As growers across the country become licensed and ready to take their operation to a commercial scale, consulting firms across the country are pouncing on these new opportunities. While cannabis consulting firms provide a service that can be invaluable to many growers, a lot of these consulting groups seem to have a predatory nature hidden behind their promises of help and profits.
For those looking to go the consulting route, making the choice of which firm to go with is potentially the biggest decision a grower will make. It is essential to educated yourself on the process and to use a consulting firm as a resource, instead of a group dictating your business decisions.
When selecting a consulting firm one of the first things to consider is how the firm makes money. Most will require equity in your company or a portion of the money made off of your harvests. Before signing any agreements or terms, it is essential to understand exactly how you will be paying the consulting firm. This may seem kind of obvious, but many growers allow consulting groups equity in their company only to regret it later. There is absolutely nothing worse than achieving the first commercial harvest only to find that all the profits will go straight into your consultant’s pockets.
The second thing to be wary of are consulting groups offering turnkey packages. Given the political climate surrounding the industry and regional building requirements, there really is no such thing as a turnkey solution for a cannabis operation. Often times municipalities will require their architects to approve plans or make amendments to them. On top of that, there are often licenses or permits that are unique to a particular region, making a turnkey option nearly impossible.
Consulting groups should be upfront with the fact that building a commercial cannabis operation will certainly lead to its fair share of headaches. They are there to provide help during the process, and any group that says it can circumvent these issues probably lacks experience.
Trying to avoid the municipal and legal requirements can literally cost a business millions in the long run, so go with a firm that wants to tackle these issues head on, not one that wants to avoid them with turnkey solutions.
To provide growers with an option that ensures equity-free consultation and also helps growers meet municipal and regional requirements, GrowSpan now provides cannabis consultation. You can sign up for more information on GrowSpan’s cannabis consultation here.
For more information:
GrowSpan Greenhouse Structures
1395 John Fitch Blvd
South Windsor, Connecticut 06074
Toll-free USA: (800) 476 9715
International: +1 860 528 9550
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www.growspan.com