Legal marijuana comes to Canada. Investors feel the opportunity.
- Canada will be another country where marijuana will become legal by the end of this year.
- Its legalization will bring huge amounts of money to investors.
Chestervile, Ontario - In a garage-sized container at one end of a sunken warehouse in a former Nestlé factory south of Ottawa, there are rows of marijuana plants, one next to the other, stacked in the unearthly glow of lights.
It belongs to HamedOto, an Ontario merchant who calls it "vertical farming".
She doesntno knowledge of how to grow marijuana or any other plants. His other business is the installation of office furniture; cabinets, tables and table chairs at the other end of the warehouse.
Its financiala boom that has not been recorded since the dot-com mania of the late 1990s went through Canada. The legalization of recreational marijuana, which is planned for autumn, is not only a major social change and a challenge for public health, but also a rare opportunity for entrepreneurs such as Mr. Asi to be at the origin of what they hope to become a multi-billion dollar industry.
Opportunity for the investory
Opportunities arise soon: marijuana growers have celebrated millions of investments that have not yet earned profits, but on the stock markets they have values measured in billions. Cities that are lucky like Chesterville in Ontario hope that marijuana will reverse the economic downturn. Former politicians and lawmakers who used to be figureslegalization of recreational marijuana, have now joined or set up companies to invest.
Some provincial governments predict that tax revenues from marijuana sales will help balance their budgets. And companies that offer every service or product - from real estate to packaging - are waiting for action.
Mr. Asi's dreams of wealth grow in an old factory that once was full of pallets of Nesquik that were transported to railway wagons. A partner and operations manager in a company called IDP Group, recognizes the risks associated with what has already become a highly competitive industry.
"We can't do it just because everyone else does it," he said in his office, not surprisingly equipped with the latest office furniture. "Concerns? Yeah, 100%. We see how good this industry can be if you do business properly, but you have to be really careful."
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau fired the first shot of a new Canadian gold rush this month by announcing that the legalization of marijuana will begin on October 17, months later than the original schedule on July 1st. But as before during the technology companies' mania, there are growing concerns that this boom could cause more disappointment than wealth.
Justin Trudeau's government portrayed the legalization of recreational marijuana - Canada has been using marijuana treatment since 2001 - as a way to displace the black market, not as a potential job creator.or money for government or investors. In fact, they promised that marijuana would be available but would not be promoted in any way.
InterrogationThe point is that the federal government grants licenses to growers in Canada and then the provinces decide how they will be sold to consumers. In some provinces, especially in Alberta, the government is working with privately owned businesses. Others, like Ontario and Quebec, will basically accept a change in the government trading system that has been used to sell alcohol since the end of Prohibition.
According to recently published regulationsmarijuana advertising and promotion will be strictly limited - as well as the production of Canadian marijuana producers. Packaging must be uniform and simple, except for yellow health warning signs and small logos. Even baseball caps, T-shirts and all other marijuana promotional items will not be allowed.
Many big ones companies have their roots in the medical industry associated with marijuana. But their styles have shifted.
Chuck Rifici, founder and former CEO of the company now called Canopy Growth (in over $ 8 billion of Canadian dollars, Canadas most valuable cannabis company), has once attempted to cleanse the image and reputation of a marijuana company.
Pan company sharesand Rifice once exceeded $ 1 billion and are now worth just over $ 500 million. Their ability to raise fromHowever, it still means that they have the ability to make money. In the first three months of this year, the company recorded more than $ 10 million in loss.
The Future AfterOctober does not offer anything but the promise of money, because cannabis will start to flow into stores and new markets, Mr. Rifici said.
Global legaliace?
"The rest of the world will also begin to legalize marijuana," he predicted. "So the urgency for me is to have people and the ability to be the first driver in this new jurisdiction. I think one or two of the big national cannabis companies will be just Canadian companies."
But before that, Rand its competitors must first figure out how they will behave in the domestic market. "The marijuana regulations look somewhat stupid or a little over the line," Rifici said. "Over time, it will relax a little. Industry will surely push it."
This pressure is inhowever, it will face strong opposition from the Canadian medical community, which has repeatedly drawn attention to the health risks of marijuana, especially among users under the age of 25.
Cam Battley, who used to work in the pharmaceutical industry and who is now the chief corporate director of Aurora Cannabis (market value: $ 5.6 billion, loss in the first half of this year: $ 20 million) justified.