MMJ Business Daily

Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Sales Rocket 43%

Medical marijuana sales in Rhode Island jumped a whopping 43% during the fiscal year that ended in June, totaling $9.6 million as the industry hit its stride.

The sales spike is tied in large part to an increase in the market base. Just over 11,600 patients are registered with the state’s MMJ program, up about 8% from early 2014 and more than double the number from 2013.

The third dispensary allowed under the law also opened last November, helping boost sales totals for the industry.

Rhode Island’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.

The

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Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Sales Rocket 43% is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Bans, Burdensome Regulations on Marijuana Businesses Arising in Rural Oregon

By John Schroyer

Some rural communities in Oregon are enacting bans on recreational cannabis businesses, while others are pushing through restrictions and regulations.

The moves are designed to hamper the MJ industry and clamp down on cannabis use, w…

Texas LED Company Lands $16M in Financing

A Texas-based lighting business that caters in part to cannabis growers has netted $16 million in funding, lifting the company’s total investment haul to $76.8 million since its inception a decade ago.

Illumitex, which produces high-grade light-emitting diodes (also known as LEDs), raised the money via a round led by WP Global Partners, a Chicago-based investment firm, according to the Austin Business Journal.

Although most of Illumitex’s customers are in traditional agriculture, the burgeoning marijuana industry is responsible for a good bit of the company’s growth, CEO Chris Hammelef told The Wall Street Journal.

LEDs represent

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Texas LED Company Lands $16M in Financing is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

$35M ‘Weedery’ Planned for Denver

A company behind two dispensaries and three grow sites in Colorado is moving forward with plans to build a $35 million “weedery” in Denver that will feature large-scale cultivation facilities, a performance space, bar, gift shop and retail cannabis store.

American Cannabis Partners (ACP) hopes to create something similar to a winery or a brewery in the marijuana industry, even though visitors won’t be able to consume marijuana on-site because of state laws, company founder Christian Hageseth told the New York Times.

Hageseth also said the new development – called the Colorado Cannabis Ranch & Amphitheater – will

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$35M ‘Weedery’ Planned for Denver is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Hawaii Cannabis Entrepreneurs Chomping at the Bit

Even though Hawaii won’t begin accepting medical cannabis business applications until January, some entrepreneurs are already prepping for what’s expected to be a big battle for permits.

In mid-July, right after Hawaii Gov. David Ige signed a new bill into law that allows for eight companies to start dispensaries, food industry mogul Michael Irish registered a new limited liability company and began planning his entrance into the marijuana trade, according to the Honolulu Civil Beat.

Other local big wigs from the business world are also reportedly planning on throwing their names in the ring, including hopefuls

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Hawaii Cannabis Entrepreneurs Chomping at the Bit is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California Edibles Company Raises $1.25M for Expansion

An increasing number of marijuana companies are landing seven-figure financing deals these days as the industry gains legitimacy, and California-based edibles manufacturer Auntie Dolores is now among them.

The company announced Monday that it has closed a $1.25 million round of financing to accelerate its expansion across California and eventually help it expand into new states.

“This capital will allow us to take Auntie Dolores to the next level by helping patients access the high-quality cannabis-infused products they need in legal markets all over the country,” the company’s CEO, Julianna Carella, said in a press release.

The fundraising round was

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California Edibles Company Raises $1.25M for Expansion is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Secondary Market for MMJ Business Licenses Developing in Nevada

By Tony C. Dreibus

A number of companies and wealthy entrepreneurs are hoping to purchase provisional medical cannabis licenses – or the businesses that won them – in Nevada under a new law allowing the transfer of MMJ permits, creating a potentially …

$60K MMJ Campaign Helping Boost Doctor Participation in CT

A $60,000 campaign to get more doctors on board with Connecticut’s medical cannabis program appears to have been somewhat successful so far, as the number of physicians registered to recommend MMJ has risen nearly 8% since the effort began.

But that might not translate into a spike in patient numbers – or a correlating increase in business for dispensaries – because only a handful of doctors are making the vast majority of medical cannabis recommendations in the state.

Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) launched the marketing campaign in June, placing ads on medical journal websites and

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$60K MMJ Campaign Helping Boost Doctor Participation in CT is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Proposed MJ Regulations in Alaska Draw Criticism

Some cannabis advocates and entrepreneurs in Alaska have expressed concerns that officials are leaning too heavily on Colorado and Washington State to craft rules for recreational marijuana businesses.

State officials have developed draft rules on the industry covering everything from labeling to advertising to licensing fees. They have released several drafts of these proposed rules, the latest of which is scheduled to be unveiled Monday for public comment.

Officials have reportedly incorporated a lot of language from regulations in Colorado and Washington, which both their launched recreational cannabis industries last year. That’s a mistake because Alaska is a

Proposed MJ Regulations in Alaska Draw Criticism is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Texas Entrepreneurs Gearing Up for CBD Opportunities

Despite the “worthless” nature of Texas’s new CBD law, eager entrepreneurs are are clamoring to get involved.

There are already three separate marijuana-related organizations in the state: the Texas Cannabis Chamber of Commerce, the Texas Cannabis Industry Association and the Medcan Foundation. A recent educational seminar by the first group attracted more than 100 attendees, one of the organization’s founders told the Sharon Herald.

But many marijuana advocates still note that the new law, which allows for three dispensaries to grow, manufacture and dispense non-psychoactive CBD medicine for epileptics by September 2017, is

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Texas Entrepreneurs Gearing Up for CBD Opportunities is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs