Detroit Delays & A Rihanna Zine
Freshly cured news.
The Broccoli Report
Monday, April 4, 2022
Time to read: 4 minutes, 27 seconds. Contains 891 words
Good morning!
Anyone feeling extra business-y with all the CEO content on TV right now? I am watching The Dropout about Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes (which I recommend) and WeCrashed (which I recommend purely for Anne Hathaway’s deep-voiced performance as the WeWork founder’s off-putting partner, Rebekah Neumann). But I’m getting burnt out on startup office settings and caught myself watching one of Pleasing’s campaigns for 10 minutes straight.
If you need company when taking a moment to chill this week, the latest Broccoli Talk podcast episode features Amsterdam-based horticulturalist Monai Nailah McCullough. She and Mennlay chat about how her highs help her care for her plants, Amsterdam’s plant scene, the value of ancestral knowledge, and more. You can listen in on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you enjoy podcasts.
Before we get to the news, a heads-up that you won’t want to miss Friday’s newsletter. This week, we’re focusing on expungement: how it works, if it works, and why we have to do more than make promises about it. Become a paid subscriber and never miss a Broccoli Report again (plus, get access to our full archive).
One-Hitters: Cannabis News at a Glance
Adult-use sales officially kicked off in New Mexico, and the scene is set for a strong start. Because New Mexico already has an established medical market, there was a foundation for the 255 dispensaries to be licensed in time. The New Mexico Finance Authority is also preparing a $5 million line of credit for entrepreneurs founding cannabis micro-businesses, with an average loan size of about $100,000, to support smaller operators during the particularly challenging early years.
Despite adult-use sales kicking off in Michigan in December of 2019, stores have yet to open in the state’s largest city. Detroit’s delays are related to a local ordinance passed in November 2020, prioritizing long-term Detroit residents in the licensing process. Then, a US District judge deemed the stipulations gave an “unfair, irrational and likely unconstitutional advantage to long-term Detroit residents over all other applicants.” A revised version of the ordinance is under discussion. This new, 50-page version reserves portions of allotted licenses for retailers, consumption lounges, and microbusinesses to “equity” applicants without limiting licenses available for growers, processors, transporters, safety labs, and events, and carefully defines “equity” and “Detroit Legacy” applicants.
Multistate behemoth Cresco Labs announced it would be acquiring fellow multistate operator Columbia Care for $2B in stock. The combined company will have 100+ stores across 17 states and 36 different subsidiary brands.
On a smaller scale—but with major significance—long-established and women-owned NY medical cannabis brand Etain will be acquired by cannabis investment firm RIV Capital for $247M ($212M cash, $35M stock). The firm will own and control the brand’s four operating dispensaries—its Manhattan flagship store and locations in Kingston, Syracuse and Westchester. In an IG post, Etain explained that although the founders will step back from control of the company, “the Peckham family will be actively partnered with RIV Capital on preserving the ethos of the Etain brand and utilizing our combined efforts to continually find and make new spaces for women in cannabis.”
Don’t delete your accounting data from 2019 just yet. According to MJ Biz, cannabis industry tax experts are warning that now that the IRS has caught up on COVID-19 bottlenecks, they’ve got time to do some audits. A Denver tax attorney interviewed in the piece stated she’d seen a “significant increase” in audit notification letters being sent to her cannabis-related clients.
Thank you to the National Alliance to Stop Impaired Driving for creating a state-by-state map of current cannabis possession and DUI laws. The interactive site is updated in real-time—a worthwhile bookmark before any summer road trips.
If you’re in the industry and looking for warmer places to spend your 4/20, Benzinga is hosting their Cannabis Capital Conference from April 19th-21st in Miami. The schmoozy event will feature a VIP area for select companies and investors to network, an upgraded system for 1:1 meetings, and panels featuring big players like Berner, rapper and co-founder of Cookies.
Looking for a cute Bic backup for holiday seshes? Illustrator Grace Witherell is making very fun custom lighters featuring her anime characters and sassy, smoky phrases.
Continuing in that sassy, smoky vein: Women Weed Wifi is publishing another issue of their zine, this time in the form of a fanzine dedicated to Rihanna. They invite art of all mediums— lyrics, face beats, critical essays, nudes, ballads, blunts. Email your submissions to high@womenweedwifi.com by 11:59 pm PST April 20th to be considered.
I appreciated seeing mainstream wellness influencer Hannah Bronfman share a joint-rolling tutorial that demonstrated some honestly-earned skills and showed her followers that smoking herbs can be a normal part of healthy routines.
I also commend Kiva Confections for a boldly savory collab with LA food truck Yeastie Boy Bagels on a limited-edition dark chocolate bar seasoned like an Everything Bagel.
In 1977, a plane attempting to transport some 6,000 pounds of weed crashed into an alpine lake above Yosemite Valley. A cheeky climber quickly made a tee with the phrase “I got mine at Lower Merced Pass Lake.” Hemp clothier Jungmaven is bringing the design back to life with a limited edition hemp shirt honoring this important weed fashion moment in history.
I got mine at Oregrown this week,
Lauren Yoshiko
The Kiva/Yeastie Boys collab is SO GOOD!!!