Ask a Stoner: If Marijuana Sales Are Down, How Are New Dispensaries Opening?

Dear Stoner: If marijuana sales are so bad and businesses are struggling so much, then why are new dispensaries opening all the time?
Colfax Carl

Dear Carl: Two things can be true at the same time. Marijuana sales are bad, but business owners still believe in the power of pot. Dispensary revenue is down across Colorado, thanks to fewer out-of-state customers and a year-long drop in wholesale prices. This has pushed a handful of dispensaries to sell, close up shop or, in more than one case, get shut down because of failure to pay sales taxes. At the same time, dispensaries still present lucrative opportunities for investors with deeper pockets than mom-and-pop operations trying to pay bills week to week.

We’ve seen several new dispensaries open in the place of former stores while new pot shops have sprouted up on their own over the past six months. In cannabis epicenters like Denver, there will always be competition and new areas ripe for the picking, even if a few stores can’t make it. Expect more of the same going forward.

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