In
Only 11 states including
Bachtell recently spoke to The Associated Press about how Cresco has prospered during the pandemic and the challenges facing the
Q: How have your sales fared during the pandemic and recession?
A: The easiest way for me to describe it is to compare second-quarter results to first-quarter results. We’re in nine markets across the country, nine different states, and we saw at least 30% sequential growth, quarter-over-quarter, in all of our nine states except for one,
Q: Would you say the pandemic's been a boon for legal marijuana, given so many people are sheltering in place and looking for ways to manage the stress of it all?
A: You can find the correlation there, for sure. They have more time on their hands, working from home, being at home, and finding something else to help them take their mind off the stress. All of the above are factors in what we saw with greater acceptance, a greater consumer base with greater spending, so far, during this era. We tend to be in the highly regulated newer markets --
Q: What’s the biggest challenge facing the industry?
A: The main thing holding the industry back is access to capital that would allow the infrastructure to be built, that then creates the growth, the jobs, the revenue. The fundamental restraint that still hangs over this industry is it’s difficult to capitalize it, but once that hurdle is cleared, even if nothing else is done, you’ll see explosive growth.
Q: The SAFE Banking Act, which would free up banks to do business with licensed marijuana companies, has stalled in the
A: The conversations are changing from ‘Why would we do this?’ to ‘Why wouldn’t we do this?’ Even at the federal level, as it relates to how banking occurs, you’ll find support for this on both sides of the aisle. And it’s less about ‘if’ and more about ‘how’ to do it. Cannabis, from my perspective, is in a very good position.
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