot to legalize its sales.
In fact, by eliminating the monopoly on growing research grade marijuana, some experts say that the agency is tacitly paving the way for a broader acceptance of the substance by the federal government, especially since the government's position is more and more anachronistic to the way the majority of the American people, and their states, now view cannabis. In fact, both presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have also apparently publicly stated their disinterest in shutting down the industry.
Tuatara’s Big Raise Underscores Improving Landscape for Cannabis Financing
32453137 - business hand pushing private equity button on a touch screen interface
By Omar Sacirbey
Tuatara Capital’s recent success at raising a record $93 million for marijuana industry-related investments signals that deep-pocketed investors increasingly are embracing cannabis businesses.
Moreover, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s decision to keep marijuana on its list of the country’s most dangerous drugs isn’t expected to curb that investor enthusiasm.
That’s good news for marijuana entrepreneurs seeking funding at a time when many banks and big institutional investors are on the sidelines of MJ financing, given that cannabis remains a Schedule 1 controlled substance.
On the flip side, Tuatara’s deal – announced last week – may even stoke interest among institutional investors in the cannabis industry, said Steven Gormley, CEO of 7th Point, a canna-centric investment firm in New York City.
“I think most people in the financial sector understand that the cannabis space is growing and that it has a tremendous amount of potential,” Gormley said. “But many will still have to work through their flawed preconceptions of cannabis as being something to avoid, be it for consumption or commercialization.”
Tuatura, a New York-based private equity firm, raised the $93 million from about 100 investors, mostly individuals.
Al Foreman, the firm’s chief investment officer, told Marijuana Business Daily some “quasi” institutions also ponied up money. He described these as “professional organizations who are managing capital on behalf of large family and other professional investors.”
Tuatara originally had planned to raise $80 million, meaning the firm surpassed its goal by about 16%.
The amount is significantly larger than the $75 million raised by cannabis-focused private equity firm Privateer Holdings early last year.
Getting Comfortable, Mostly
“Investors are definitely getting more comfortable with cannabis companies. Banks still are not,” said Tom Quigley, CEO of The Gluu, an online B2B marketplace in Tampa, Florida, which serves marijuana companies.
Referring to companies like JPMorgan Chase and Merrill Lynch, Quigley added: “It’s not that banks don’t see the potential; it’s that the current regulatory climate still makes it too risky for institutional money.”
Maxim Jacobs, director of Healthcare Research for North America at Edison Group, an investment analysis firm, predicted institutional investors will remain sidelined as long as marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug. “They’ll be holding back until there’s some sort of rescheduling,” Jacobs said. “Schedule 1 is death. There’s nothing you can do with Schedule 1.”
In fact, Jacobs speculated, “a lot” of existing investors may prefer that marijuana is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance – at least for now. “If it gets rescheduled or becomes legalized, then instead of having 10 or 20 competitors, they’ll have hundreds of competitors,” Jacobs said.
That lack of widespread competition is good news for cannabis-focused investment firms like Tuatara. They gain a greater share of the rapidly growing market to themselves, and more leverage in setting the terms of their investment deals.
Tuatara launched in 2014. Last year, it completed a fundraising round of nearly $26 million.
The investment firm already has invested in two companies. It was the lead investor in Willie’s Reserve, the cannabis brand named after country music legend Willie Nelson. And it was an investor in Teewinot Life Sciences, a Florida company involved in the synthetic production of cannabinoids.
The firm plans to build a portfolio of about 10-15 high-growth cannabis companies in the research and testing, cultivation, processing, consumer and retail sub-sectors.
Tuatara executives said they would not give their portfolio companies the money all at once, but instead disburse it at various junctures in their growth.
“Our goal is to position ourselves as a long-term partner with our portfolio companies. And being a long-term partner, we’re going to need to provide capital across different stages of growth,” Foreman said.
“Making an investment and walking away is not a successful strategy. Our intention is to provide financing at the onset of a company, but to also grow with them, as they expand to new markets or add new disciplines or new areas of focus that will require additional downstream capital.”
Foreman added that Tuatara plans to spend the money within two to four years.
The news was hailed by industry investment analysts as a major breakthrough.
“What you’re seeing is just the beginning, as $93 million is just a drop in the bucket as far as how much will need to be invested in order to build the infrastructure for this industry,” said Leslie Bocskor, president of Electrum Partners, a cannabis investment analysis firm in Las Vegas. Deals like this, he noted, are no longer exceptions, but becoming the norm.
The Gluu’s Quigley noted the MJ industry saw an increase in investments after Privateer’s announcement last year that it had raised $75 million.
“We saw an influx of investors wanting to get in after the Privateer deal,” Quigley said. “When you start seeing those types of numbers, it raises the level of interest.”
More Opportunities for Entrepreneurs?
Will the influx of capital also make it easier for entrepreneurs seeking capital to get their ideas off the ground? Much will depend on whether these upstart companies have a genuinely viable business plan in place.
There are enough stories of past investors getting burned in the cannabis space to make today’s investors more cautious than before about how they wager their money.
“More available capital does not mean there are more viable companies to invest in,” Quigley said. “We’ve seen a significant amount of capital earmarked for cannabis investment sit on the sidelines simply because the deals aren’t there.”
Jeanne Sullivan, president of investment analysis firm Sullivan Adventures, agreed.
“The only entrepreneurs who will win an investment must prove they know what to do and how to do it,” she said. “That is a high bar.”
Tuatara’s Big Raise Underscores Improving Landscape for Cannabis Financing
32453137 - business hand pushing private equity button on a touch screen interface
By Omar Sacirbey
Tuatara Capital’s recent success at raising a record $93 million for marijuana industry-related investments signals that deep-pocketed investors increasingly are embracing cannabis businesses.
Moreover, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s decision to keep marijuana on its list of the country’s most dangerous drugs isn’t expected to curb that investor enthusiasm.
That’s good news for marijuana entrepreneurs seeking funding at a time when many banks and big institutional investors are on the sidelines of MJ financing, given that cannabis remains a Schedule 1 controlled substance.
On the flip side, Tuatara’s deal – announced last week – may even stoke interest among institutional investors in the cannabis industry, said Steven Gormley, CEO of 7th Point, a canna-centric investment firm in New York City.
“I think most people in the financial sector understand that the cannabis space is growing and that it has a tremendous amount of potential,” Gormley said. “But many will still have to work through their flawed preconceptions of cannabis as being something to avoid, be it for consumption or commercialization.”
Tuatura, a New York-based private equity firm, raised the $93 million from about 100 investors, mostly individuals.
Al Foreman, the firm’s chief investment officer, told Marijuana Business Daily some “quasi” institutions also ponied up money. He described these as “professional organizations who are managing capital on behalf of large family and other professional investors.”
Tuatara originally had planned to raise $80 million, meaning the firm surpassed its goal by about 16%.
The amount is significantly larger than the $75 million raised by cannabis-focused private equity firm Privateer Holdings early last year.
Getting Comfortable, Mostly
“Investors are definitely getting more comfortable with cannabis companies. Banks still are not,” said Tom Quigley, CEO of The Gluu, an online B2B marketplace in Tampa, Florida, which serves marijuana companies.
Referring to companies like JPMorgan Chase and Merrill Lynch, Quigley added: “It’s not that banks don’t see the potential; it’s that the current regulatory climate still makes it too risky for institutional money.”
Maxim Jacobs, director of Healthcare Research for North America at Edison Group, an investment analysis firm, predicted institutional investors will remain sidelined as long as marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug. “They’ll be holding back until there’s some sort of rescheduling,” Jacobs said. “Schedule 1 is death. There’s nothing you can do with Schedule 1.”
In fact, Jacobs speculated, “a lot” of existing investors may prefer that marijuana is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance – at least for now. “If it gets rescheduled or becomes legalized, then instead of having 10 or 20 competitors, they’ll have hundreds of competitors,” Jacobs said.
That lack of widespread competition is good news for cannabis-focused investment firms like Tuatara. They gain a greater share of the rapidly growing market to themselves, and more leverage in setting the terms of their investment deals.
Tuatara launched in 2014. Last year, it completed a fundraising round of nearly $26 million.
The investment firm already has invested in two companies. It was the lead investor in Willie’s Reserve, the cannabis brand named after country music legend Willie Nelson. And it was an investor in Teewinot Life Sciences, a Florida company involved in the synthetic production of cannabinoids.
The firm plans to build a portfolio of about 10-15 high-growth cannabis companies in the research and testing, cultivation, processing, consumer and retail sub-sectors.
Tuatara executives said they would not give their portfolio companies the money all at once, but instead disburse it at various junctures in their growth.
“Our goal is to position ourselves as a long-term partner with our portfolio companies. And being a long-term partner, we’re going to need to provide capital across different stages of growth,” Foreman said.
“Making an investment and walking away is not a successful strategy. Our intention is to provide financing at the onset of a company, but to also grow with them, as they expand to new markets or add new disciplines or new areas of focus that will require additional downstream capital.”
Foreman added that Tuatara plans to spend the money within two to four years.
The news was hailed by industry investment analysts as a major breakthrough.
“What you’re seeing is just the beginning, as $93 million is just a drop in the bucket as far as how much will need to be invested in order to build the infrastructure for this industry,” said Leslie Bocskor, president of Electrum Partners, a cannabis investment analysis firm in Las Vegas. Deals like this, he noted, are no longer exceptions, but becoming the norm.
The Gluu’s Quigley noted the MJ industry saw an increase in investments after Privateer’s announcement last year that it had raised $75 million.
“We saw an influx of investors wanting to get in after the Privateer deal,” Quigley said. “When you start seeing those types of numbers, it raises the level of interest.”
More Opportunities for Entrepreneurs?
Will the influx of capital also make it easier for entrepreneurs seeking capital to get their ideas off the ground? Much will depend on whether these upstart companies have a genuinely viable business plan in place.
There are enough stories of past investors getting burned in the cannabis space to make today’s investors more cautious than before about how they wager their money.
“More available capital does not mean there are more viable companies to invest in,” Quigley said. “We’ve seen a significant amount of capital earmarked for cannabis investment sit on the sidelines simply because the deals aren’t there.”
Jeanne Sullivan, president of investment analysis firm Sullivan Adventures, agreed.
“The only entrepreneurs who will win an investment must prove they know what to do and how to do it,” she said. “That is a high bar.”
That's great BCpain let us know what you find out. GLTA
Something going on, we are almost back to morning opening Bid.
Chart of the Week: Estimated $100M in Colorado Recreational Sales Tied to Leisure Tourists
cannabis tourism in colorado
By Eli McVey
Cannatourism is alive and well in Colorado.
Travelers who visited the state primarily for leisure purposes spent roughly $98 million at recreational marijuana stores last year, accounting for nearly 17% of overall adult-use cannabis sales in Colorado, according to a first-of-its-kind estimate by Marijuana Business Daily.
The figures don’t include marijuana purchases by visitors who were in town primarily for business or other reasons, so the actual tourism impact on sales is higher.
While many stores in the Denver metro area primarily serve locals, some located along the highway leading to the city from the airport and in popular tourism hotspots like the 16th Street Mall get a majority of their business from visitors. In some mountain resort towns, tourists account for 90% or more in sales.
Indeed, Ari Markowitz – chief technology officer at Native Roots, which has recreational cannabis shops throughout Colorado – said the company’s locations in popular destinations for skiing and snowboarding attract a much larger share of tourists than its average store in other places, where residents account for the vast majority of sales.
The estimates were made by analyzing average per-person recreational marijuana spending data from the What Cannabis Patients & Consumers Want research report by Marijuana Business Daily and two studies commissioned by the Colorado Tourism Office for the 2015 calendar year.
One of the studies, by Longwoods International, found that 14.9 million visitors age 25+ made overnight leisure visits to Colorado last year, while the other study – by Strategic Marketing and Research Insights (SMARI) – found that 11% of tourists age 25+ visited a dispensary during their stay.
Neither of these reports focused solely on tourists’ use of marijuana, but the estimates are based on sound data and provide insight into just how important out-of-state visitors are to Colorado’s recreational cannabis market.
The studies indicate that the importance of tourists to Colorado’s marijuana industry may also be increasing – at least in the short term.
The Longwoods International report showed a 6% increase in leisure trips to Colorado from the previous year, well above the average national growth rate of 1%.
Furthermore, results from the SMARI survey showed 23% of Colorado tourists were positively influenced to visit the state by the availability of legal marijuana – though only 11% of respondents said they visited a marijuana retail store during their stay.
A SMARI representative suggested this discrepancy may be due to a perceived stigma on behalf of survey respondents to admit they visited a rec shop, suggesting the actual rate of visitation may be underreported.
But Colorado retailers should not expect this high level of tourist support to exist in perpetuity, and they would do well to have a plan to deal with the impending change.
As the recreational cannabis market matures and expands nationwide, Markowitz believes the novelty tourists feel when visiting a Colorado rec shop encourages increased purchase behavior that may not exist once such experiences become commonplace.
And with states such as California – the largest medical marijuana market in the nation – set to vote on recreational legalization this fall, such a time may be fast approaching.
Chart of the Week: Estimated $100M in Colorado Recreational Sales Tied to Leisure Tourists
cannabis tourism in colorado
By Eli McVey
Cannatourism is alive and well in Colorado.
Travelers who visited the state primarily for leisure purposes spent roughly $98 million at recreational marijuana stores last year, accounting for nearly 17% of overall adult-use cannabis sales in Colorado, according to a first-of-its-kind estimate by Marijuana Business Daily.
The figures don’t include marijuana purchases by visitors who were in town primarily for business or other reasons, so the actual tourism impact on sales is higher.
While many stores in the Denver metro area primarily serve locals, some located along the highway leading to the city from the airport and in popular tourism hotspots like the 16th Street Mall get a majority of their business from visitors. In some mountain resort towns, tourists account for 90% or more in sales.
Indeed, Ari Markowitz – chief technology officer at Native Roots, which has recreational cannabis shops throughout Colorado – said the company’s locations in popular destinations for skiing and snowboarding attract a much larger share of tourists than its average store in other places, where residents account for the vast majority of sales.
The estimates were made by analyzing average per-person recreational marijuana spending data from the What Cannabis Patients & Consumers Want research report by Marijuana Business Daily and two studies commissioned by the Colorado Tourism Office for the 2015 calendar year.
One of the studies, by Longwoods International, found that 14.9 million visitors age 25+ made overnight leisure visits to Colorado last year, while the other study – by Strategic Marketing and Research Insights (SMARI) – found that 11% of tourists age 25+ visited a dispensary during their stay.
Neither of these reports focused solely on tourists’ use of marijuana, but the estimates are based on sound data and provide insight into just how important out-of-state visitors are to Colorado’s recreational cannabis market.
The studies indicate that the importance of tourists to Colorado’s marijuana industry may also be increasing – at least in the short term.
The Longwoods International report showed a 6% increase in leisure trips to Colorado from the previous year, well above the average national growth rate of 1%.
Furthermore, results from the SMARI survey showed 23% of Colorado tourists were positively influenced to visit the state by the availability of legal marijuana – though only 11% of respondents said they visited a marijuana retail store during their stay.
A SMARI representative suggested this discrepancy may be due to a perceived stigma on behalf of survey respondents to admit they visited a rec shop, suggesting the actual rate of visitation may be underreported.
But Colorado retailers should not expect this high level of tourist support to exist in perpetuity, and they would do well to have a plan to deal with the impending change.
As the recreational cannabis market matures and expands nationwide, Markowitz believes the novelty tourists feel when visiting a Colorado rec shop encourages increased purchase behavior that may not exist once such experiences become commonplace.
And with states such as California – the largest medical marijuana market in the nation – set to vote on recreational legalization this fall, such a time may be fast approaching.
Yesterdaysnews what's the info you received?
I'm holding also, buying more @ 0.0005 It's worth the shot BOOM or BUST.