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First Social Equity Weed Store In The Country Is No Longer Selling Cannabis
Blunts + Moore, the first social equity cannabis store nationwide was closed this past March.
Alphonso "Tucky" Blunt Jr., who grew up in Oakland during the War on Drugs era, was the first person to open a dispensary under Oakland's Cannabis Equity Program in 2018. Now the store is no longer selling cannabis as Blunt's landlord refused to renew his lease.
Green Market Report's John Schroyer called Blunt's story "a cautionary tale for cannabis entrepreneurs with dollar signs in their eyes, a warning signal that the marijuana trade is not an easy one in which to find success."
Amber Senter, a social equity advocate and owner of California brand Makr House, said the California cannabis regulatory landscape is challenging toward small businesses as well, not social equity programs per se. "We're going to see many more business closures across the board," Senter said.
For Blunt, having a cannabis business license doesn't equal success. Arrested in 2004 for cannabis possession with the intent to sell and placed on felony probation for a decade, Blunt who was once exposed to the harsh realities of the criminal justice system, said he plans to venture into a cannabis delivery business and possibly special cannabis-related events.
"I didn't look at it as closing," Blunt wrote in an email to GMR. "It was a pivot/relocation. Closing makes people think it ...