Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Harvest of Arizona, the Tempe-based medical-marijuana dispensary company with retail shops in Tempe and Scottsdale, announced a merger Tuesday that would make it one of the largest players in the growing industry.
In theory, the deal could benefit to the state's 115,000 registered patients by lowering prices.
Harvest has merged with Arizona cultivator Modern Flower, currently the state's "leading wholesale supplier," the company said in a news release, adding that the company will soon become "the largest medical marijuana operator in Arizona."
By January, Harvest – the 2015 Best of Phoenix winner for Best Dispensary – will own eight dispensaries and seven cultivation centers in the state, said the company's CEO, attorney Steve White.
Harvest of Arizona, the Tempe-based medical-marijuana dispensary company with retail shops in Tempe and Scottsdale, announced a merger Tuesday that would make it one of the largest players in the growing industry.
In theory, the deal could benefit to the state's 115,000 registered patients by lowering prices.
Harvest has merged with Arizona cultivator Modern Flower, currently the state's "leading wholesale supplier," the company said in a news release, adding that the company will soon become "the largest medical marijuana operator in Arizona."
By January, Harvest – the 2015 Best of Phoenix winner for Best Dispensary – will own eight dispensaries and seven cultivation centers in the state, said the company's CEO, attorney Steve White.
The rejection of federal law by Arizona and 25 other states, plus Washington, D.C., in the past few years resulted in the creation of a multibillion-dollar market that will create more jobs for Americans than manufacturing by 2020, according to Forbes Magazine.
Industry expert Robert Carp, a Boston lawyer who writes guides to running marijuana businesses, said he agreed with White's idea that a merger will likely benefit patients in the long run.
"Agriculture is generally a race to the bottom," in terms of pricing, Carp said.
Expanding cultivation operations for the strains sold by Harvest will create economies of scale that aren't necessarily available to companies that own only one growing facility, he said.
A larger operation "should be able to achieve cost efficiency, and will hopefully pass that on to a patient," Carp said. ""The more facilities ... the lower the price."
The question of who runs the biggest dispensary company in Arizona, however, can't be answered with certainty at this time because of the industry's built-in secrecy.
The 2010 law approved by voters that created the Arizona medical-marijuana industry creates an exception in public records law that prevents the public from knowing the identities of the people behind the nonprofit boards that run the dispensaries.
Each retail license is assigned to a nonprofit firm run by a board of directors, and allows the operation of one dispensary that, in turn, can choose to open cultivation facilities or buy from a wholesaler.
The retail dispensary licenses can't be transferred or sold, but the dispensary boards can choose to cede their oversight to management companies. That's essentially what's happening with the Harvest-Modern Flower merger.
White is on the board of one of the Harvest nonprofits. The additional retail outlets will be operated by Harvest under the Harvest brand, the company said.
Besides the newly expanded Arizona operation, Harvest has been busy acquiring retail and cultivation licenses in Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.
Locally, White said the Harvest expansion will nearly triple the number of employees from about 100 now to 200 or 300 next year. Anyone interested in a job could contact the company through its website, he said.
"While expansion will always present new and exciting challenges, we are fortunate to be adding employees with similar values," White said. "We are excited to be a powerful force for Arizona patients for years to come."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Medical Marijuana Merger of Arizona Dispensaries to Grow More Cannabis | Phoenix New Times
Author: Ray Stern
Contact: Phoenix News and Events | Phoenix New Times
Photo Credit: Pixabay
Website: Phoenix News and Events | Phoenix New Times
In theory, the deal could benefit to the state's 115,000 registered patients by lowering prices.
Harvest has merged with Arizona cultivator Modern Flower, currently the state's "leading wholesale supplier," the company said in a news release, adding that the company will soon become "the largest medical marijuana operator in Arizona."
By January, Harvest – the 2015 Best of Phoenix winner for Best Dispensary – will own eight dispensaries and seven cultivation centers in the state, said the company's CEO, attorney Steve White.
Harvest of Arizona, the Tempe-based medical-marijuana dispensary company with retail shops in Tempe and Scottsdale, announced a merger Tuesday that would make it one of the largest players in the growing industry.
In theory, the deal could benefit to the state's 115,000 registered patients by lowering prices.
Harvest has merged with Arizona cultivator Modern Flower, currently the state's "leading wholesale supplier," the company said in a news release, adding that the company will soon become "the largest medical marijuana operator in Arizona."
By January, Harvest – the 2015 Best of Phoenix winner for Best Dispensary – will own eight dispensaries and seven cultivation centers in the state, said the company's CEO, attorney Steve White.
The rejection of federal law by Arizona and 25 other states, plus Washington, D.C., in the past few years resulted in the creation of a multibillion-dollar market that will create more jobs for Americans than manufacturing by 2020, according to Forbes Magazine.
Industry expert Robert Carp, a Boston lawyer who writes guides to running marijuana businesses, said he agreed with White's idea that a merger will likely benefit patients in the long run.
"Agriculture is generally a race to the bottom," in terms of pricing, Carp said.
Expanding cultivation operations for the strains sold by Harvest will create economies of scale that aren't necessarily available to companies that own only one growing facility, he said.
A larger operation "should be able to achieve cost efficiency, and will hopefully pass that on to a patient," Carp said. ""The more facilities ... the lower the price."
The question of who runs the biggest dispensary company in Arizona, however, can't be answered with certainty at this time because of the industry's built-in secrecy.
The 2010 law approved by voters that created the Arizona medical-marijuana industry creates an exception in public records law that prevents the public from knowing the identities of the people behind the nonprofit boards that run the dispensaries.
Each retail license is assigned to a nonprofit firm run by a board of directors, and allows the operation of one dispensary that, in turn, can choose to open cultivation facilities or buy from a wholesaler.
The retail dispensary licenses can't be transferred or sold, but the dispensary boards can choose to cede their oversight to management companies. That's essentially what's happening with the Harvest-Modern Flower merger.
White is on the board of one of the Harvest nonprofits. The additional retail outlets will be operated by Harvest under the Harvest brand, the company said.
Besides the newly expanded Arizona operation, Harvest has been busy acquiring retail and cultivation licenses in Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.
Locally, White said the Harvest expansion will nearly triple the number of employees from about 100 now to 200 or 300 next year. Anyone interested in a job could contact the company through its website, he said.
"While expansion will always present new and exciting challenges, we are fortunate to be adding employees with similar values," White said. "We are excited to be a powerful force for Arizona patients for years to come."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Medical Marijuana Merger of Arizona Dispensaries to Grow More Cannabis | Phoenix New Times
Author: Ray Stern
Contact: Phoenix News and Events | Phoenix New Times
Photo Credit: Pixabay
Website: Phoenix News and Events | Phoenix New Times
