Indie pot shops seek co-operative wholesale, distribution

By Glenn Hicks

Some of Saskatchewan’s private independent cannabis shops are forming a co-operative to thwart what they see as the challenges from the already-dominant corporate sector in the new legal cannabis marketplace.

The Prince Albert-based president of the fledgling Weed Pool Cannabis Co-operative hopes to bring together a number of independent retailers, including one from North Battleford, and set up a wholesale operation and distribution centre.

“A co-op would be better for suppliers with a single point delivery and single billing rather than dealing with each individual store,” said Jim Southam, who runs Prairie Cannabis in Prince Albert. “It will hopefully mean better selection for our customers.”

Southam said 75 per cent of the market in the province is owned or controlled by large corporate licensed producers and huge publicly traded cannabis companies and the relatively few independents need to work together to succeed.

The not-for-profit Saskatchewan Independent Cannabis Retailers Network (SICRN), which features eight companies, was formed shortly after the licence lottery last year.

Southam said 5Buds Cannabis, which has an outlet in North Battleford, is part of that eight-company group and he hopes it and others join the new Weed Pool Co-operative. So far, he said Weed Boutique in Regina and The Pot Shack in Saskatoon had joined his Prairie Cannabis store as the initial members of the co-op so they could incorporate and get ready to do business.

“SICRN is an association that was formed to help each other out and increase our buying power,” Southam said. “We’ve spent the last year working together and [the co-op] is just a progression of how the industry is working out.”

He said while in-store prices have started to come down, they could go lower and the co-op would play a role in that.

He said the Weed Pool is seeking a wholesale licence from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) so the group’s buying efforts and distribution can function within the provincial legislation.

“I still think there’s a lot of smaller producers that want to enter the market eventually and also I think there will be more stores coming online in future … and some of those will be private, so we can increase our numbers in our group,” Southam said.

The SLGA said there isn’t a limit to the number of businesses that operate as wholesalers in the province and there isn’t a deadline for licensed retailers to apply for a cannabis warehouse and distribution centre.

A spokesman said there were currently five wholesale permits that have been issued.