Now that adult-use cannabis has been legalized in New Jersey and the state legislature is ironing out how the program will run—prospective and established business owners hoping to participate in the new mid-Atlantic market should begin preparing now, according to Robert DiPisa, a real estate attorney and co-chair of the Cannabis Law Group at the firm Cole Schotz, which handles cannabis business law for real estate, license applications, fundraising, intellectual property, and more.
Opportunity abounds in the densely populated Garden State, which could amplify with potential tourist activity from neighboring Northeast states. Adult-use cannabis sales figures are predicted to top $350 million in 2021, according to research firm Brightfield Group; however, DiPisa recommends tempering expectations, as many municipalities still have adult-use cannabis bans in place, and competition for licensing will be significant.
To that end, DiPisa spoke with Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary about what aspiring plant-touching license holders should keep in mind as they look to apply for adult-use licensing in New Jersey.
1. Understand the Timeline to the First Day of Sales
“There are a lot of misconceptions of what the timetable looks like,” DiPisa says, who predicts that the “earliest that you’re going to be able to purchase adult-use cannabis in New Jersey is going to be fourth quarter of 2021.” Understanding the time that a license applicant has to work with to acquire all they need for submittal will factor into plans for the overall business.
While predicting timelines in cannabis legalization and rollout can be difficult—DiPisa hopes the draft bill will be passed before Jan. 1. “Then, the Cannabis Regulatory Commission—let’s say they start Jan. 1—then [they] have up to 180 days to come out with their regulation. I’m hopeful it will happen quicker than that. … And six to eight months into 2021, you could easily see a call for applications.”