With three locations around Spokane, Cinder has long been one of the region's most prominent cannabis retailers. Last month, the company opened a fourth store in a city distant from the Inland Northwest: Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The Inlander spoke with owner Justin Peterson and Chief Operating Officer Ted Robinson about the differences between the market in New Mexico and the market here in Washington. Their responses have been edited for clarity and length.
INLANDER: What was it about New Mexico, and Albuquerque specifically, that you found attractive?
PETERSON: I lived there for a year in the '80s, so I thought it'd be great to go back, but the other big piece was in Washington we have limitations. Although we were the first state along with Colorado to come online, there were a lot of heavy limitations put on us where we're not able to sell things that aren't related to cannabis in the stores. New Mexico had a much broader approach. We're allowed to sell anything except for alcohol.
Are there any other major differences between the regulations here compared to in New Mexico?
ROBINSON: In Washington, we're barred from participating in the full spectrum of the industry. The long-term view in the industry is that the multistate operators that are vertically integrated are the ones that are going to survive because they're controlling their production and quality coming into their stores.
PETERSON: Their tax structure [in New Mexico] is significantly more lax. Their taxes are 12 percent currently, compared to our 37 percent. Another big piece that they allow is consumption lounges. I think that's a huge thing. People want to be social, people want to go out, you know?
If you could pick one thing from New Mexico to be implemented in Washington, what would it be?
PETERSON: The ability to do bulk. They do what they call deli style where there's a bulk display of unpackaged product. Somebody can come in and order $30 worth of a strain. Down there we're able to use reusable bags and containers. It gives people the exact weight right then and there so that people aren't questioning, "Is this exactly 3.5 grams?" It is a huge reduction in packaging.
ROBINSON: Coming back to the vertical integration, we're able to launch another company down in New Mexico outside of our retail stores, Cinder Industries, which is a packaging and production company. We're controlling quality, we're controlling the product selection, we're taking a middle person out of that transaction. ♦
