How did I get into this box?

[Toxic Fluid]

Since it was legal to purchase pot at a collective I have been purchasing what I wanted. The collective also sold clones and encouraged me to try to raise a few. I did and subsequently, learned how to clone and grow indoors. It was a slow process at first but I got better and better at it. I no longer go to the collective to purchase pot of a lower quality that I can grow at home. Where the purchased pot was subject to budgetary constraints and always seemed in short supply; growing it at home resulted in a virtual cornucopia of Marijuana. My collective has since gone under and disappeared after many years of operation. He was one of the first in the Los Angeles area, and now he is gone, never to be seen again. I can't help but think he killed himself by offering clones, like sorta selling himself out of business. Since collective pot is expensive and everyone seems to be growing it at home, (4 on my block), it is no wonder the little collectives are forced to fold their tents.
Here is a thought: We complain about no jobs now days. We complain about the jobs that have left our country and have gone overseas because the cost of manufacturing is cheap over there and too expensive to manufacture here. That is why manufacturers do it. So would you if you were them. Some might call that just plain egregious, financial wantonness. Small business & mom and pop retailers quit for similar reasons. I am suggesting the small collectives disappear because people want to get their pot as cheaply as they can and start growing it in their closets. It is the same situation in miniature. Another reason the small suppliers have gone out of business is because some big business guys have set up huge warehouses of equipment, (all of it), and ready to deliver immediately; even drop it by drone on your porch step. We have one of those warehouses very close to where I live in town. Its real convenient. They have everything imaginable needed and not needed for growing your own crop from closet systems to warehouse sized operations. People from all over the state order from that store. Last month two of the small stores in town had to quit. They have been in business long before the big warehouse showed up and undercut their business. They joined the other one who closed his doors a few months earlier. The big warehouse was selling the same equipment for less than the small business guy could buy it; and there they went. Well, I want the best price I can get too so I bought my expensive stuff from the warehouse guys and the cheaper expendables from the small store. Did I contribute towards the small store's demise by not supporting him or am I just some guy trying to get the best deal I can, like any wise shopper? I and others may have inadvertently contributed towards their end for just that reason. We didn't support the local stores because we wanted the best deal we could get, Right? Gee, isn't that just like the big business guys do who are trying to get the best deal they can? What is the answer? Should I really be complaining so loudly? I'm an old fart. Complaining & bellyaching are what we do best. That's a given. But really folks; what can we as individuals do to address what clearly is a national concern? How do we fix it? How can the small stores compete with the big guys? The answer to that question is: They can't so they go away.
Meanwhile, I shop for all my pot growing needs at the warehouse store now, because it's cheaper.
As usual, your results may differ.

 

[Richard Richardson]

This is another community-erasing side-effect of commercialization.

Shop online or at the warehouse, either way small businesses lose out.

I shop at local gardening and hardware stores, if possible.

 

[FloridaSunset]

I'm an old fart too and remember all too well when the Big Box Stores started popping up. Everything you could possibly ever need or want all in one place at a price that seemed too good to be true. And, the sad thing is, it turned out to be too good to be true in the long run because, as you said all the local Mom and Pop Shops are now pretty much a thing of the past.

The little Local Shops couldn't compete with the prices the Big Box Stores could offer so they folded up. The problem is everyone only looked at the price the Big Box Stores offered and ignored the fact that they didn't have the experience and knowledge the little local shops had and that they willingly shared with their customers.Sadly too many people realized that price isn't everything too late and found out that by saving a couple of bucks at the Box Stores they had ended up killing the Golden Goose that had been their local store.

And another thing people found out about the Big Box Stores is that they don't, usually anyway, carry much in the way of replacement parts for the things they sold you a couple seasons ago like your old store did. So when something goes on the fritz, like it always will, their suggestion is to just buy a new one from them. And if you happen to be lucky enough that they do carry the part you need odds are they'll have no idea how to actually do the repair so you'll be on your own.