Arizona marijuana Archives

John SchroyerSeptember 26, 2023

Insiders say the pay-to-play problem is well known.

John SchroyerSeptember 11, 2023

The company says the "commercial bribery" scheme started in 2020 or 2021.

StaffAugust 3, 2023

The Daily Hit is a recap of the top financial news stories for Aug. 3, 2023.

On The Site

Former FDA Regulator Predicts Cannabis Rescheduling This Year

A former attorney and enforcement czar at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration told Green Market Report in an exclusive interview he believes the Biden administration is poised to reschedule marijuana this year or in early 2024, and that the move won’t squeeze out smaller cannabis companies, contrary to many widespread industry fears. Read more here.

Michigan Cannabis Redevelopment Project Collapses Into Massive Lawsuit With City

A redevelopment plan with the Detroit suburb of Pontiac was slated for a $40 million cannabis-friendly business campus, but a legal battle involving bribery allegations has derailed the project. Read more here.

Military Veterans Sue New York Cannabis Regulators Over Marijuana Licensing

A new lawsuit has been filed against New York cannabis regulators, by a quartet of disabled military veterans who have been thus far shut out of retail marijuana licensing. Read more here.

Study: ‘Vast Majority’ of Hemp Delta-9 Goods Illegally Modified

The “vast majority” of delta-9 hemp goods being sold around the U.S. – upwards of 75% – have been illegally modified or sourced from marijuana, according to a new scientific study released this week by California researchers. Read more here.

Story Cannabis Co. Acquires Four-Dispensary Chain in Arizona

Arizona-based multistate operator Story Cannabis Co. announced the acquisition this week of four vertically-integrated marijuana licenses in the Phoenix metro area, bringing its homestate footprint to 11 retail shops and two cultivation facilities. Read more here.

Innovative Industrial Reports Rising Revenue

Innovative Industrial Properties, Inc. (IIP) (NYSE: IIPR) delivered total revenues of approximately $76.5 million in its second quarter of the year, representing an 8% increase from the prior year’s quarter. The company also reported net income of approximately $40.9 million for the quarter, or $1.44 per diluted share. Read more here.

In Other News

LEEF Brands

LEEF Brands, Inc. (CSE: LEEF) (OTC: LEEEF) has entered escrow on a $7 million purchase of 1,900-acre Salisbury Canyon Ranch in Santa Barbara, California. Read more here.

Alabama

The embattled chairman of the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission, Dr. Steve Stokes, has resigned. His resignation comes just over a week after a Montgomery attorney asked a judge to issue a writ of quo warranto, removing him from that position. Read more here.

John SchroyerAugust 3, 2023

Arizona-based multistate operator Story Cannabis Co. announced the acquisition this week of four vertically-integrated marijuana licenses in the Phoenix metro area, bringing its homestate footprint to 11 retail shops and two cultivation facilities.

Story Cannabis, which is led by industry veterans CEO Jason Vedadi and COO Joe Sai, purchased the licensed locations from Devi Holdings, Inc., for an undisclosed sum. All four businesses were operating under the brand Nature’s Medicines, with two shops in Phoenix, one in the suburb of Tolleson, and another in the neighboring suburb of Glendale, according to a press release.

The two-year-old Story Cannabis also has operational marijuana dispensaries in Maryland and Ohio, and also has cannabis interests in New Jersey, and is planning “further strategic expansion targeted at vertically integrated licenses throughout the country,” according to the release.

As a second-tier, privately-held MSO, the Nature’s Medicines acquisition fits with the same business strategy, the company said: Focus on limited-license markets with vertically integrated companies up for sale that can give Story Cannabis an edge with its own supply chain.

“Our core strategy is to build our portfolio quickly and efficiently across multiple states in order to successfully serve consumers while staying true to cannabis culture,” Vedadi said in the release.

Vedadi and Sai both have deep experience in the marijuana trade, and worked together previously. Vedadi served previously as the former executive chairman of Harvest Health & Recreation, which was acquired by Florida-based Trulieve in 2021, and also as former CEO of Oasis Cannabis and the founder of Modern Flower. Sai is the former COO of Trulieve, and also former chief of staff and COO at Harvest Health & Recreation.

John SchroyerJune 28, 2023

Recreational sales for the month rang in at $100.7 million.