The General
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The failure of Amendment 2 has failed to snuff out the enthusiasm of those who wanted to be part of Florida's fledgling medical marijuana business. Entrepreneurs, investors, companies and others are looking at it as a temporary obstacle on a path toward the inevitable. Industry leaders also are hopeful. "Prospects for medical marijuana in Florida are strong, given that so many voted for it," said Taylor West, deputy director of The National Cannabis Industry Association.
The 57 percent in favor "certainly sends a message to leadership in the state," she said. "It seems very likely that the next time it gets on the ballot, it will pass." So those who planted the seeds for their dispensaries, delivery services, grow operations, equipment sales and service, medical pot edibles, security businesses and more will have to wait for better political weather.
If this had been an ordinary political race, Amendment 2 would have been a slam dunk. But constitutional amendments need 60 percent to pass. And the issue was particularly controversial and contentious. Proponents promoted it as a compassionate measure to provide relief for ill people, providing an option other than pharmaceuticals. Opponents insisted it was a veiled attempt to legalize marijuana in general.
West hesitates to give advice for those who were poised to barrel ahead in anticipation of a positive result Nov. 4. It depends on the individual business owner, how they structured their business and the funding involved, she said. What they do depends on how much they've invested. "I think if they have the financial ability to sit tight, OK," West said. "It is a good reminder that this is still an industry that involves a lot of risk. Maybe it's not right to pour lots of money into it before it's a legal option."
Mike Ginocchi of Lehigh Acres, who started his own investing/consulting business, MjMoneyMan.com, said he was surprised Amendment 2 didn't pass, but he always had reservations. The millions poured into the Vote No on 2 campaign by billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, the negative TV advertising and the 60 percent vote threshold hurt, he said. "A lot of people had no clue what it was about and voted no." Ginocchi isn't quitting. "I'm still going to be MjMoneyman.com," he said. "I'm going to concentrate on the stocks end of it until I get my next at bat."
Silver linings
For Robert Calkin, founder of the Cannabis Career Institute, it's all good. "There are silver linings there," he said. "I've been in the industry 35 years and it's always one step forward, two steps back. This was a good step forward." Calkin, a medical marijuana expert from California, holds seminars across Florida and in other states on how to start a medical marijuana business.
Everybody realizes now how much people are in favor and the political climate is changing, he said. "I know of no reason why a (legislative) bill couldn't be introduced. That should be seen as a feather in whatever smart politician's cap comes up with a proposal. I would think they'd be stumbling all over one another to do this."
People continue to ask about classes, Calkin said. The institute will continue to hold them, but probably with fewer students. The seminars presented by instructors include a worst-case scenario, he said. "Let's assume it will not pass and what to do in the interim." That includes creating a brand that can be licensed, a business model for a dispensary, a design for a grow operation or any other ancillary business, he said. Then you're ready to get it started when medical marijuana becomes legal. And it will become legal, Calkin said. The question is how quickly. "We see this evolution happen in every state."
New facility
Don Clifford, CEO of GrowHealthy Holdings, based in Atlanta, is in it for the long term. He bought an old Sealy mattress factory in Lake Wales for $2.2 million and is renovating it for $5 million more to turn it into a state-of-the art medical pot production facility. He was planning to buy a second facility if Amendment 2 passed. But the Lake Wales plant is intended to grow organic, pharmaceutical-grade medical marijuana permitted under State Bill 1030, also known as the Charlotte's Web bill.
The bill, passed in the 2014 legislative session, allows for the growth of Charlotte's Web and several other low-THC strains of marijuana to help patients who have severe seizures, cancer, and other ailments. GrowHealthy has partnered with nurseries in the hope of getting one of five licenses the state will distribute by lottery to nurseries that meet the bill's strict criteria.
"It's absolutely a risk," Clifford said, but their business plan calls for his state-of-the-art plant to serve as a model. "We think that the quality of our facility is one of the things that will help us be successful in other states as well as Florida." Meanwhile, if they don't get a license, the company will sit tight and the plant will be converted to grow "some sort of vegetable," he said.
Amendment 2's loss also means the loss of a golden financial opportunity for the state. If the measure had passed, state projection of sales ranged from $138 million to $5.6 billion. State projections of tax revenue ranged from $8.3 million to $338 million.
The numbers were based on the number of medical marijuana patients (up to 417,000), the amount of pot they may use and price per ounce. The National Cannabis Industry Association also had projected the possibility the state could be the second-largest legal market in the country. However, "When talking about medical marijuana, the real missed opportunity is providing access to a product to many seriously ill people who would benefit from it," West said.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Wtsp.com
Author: Mary Wozniak
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Death of Amendment 2 hasn't snuffed out pot enthusiasm
The 57 percent in favor "certainly sends a message to leadership in the state," she said. "It seems very likely that the next time it gets on the ballot, it will pass." So those who planted the seeds for their dispensaries, delivery services, grow operations, equipment sales and service, medical pot edibles, security businesses and more will have to wait for better political weather.
If this had been an ordinary political race, Amendment 2 would have been a slam dunk. But constitutional amendments need 60 percent to pass. And the issue was particularly controversial and contentious. Proponents promoted it as a compassionate measure to provide relief for ill people, providing an option other than pharmaceuticals. Opponents insisted it was a veiled attempt to legalize marijuana in general.
West hesitates to give advice for those who were poised to barrel ahead in anticipation of a positive result Nov. 4. It depends on the individual business owner, how they structured their business and the funding involved, she said. What they do depends on how much they've invested. "I think if they have the financial ability to sit tight, OK," West said. "It is a good reminder that this is still an industry that involves a lot of risk. Maybe it's not right to pour lots of money into it before it's a legal option."
Mike Ginocchi of Lehigh Acres, who started his own investing/consulting business, MjMoneyMan.com, said he was surprised Amendment 2 didn't pass, but he always had reservations. The millions poured into the Vote No on 2 campaign by billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, the negative TV advertising and the 60 percent vote threshold hurt, he said. "A lot of people had no clue what it was about and voted no." Ginocchi isn't quitting. "I'm still going to be MjMoneyman.com," he said. "I'm going to concentrate on the stocks end of it until I get my next at bat."
Silver linings
For Robert Calkin, founder of the Cannabis Career Institute, it's all good. "There are silver linings there," he said. "I've been in the industry 35 years and it's always one step forward, two steps back. This was a good step forward." Calkin, a medical marijuana expert from California, holds seminars across Florida and in other states on how to start a medical marijuana business.
Everybody realizes now how much people are in favor and the political climate is changing, he said. "I know of no reason why a (legislative) bill couldn't be introduced. That should be seen as a feather in whatever smart politician's cap comes up with a proposal. I would think they'd be stumbling all over one another to do this."
People continue to ask about classes, Calkin said. The institute will continue to hold them, but probably with fewer students. The seminars presented by instructors include a worst-case scenario, he said. "Let's assume it will not pass and what to do in the interim." That includes creating a brand that can be licensed, a business model for a dispensary, a design for a grow operation or any other ancillary business, he said. Then you're ready to get it started when medical marijuana becomes legal. And it will become legal, Calkin said. The question is how quickly. "We see this evolution happen in every state."
New facility
Don Clifford, CEO of GrowHealthy Holdings, based in Atlanta, is in it for the long term. He bought an old Sealy mattress factory in Lake Wales for $2.2 million and is renovating it for $5 million more to turn it into a state-of-the art medical pot production facility. He was planning to buy a second facility if Amendment 2 passed. But the Lake Wales plant is intended to grow organic, pharmaceutical-grade medical marijuana permitted under State Bill 1030, also known as the Charlotte's Web bill.
The bill, passed in the 2014 legislative session, allows for the growth of Charlotte's Web and several other low-THC strains of marijuana to help patients who have severe seizures, cancer, and other ailments. GrowHealthy has partnered with nurseries in the hope of getting one of five licenses the state will distribute by lottery to nurseries that meet the bill's strict criteria.
"It's absolutely a risk," Clifford said, but their business plan calls for his state-of-the-art plant to serve as a model. "We think that the quality of our facility is one of the things that will help us be successful in other states as well as Florida." Meanwhile, if they don't get a license, the company will sit tight and the plant will be converted to grow "some sort of vegetable," he said.
Amendment 2's loss also means the loss of a golden financial opportunity for the state. If the measure had passed, state projection of sales ranged from $138 million to $5.6 billion. State projections of tax revenue ranged from $8.3 million to $338 million.
The numbers were based on the number of medical marijuana patients (up to 417,000), the amount of pot they may use and price per ounce. The National Cannabis Industry Association also had projected the possibility the state could be the second-largest legal market in the country. However, "When talking about medical marijuana, the real missed opportunity is providing access to a product to many seriously ill people who would benefit from it," West said.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Wtsp.com
Author: Mary Wozniak
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Death of Amendment 2 hasn't snuffed out pot enthusiasm
