So you wannabe an LP...

We count between 25 and 30 wannabe LP's who have come out with a post on this forum, most with applications in HC's hands. Pretty powerful stuff, all these families and the influence, knowledge, experience, and money that that represents. Are we really in competition with each other?
Some of us think in terms of this competition and I'd like to make the argument, that we (small LP's) are not but a spec in a Billion dollar industry, our competition is not with each other, but with Big Pharma.
I am coming to realize, that right now, looking ahead, I only see an endless road of expansions in order to survive in the MMPR. I personally don't want this on many different levels...
...as a patient, the more LP,s (choices) the better, ......not bigger, better.
...as a wannabe LP, I don't want any more than a healthy family business. Do you really want a 100,000 sqft or more? That is officially no life beyond marihuana, and not with the marihuana either, your stuck in the office managing now.
...as a Canadian, I want as many good jobs and tax revenue as I can get.
...as a marihuana advocate, growing more smaller gardens is the fastest way to improve quality, expand varieties, and will still lower prices.
Using a group of LP's to compete against big Pharma in the market and in the political arena seems to me the only way to keep the growing of marihuana in the hands of families and not large corporations. I have no idea how this will take place, I just know it needs to.
What I fear most is a non LP organization wanting our massive influence, and promising whatever it takes. IMO this voice should come from within the group of LP's, to be the loudest and least expensive voice we can get.
Looking to stir up some opinions and get some feedback. Naysayers welcome.

This is a very thought provoking post. I've read it twice. I'm going to digest what you are proposing and let you know my thoughts.
Thanks for posting it.

In the small grow op thread this request has been made a couple of times.
DRCFL was going to create a site, BigBhuda was interested. There were a lot of interested parties.
So...did anything happen back in June? Was anything done, ie email list or such?

I have been thinking about my Nov7 post in small grow op. I am willing to explore this more. It makes sense on a lot of different levels.
It would take considerable effort though, so i need to know what happened in the past.

I know it's been said before. But I'd love to start a sort of co-operative growing community. Like Kootenaygirl said, our real competition is with big pharma and those super large scale operations. I know it doesn't relate 100% but recently people have become far more informed with their eating habits and food purchasing. I would like to believe (and a small community of people i know with existing MMAR licences agree) that MJ quality is the most important aspect for medical use. If not there will certainly be a niche market that we could hit.

Again, if we were a more co-operative team we could, buy and sell between us. Have specific strains that you could grow and trade, buy and sell whatever to keep your clients happy. It totally makes sense for everyone. I have experience with web design and perhaps a communal website would work? I'm on board.

Leaffan, I know of an application ahead of mine that is going to make plans for a web chat, I agree with them when they say they feel it is too early still. Do we wait till we are actual LP's? I don't have the impression of leadership with this person, they and others are just thinking along these same lines too. Nothing has happened thus far, as far as I know, other than lists and private messaging to get to know one another.

I also believe that we need the power of numbers, people, dollars, facilities, man hours and many more numbers I can't think of, to ensure a place for small producers. A coalition of small LP's, would be among the most powerful pro-marihuana organizations ever formed in Canada, our choice in a leader would be so important.

Some simple but easily agreeable to goals need to be discussed. The strength of such an organization is only as strong as the coalition. A simple but effective message and a few goals.

Remember we could form more than one organization too, never risking the power and the voice that this coalition needs. We can form MarjieJane's price fixing Cartel somewhere else. The open LP private trading website, should be separate too. The coalition needs to be non-controversial to succeed.

Thanks for the input trip. Good to know about your website capabilities.

Ok Kgirl, thanks for the update.
I think you're on the right track. I'm going to give this some thought over the holidays.
I want to look at different co-op structures, and also have a good look at the association that is in place in the States.

Everyone have a safe and happy holiday.

"We can form MarjieJanes price fixing Cartel somewhere else."
This is illegal on so many levels and in so many industries.

trip96 said:

I know it's been said before. But I'd love to start a sort of co-operative growing community. Like Kootenaygirl said, our real competition is with big pharma and those super large scale operations. I know it doesn't relate 100% but recently people have become far more informed with their eating habits and food purchasing. I would like to believe (and a small community of people i know with existing MMAR licences agree) that MJ quality is the most important aspect for medical use. If not there will certainly be a niche market that we could hit.

Again, if we were a more co-operative team we could, buy and sell between us. Have specific strains that you could grow and trade, buy and sell whatever to keep your clients happy. It totally makes sense for everyone. I have experience with web design and perhaps a communal website would work? I'm on board.

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Hi trip96: If you can create a blog/website that is restricted to just future and actual LP's, that might be a great forum for us to communicate. I completely agree with Kgirl, we will all lose out if we begin competing against each other. We are on our way to getting our license, with about 6300 sq ft of space. This size is manageable for us and we will grow quality, not quantity. We need to form a group of small LP's to work together, for many reasons including strain sharing, marketing, lobbying, price stability and public relations. All this costs money and one of the most important things is that we don't start under-cutting each other on prices. We could all have a "race to the bottom" on prices and we would all lose our investments and our businesses. I think this is what HC wants with their "free market". I think they want to see this fail, then they would be "forced" to go back to giving PPS a monopoly again.

cannadan said:

"We can form MarjieJanes price fixing Cartel somewhere else."
This is illegal on so many levels and in so many industries.

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Hi cannadan, how exactly is this illegal? Please find me statutes that state that. I have been on many boards of directors, and involved in many businesses. Price stability and cohesive marketing are normal practices in business, especially in agriculture. In order to prevent diversion to illegal users and minors, I think HC would applaud a minimum price. If prices drop to $ 1 per gram, there would be no way to prevent widespread diversion. I would love to hear others views on this issue.

Why can oil, wheat and dairy do it? I was only kidding about the Cartel, hence the word Cartel, price fixing is illegal, under 45,46,48 of the competition act.

I hope Leaffan is right and big pharma will not out price us at every turn, allowing small operations to remain profitable, but this is not a kind or gentle world, we are and you should be preparing for a couple of tough years ahead.

How much money will you have to come up with every month, profit or not, this is how long you have to survive. We are really trying hard to be 100% owner operators, with a very small amount of debt, we are not ruling out investors, but just don't want them.

I am HC's biggest critic, but with that said, why wouldn't they just set the minimum price for all, if this diversion is even worth going after at all? Why would they discriminate, who would they discriminate against, is culling out the small and financially weaker really their goal? To save on inspectors? I hope that they really are looking at creating a new industry like they say, cause were gonna find out.

I thought of HC as hating equally among all of it's pot loving citizens. Do they hate some more than others?

The reason I know this to be true is .a former employer of mine did a few years behind bars
for price fixing with his competitors .
Maybe HC will help you guys break the rules , I believe this was
HC 's intention (see Koot I did read the regs and a bit more ,lots of info in the gazette ) from the get go .
But still doesn't make it legal just doable.

Koot ....you asked Why can oil, wheat and dairy do it? I was only kidding about the Cartel, hence the Cartel, price fixing is illegal, under 45,46,48 of the competition act.
This is where marketing boards ....quota and the like ,come in.

Who gets to be on the cannabis marketing board, who can or will form such a group?
The farmers for wheat were their own representatives were they not?
Are we really just talking about putting the right labels on things?

Hi all,
I have been away, focussing my efforts on other things.
I had planned on creating a website, but never got around to it...

Although the idea was valid, it seemed senseless to create another site very similar to this one, where you can log in and meet other people wanting to become LPs
It would be much more useful to have a site where actually licensed LP's can chat

Yesterday I found a site exactly as we have mentioned, for wanabe LP's to sign in and chat.... Unfortunately I didn't save the address and cannot find it at the moment.
Once I find it I will post it in case anyone cares...
Also found this website...
www.rateyourgrower.com
Doesn't look too active though.... lol

I find it interesting that the Tweed Inc ( gone public with becoming an LP in the old Hersheys factory 450,000sqft ) is owned by Justing Trudeau's Senior Advisor???

This guy is supporting Legalization if he wins the next election, and yet his Senior advisor will be positioned to have the LARGEST production facility probably in the world...

I wonder what king of side deals these guys have going on??

What are your thoughts on this??

DRCFL said:

I find it interesting that the Tweed Inc ( gone public with becoming an LP in the old Hersheys factory 450,000sqft ) is owned by Justing Trudeau's Senior Advisor???

This guy is supporting Legalization if he wins the next election, and yet his Senior advisor will be positioned to have the LARGEST production facility probably in the world...

I wonder what king of side deals these guys have going on??

What are your thoughts on this??

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Its pretty mind boggling. He is the Liberal Party CFO.

Stephen Bronfman is the Chief Revenue Officer.


The only way I feel I can compete, maintain and expand is to charge $2/gram shipping and taxes included, and be able to lower it if need be.

Just checked out the "Leadership Team" of Tweed, that is some scary business. Those guys know a whole lot about money, power and politics, and fuck all about weed. That right there is the dark side. The way I see it, the rich elite are pissed that us grass roots folks can treat ourselves with our own medicines, and worse yet, make money on the side selling it. This is a coup, taking away our rights to grow a magnificent healing plant, and doling it out at premium prices. Another poster mentioned the possibility that they will make the business ridiculously expensive to weed out any smaller producers, pretty much anybody that has been growing up to now. They've realized the potential and allure of the plant and have taken control.

It is going to be a big job to compete with that market. I think the best comparison will be with organic vs. industrial foods and the types of people that buy each. That will be the difference between the small scale producers and the big guys like Tweed. Undoubtedly they have the advantage in keeping prices low, but won't have the quality or connoisseur mindsets that many of us would have. I agree there is strength in numbers, and a vast majority of people would prefer to buy from a local, organic, family business. The trick will be to make it affordable against the big guys.

MarijeJane said:

Hi cannadan, how exactly is this illegal? Please find me statutes that state that. I have been on many boards of directors, and involved in many businesses. Price stability and cohesive marketing are normal practices in business, especially in agriculture. In order to prevent diversion to illegal users and minors, I think HC would applaud a minimum price. If prices drop to $ 1 per gram, there would be no way to prevent widespread diversion. I would love to hear others views on this issue.

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I don't think HC wants the "little guys" to fail and to give PPS a monopoly. I believe HC wants private industry to supply taxed and regulated marijuana to Canadians, versus the current supplier the black market.

A selling price of $1/g would promote considerable product diversion. This is a business and profit is required. Selling at $1/g would put you out of business, unless you grow in Uruguay. Washington State has imposed such heavy taxation that it will have the opposite effect.

ispice said:

Its pretty mind boggling. He is the Liberal Party CFO.

Stephen Bronfman is the Chief Revenue Officer.


The only way I feel I can compete, maintain and expand is to charge $2/gram shipping and taxes included, and be able to lower it if need be.

Click to expand...

If you do that you will not succeed. Draw up another strategy.

Kootenaygirl said:

Who gets to be on the cannabis marketing board, who can or will form such a group?
The farmers for wheat were their own representatives were they not?
Are we really just talking about putting the right labels on things?

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I have been reading up on co-ops and associations, give me a little more time on this key issue.

If you look around you will see all sorts of cooperation between competitors in different industries. A few examples...

Today at an intersection in town I checked the price on the three competing gas stations, and they all decided to sell at the exact same price.
At the local variety store it is interesting to see the exact same price on competing candy bars.

I cringe every time I have to pay my Rogers bill. I decided to look at what Bell had to offer, and yes you guessed it, same price.
That would explain why their customer service sucks, they know there is no real competition.

So bottom line.....where there's a will, there's a way.

leaffan said:

If you do that you will not succeed. Draw up another strategy.

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At what price would I have to sell at to succeed? Patients dont want top shelf for actual reality based prices?

Unless you can expand on your criticism I wont give it much credence.

Have you read the number one complaint about the MMPR? The affordability aspect.