The Coronavirus outbreak has represented a sort of turning point for the cannabis industry, especially in the US and Canada. Many states and provinces across the US and Canada, indeed, have designated cannabis operations as essential business, which means that they keep working and keep the supply chain going. “It kind of amazes me,” Kevin Ahaesy, founder and CEO of ECO Cannabis, based in San Francisco, says. “Until one year ago, cannabis was illegal, and nowadays it is considered essential. I honestly do not know where this will lead in the future, but as of now business is ongoing.”
A pragmatic approach
ECO Cannabis is a vertically integrated company active in California only, which puts the company in an advantage. “We have taken a very pragmatic approach to get to this point,” he says. “We started with the cultivation only, and then we expanded on that to the point where we are now. One of our strengths is that we are not a vertically integrated multi-state operator.”
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ndeed, Kevin points out that since cannabis is still federally illegal in the US, multi-state operators cannot distribute their products across different states. “All the infrastructures that they have built are just a waste of money, in my opinion. It makes more sense to start supplying the domestic market, nail down a successful business model, and then expand on that. This is also because, as soon as borders open up, you already have a functioning distribution center.”
Growing during the Corona crisis
The benefits of being a vertically integrated business in California are especially related to the health of the supply chain. “When parts of the supply chain get stuck because people working in them get sick, then you are in trouble,” he says. “Now, it is too soon to make any projections; over the next two, three weeks, we will see where the industry is going.”
This is also the reason why Kevin adheres very strictly to the social distancing guidelines. “We have sent all the management to work remotely from home. On top of that, we have taken additional hygiene measures: all the employees are mandated to wear surgical gloves and facemasks. Additionally, we have placed hand and spray sanitizer everywhere.”
Kevin points out that the same additional measures have been taken in the company’s retail location. “However, we are about to kick off our curbside sales and delivery service as well. In terms of supply, we are pretty healthy: our goal has always been to stockpile strains to have product available constantly. The goals of the grow are always the same.”
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