A Basic Guide to Starting a Cannabis Business

Two hands with cannabis and money. The concept of selling marijuana, hemp, drugs

The cannabis industry in North America is expected to be worth over $38 billion in six years, and that’s speaking conservatively. Others estimate that the US market value will be well over $50 billion by 2030. A few even claim that the value will reach $100 billion by 2030.

Regardless of who you ask, the consensus seems to be that cannabis is a huge business, and it’s growing quickly. With this in mind, some of you are probably thinking that starting a cannabis business could be a good idea.

A cannabis business could become a very lucrative investment, but the same rule goes as it does for any other business–you’ll need to know what you’re doing. We’ll offer some advice on how to start a cannabis business in this article.

1. Create a Concept

The first step to creating a successful cannabis company is to come up with a business idea. Selling cannabis isn’t the only option you have for the business, so you shouldn’t be too attached to that idea early on.

Cannabis has to be grown, harvested, processed, packaged, and then sold, and any one of these can be turned into a business. Perhaps you set up a business that designs packaging for edibles made by other companies. Maybe you’d prefer to build a dispensary and sell various companies’ cannabis products.

This is a common practice in grocery and retail stores, and the stores profit by collecting ‘slotting fees’. Slotting fees are payments made to a store so that the store will carry a product. The companies are literally buying shelf space in the store.

2. Learn the Laws

Since it’s an intoxicating substance, cannabis is highly regulated. We recommend reading up on the cannabis laws of your state to make sure your business idea is legal.

Even if it’s legal, you will almost certainly need to pursue a license. There are many types of licenses you might need to work in the cannabis industry, and it all depends on your location and how your business operates.

Since marijuana, of any kind, isn’t legal at the  federal level, it’s up to the states to establish their own system when they legalize. The result has been a hodgepodge of different laws and regulations that differ by state.

The good news is that you don’t have to know all the systems, just the one for your state. There are also plenty of useful guides online that can tell you the laws of each state.

What to do When Starting a Cannabis Business

The cannabis industry has created quite a huge market, and it’s growing by leaps every year. If you’re thinking about grabbing a piece of this market for yourself, you’ll need to have a plan.

We’ve offered some advice on starting a cannabis business in this article, but there’s always more to learn. We encourage you to do more research on your own if you’re interested.

If you’re looking for a place to get started, may we recommend our site? It’s a great place to get business and lifestyle advice.