Marijuana Industry: Denver or Seattle? (transfer, minimum wage, maintenance)

[ayoitzrimz]

I'd vote Seattle. It's the bigger city of the two, and have just started rec sales so the need will be there. CO is also saturated with budtenders because of the booming medical sales so most dispensaries will not be hiring and if they do it'll be in minimum wage. I just feel you have a chance to get in on the ground floor in Seattle whereas in Denver that boat has long sailed...

[robertgoodman]

The only issue as far as MJ jobs go with Seattle (and WA) is they capped the licenses and total production. I think they can only have 300 or so recreational dispensaries in the entire state, and I think the number of licenses allocated to Seattle is in the twenties. Not sure how long they are intending to keep those limits in place, but it will restrict growth and job opportunities. Additionally, their medicinal market is largely unregulated and several attempts to shut stores down -and the entire market- have been made leading to a less stable medicinal system than we have in CO.

On the flip side CO did transition it's medicinal market to medicinal + recreational stores so not as many new jobs per store. However, some jobs were needed in those existing CO stores due to government regulations that you need to have separate counters and budtenders for medicinal and rec for some strange reason.

Moving forward in the next few months entirely new recreational stores in CO will be allowed to open that were not medicinal, and cities are slowly lifting their moratoriums. So if say Lakewood (denver suburb) which has several medicinal stores decided to lift it's recreational moratorium in an upcoming vote then you might have some opportunities as the MMJ stores that transition would need additional staff. Also the city of Aurora (another Denver suburb and third largest CO city) is going to allow recreational stores starting this October (when entirely new stores can open) even though they banned medicinal stores years ago, so that means they will be looking for entirely new staff for the recreational stores. So pockets of opportunity still exist in CO.

As far as cities go Seattle and Denver are very close. Both have some drawbacks and advantages but I wouldn't hesitate to live in either one. However neither are anywhere near capable of perfectly replicating NYC or more specifically the East Village, although they both have neighborhoods that are substitutes in terms of overall vibe.

[blendin]

Originally Posted by GreyKnowledge

I'd love to learn and master the craft of growing one day; that'd be the ultimate goal. And like I said in the OP, its comforting to know that I can finish a degree in Colorado, especially if it will help me in the industry. They have some Cannabis Colleges in the works I believe and that would be awesome

I think the best networking would come from being a "budtender" and the constant interaction and the intimacy and its a great gig to gain knowledge about the product

Just my opinion, A bud tender is a very low paid job and you get stuck in one dispensary, basically like working in a liquor store you might learn the product(at the particular store) and how to work a cash register other then that ,,,?
As a retail budtender you are just stuck behind a counter, dealing with fussy customers and stuck with product from one source and getting the same pay as a McDonalds worker. Once the novelty of legal MJ wears off it is just another product to be sold.

The MJ industry is very competitive in Denver it is not a big pow wow. Each dispensary hides where they bank, hides where they get strains, hides growing techniques, etc. So don't expect to much “networking” from a retail bud tender job.

Personally for networking I think someone would be better off as a independent freelancer. You can go around try product from any place you want, attend events, festivals, meet people, trade biz cards, etc. Getting a horticulture degree or marketing degree will also help you network and get into the MJ industry and get a worthwhile job.

What the scene is right now-
As of now the medical shops have been in the game longer and have better buds. If you get a red card you can go buy 1-gram quantities all day at $10-$12 a gram. After a bit you figure where the good stuff is and where the good growers are.
Most of the rec shops are still new so are their customers so they are over charging and sell low grade warehouse buds.

[purselady]

I know someone who recently opened a recreational dispensary in downtown Denver. I have been told that it is actually pretty difficult to find good employees. You wouldn't believe the numbers of people who show up for job interviews high, late, or just unprofessional overall. They get a lot of applicants, but very few good ones. They are still looking for bud tenders, and pay more than minimum wage. I can forward information via private message if anyone is interested.

[GreyKnowledge]

Originally Posted by purselady

I know someone who recently opened a recreational dispensary in downtown Denver. I have been told that it is actually pretty difficult to find good employees. You wouldn't believe the numbers of people who show up for job interviews high, late, or just unprofessional overall. They get a lot of applicants, but very few good ones. They are still looking for bud tenders, and pay more than minimum wage. I can forward information via private message if anyone is interested.

PM me please?

[sammy87]

Originally Posted by purselady

I know someone who recently opened a recreational dispensary in downtown Denver. I have been told that it is actually pretty difficult to find good employees. You wouldn't believe the numbers of people who show up for job interviews high, late, or just unprofessional overall. They get a lot of applicants, but very few good ones. They are still looking for bud tenders, and pay more than minimum wage. I can forward information via private message if anyone is interested.

Have you ever owned a business or managed employees? They are the #1 hurdle to overcome. Was your friend surprised that the ppl that wanted to work for $10/hr selling pot showing up late and high? I wouldn't expect too many BA grads lining up for that job.

I read an article that the CO pot laws are driving in more and more homeless. Denver already has more than I've ever seen, adding more is not a good thing. Im still not sure how good of an idea legal pot is.

[Blackhawk4440]

Grey Knowledge;
From what I've heard, Colorado is fairly well established already in that industry so it might be harder to go in 'at ground level' than a year ago. I live in Washington State and the industry here has been so badly managed it's nearly on the verge of complete collapse.

I might suggest two other options: Oregon has a legalization initiative on the ballot that's widely expected to pass and they could very well pick up where Washington has failed. That would be a good place for entrepreneurial endeavors I would guess. California also might be good; they have limited legalization, but a huge industry. You might want to consider those options.

[sammy87]

What exactly is the profit margin of pot? Throwing the heavy tax on top just seems like it's almost impossible to make it a profitable business.

[Blackhawk4440]

Sammy 87:
I have no idea what the profit margin is; but I think you're right---the overhead expenses seem like it would be massive. To start with, Colorado and Washington don't have climates or soil that favor outdoor MJ growing---the cost of electricity and water on one of these greenhouses must be astronomical. Not to mention there's a lot of labor involved in processing the product. You can bet too, I was in that industry I wouldn't be without an attorney on a fat retainer!

[ironlady]

Originally Posted by GreyKnowledge

Sorry, I should have elaborated on the 20K.

The 20K is for living and maintaining in either city.

I simply want to work at a dispensary to get my feet wet and to gain more knowledge and move up from there. I'd be humbled to work in a shop to start with.

Wow. Way to reach for the stars.