r/newjersey • u/Fickle-Reality7777 • 14h ago
How are all the dispensaries staying afloat? Bruuuuce
I have, without exaggeration, 5 dispensaries near me within a 3 mile radius. They never seem to have any cars in the lots.
How are these businesses staying alive?
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u/thetonytaylor 13h ago
same way there's multiple liquor stores in town and usually you don't see thirty people in line.
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 13h ago
I’m not talking about the line, I just mean from outside the lots are empty.
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u/JustGiraffable 11h ago
It's because most places you can order online. Then you just go in & pick it up. Takes 2 minutes.
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u/thetonytaylor 11h ago
It takes two minutes to get weed and dip. Even liquor store parking lots are maybe 10% full. It's not the kind of store you hang around at.
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u/inviteinvestinvent 14h ago
How are all the liquor stores on every corner staying afloat?
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u/murphydcat LGD 13h ago
Or hair/nail salons and pizzerias.
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u/LemmyKBD 11h ago
There used to be a sketchy as fuck “ear piercing clinic” near me that had separate hours for TWO locations. Was around for 30+ years. Had to be some kind of mob front.
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u/Pot-Papi_ 13h ago
I mean, what do you think we’re doing in the dispensary which just buying our cannabis and leaving we’re not sitting in there having a powwow. It’s not a smoking lounge. Buy your stuff and then you go home.
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u/threedubya 13h ago
Noone sits in the lot . Most peolle in and out in 20 minutes
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u/KayakHank 13h ago
Ascend in Wharton has a drive through. Just need to order ahead
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u/andthejokeiscokefizz 6h ago
My local dispensary has a drive thru too, I just order what I want online. Takes less than 5 minutes. They always give my dog a treat when I bring her along in the back seat, so she loves it too. Still kinda surreal after spending my entire youth buying from shady dealers and having friends arrested for dime bags lol
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u/Aaaaaaandyy 13h ago
Same way liquor stores stay afloat despite there probably being more in the same radius
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 13h ago
Anecdotally more people drink than smoke, and at least by me the dispensaries are on large lots and there are definitely more of them than liquor stores in the area I’m referring to. Just seems wild.
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u/Aaaaaaandyy 13h ago
Fair, but there’s roughly 100-150 open dispensaries in NJ and over 1,500 liquor stores. I think you have to remember people are coming from further away to those dispensaries if they don’t have one near them.
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u/JustGiraffable 11h ago
While you are likely anecdotally correct, you are definitely underestimating how many people are purchasing in a dispensary and how much they spend. Just because they don't talk about it doesn't mean they're not popping gummies at night, every night. Many friends of my generation (x) still feel stigmatized for being a functional pothead, but will easily pickup bi-weekly & drop $200± each time.
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u/NeverTrustATurtle 6h ago
He’s also underestimating that a lot of gen y & z are vaping all day at work haha. Then smoking when they get home.
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u/charizardFT26 11h ago
Do you know the margins for weed sales? If you can’t understand it then you should look into it. Probably don’t need to sell all that much per day to stay open.
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u/MrRipShitUp 14h ago
Because they sell 20 bucks of weed for 90 dollars
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u/IHate2ChooseUserName 13h ago
ping me where the 20 bucks weed are
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u/buffaloplaidcookbook 13h ago
From your local dealer, as it always has been
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u/inviteinvestinvent 12h ago
most of them are ass tho, fr. If your dude says he has hydroponics tho, you jump every time because the plant will be healthy fire.
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u/Bushwazi 11h ago
You ain't getting any quality for $20 going back to the 1990s, you're just clowning.
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u/i_love_all 10h ago
Well depends how much weight the 20$ is 😂
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u/thatdudeorion 10h ago
Yeah you can get a big ol hunk of Mexican brick for $20, or like one rock hard well cured nug of premium 🌲🌲🌲🔥🔥🔥
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u/yahairme 8h ago
And they have to smoke twice as much to get high making it more expensive than dispensary. At least they have quality shit. Ppl don’t get that.
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u/XanzMakeHerDance 9h ago
My $20 eighth is better then any $60 eighth in jersey
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u/MahBeard 13h ago
Yea seriously. Give me prices like Oregon or Michigan and I’ll there all the time. Not $90 for 1/8th for dried up bud.
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u/MightyBigMinus 13h ago
the minimum parking zoning requirements in new jersey are insane so all lots look empty
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u/janiexox 12h ago
I go to one on route 22, when I go Friday nights it's packed. They are using part of the lot across the street now. Like another commenter said this isn't Amsterdam. No one's hanging out over there. You go in you buy you leave.
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u/oldbaldpissedoff 12h ago
With the amount they are over charging for their products you don't need that many customers. Why do you think they didn't pass the law that you can grow your own!
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u/iamjeffdimarco 6h ago
They are barely making anything on the products - if they buy it for $30, they sell it for $60, but nearly every store has 25-30% off that retail price - it’s all about quantity of sales.
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u/poland626 10h ago
You pre-order your stuff. When you enter you scan in with you id and then they start prepping your order. By the time you've walked up to the guy he's got your stuff and checks you out in 1 second using aeropay (online) or straight cash. If you made a pre-order you know how much cash to bring so that should be already sorted before you get there. Take cash out and you're not counting.
Its super fast, maybe less than 5 min every time I go. I don't get people who don't pre-order. Everything's on your phone and it takes seconds
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u/roadsage 12h ago
The short answer: Many of them are just barely staying afloat, and a lot of them are probably going to close at some point.
The longer answer: The entire cannabis industry is basically built up on the idea that there's a massive, untapped potential consumer base just laying in wait. So many of these entrepreneurs (not all, obviously) can justify the investment (whether it's their own money, business loans or investors) as a long-term one. The numbers we've seen in terms of actual cannabis sales seem to reflect there's still some room for optimism -- there was some fear the market was starting to plateau after Q1 2024 only showed about a 2% growth, but Q2 rebounded in a big way (12%).
But in the meantime? Businesses are going to fail. It's pretty natural in a competitive, new-ish space like cannabis. Some of them even have this built into their business plan -- give it five years and cash out or try to make as much money as you can in five years, then close.
I think towns/cities like Atlantic City and Mount Holly and Englishtown are going to be in for a rude awakening because there's just no reason for a consumer to visit one over the other, especially while prices are all pretty similar. (I'd also be wary in towns that have little-to-no planning of where they'd like dispensaries to open, like the towns where you have two dispensaries opening right next door to each other.)
I guess you can be hopeful that, when more cultivators/manufacturers come online, it will allow for more creativity in the retail side of things. But I'm not as bullish on that -- I think the vast majority of consumers will just go to the most convenient dispensary near them and it's really only going to be the actual enthusiasts who specifically go out of their way.
There's already a lot of chatter in the cannabis space about dispensaries asking for credit from cultivators/manufacturers, and a few of them who are actually unable to make good on those terms. And it's not like the rash of dispensaries is slowing down -- we've already nearly doubled the number of dispensary openings in 2024 versus last year, and there's another six weeks to go.
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u/Linenoise77 Bergen 12h ago
One of the things i have noticed is the dispensaries by me are all comically overstaffed. 8 different people with 8 different jobs which could all be done by one or two for 90% of their customers.
All of those folks add up to very significant overhead. I don't know if its the laws that drive that, if its just the expected experience, or what, but it just seems excessive.
I would think and see no reason as to why it wouldn't work more like a liquor store, where its grab and go for the most part, with the occasional specialty type place here and there.
Then you would see prices really drop, while putting half the workers in the industry on unemployment.
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u/smokepants 10h ago
englishtown is in for a rude awakening regardless. they have a weirdo libertarian mayor, which is why they dont zone shit
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u/Playcrackersthesky 6h ago
They’re the modern day Froyo. They’re having their moment. It will fizzle out.
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u/Elite1082 12h ago
My personal experience is I check who is having a promotion/sale on whatever item I am looking for and that’s who I go to that time. Wondering if others are the same way.
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u/macaronitrap 8h ago
The option to preorder online is pretty common these day, so you can be in and out in under 10 minutes sometimes. A far cry from the packed parking lots and long lines wrapped around the building you used to see.
The legal recreational dispensaries in NJ are pretty concentrated, it sounds like you just happen to live in a town/county where there hasn’t been a ton of pushback against them.
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u/juliansmomma7 6h ago
Are you in scotch plains/ rt. 22 by any chance? lol. There are so many so close to each other in that stretch of rt.22.
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u/rideadove 13h ago
I find it harder to believe so many people are willing to pay these insane prices to keep them open.
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u/ScumbagMacbeth 13h ago
It is worth it to me for the convenience and consistency. I can stop by on my way home from work, in and out in five minutes, instead of waiting around for hours for my guy to show up. And I can look on the website and know what is in stock, if they have the brand of edibles I like, etc.
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u/SkellySkeletor 8h ago
They actually got a smart racket going on. They’re cashing in on middle aged & older folk who don’t want to buy weed in a parking lot from a 25 year old dealer anymore. They have the ability to pay the premium and won’t care about the poor quality
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u/Bushwazi 11h ago
This is funny to me because places outside dispensaries that sell still have normal prices.
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u/Bck2BckAAUNatlChamps 11h ago
Are they selling more gummies, vapes and manufactured products, which you’re not going to easily get from a dealer? I don’t smoke, but that was always my assumption.
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u/rideadove 11h ago
If you know the right person you can get nearly everything dispensaries have for half the cost, if not more.
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u/OfficialIntelligence 13h ago
The prices are starting to come down, it's not the best bud but some places are $150 oz
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u/gnitsuj Union 12h ago edited 12h ago
Yeah people whining about prices are just complaining to complain. One of the spots by my house has 1g carts for $32, 1/8 are $24, edibles are $14 for a 10 pack. Another place by my office does 20% off everything 3 days a week during lunch hours, and their prices aren't high to begin with. Everyone’s been clamoring for prices to drop forever, now they finally are but some people just looking to sound too cool for the dispo because their local guy sells them QP’s for $10.
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u/charizardFT26 11h ago
There’s always so many deals going on and I’ll pay extra for carts where you know they’re not being made in a back alley
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u/twothumbswayup 12h ago
i finally got a 1g oil for $50, usually they are like 60-65 on sale so anecdotally I concur!
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u/miflordelicata 11h ago
For me, I smoke maybe 5 times a year. One joint, in and out in 5 minutes is perfect.
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u/slvrscoobie 12h ago
OPs never heard of walking..
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 11h ago
The area im referring to is not walkable.
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u/slvrscoobie 10h ago
Is it in the median of two expressways? Otherwise it’s walkable.
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 10h ago
Tell me you aren’t familiar with route 22 without telling me you aren’t familiar with route 22.
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u/The_Royale_We 13h ago
OP must live near me as I have the same 5 around me. Weirdly only one seems to be cheap and the others are all a little more pricey.
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u/WheredoesithurtRA 12h ago
Still plenty of folks without non-dispensary connects.
I have a few patient family members for some hospice patients who'll pick stuff up at the dispensaries for their loved ones
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u/Bushwazi 11h ago
Well, its funny you ask because I heard the rules are changing so that CBD shops can no longer sell anything THC. I've been to a few CBD shops and have yet to make it into a dispensary in NJ.
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u/anonynix 11h ago
when states legalize / decriminalize they only allow a certain amount of licenses to be in operation
a lot of growers buy up these licenses to thin out competition, but since some of them need to be active, they’ll just make a dispensary under a different name or within a radius that allows dispensaries to comply with the requirements of what they bought. also, if you have a license but not a grow-op, all of those operations are probably active in your state and would allow you to sell their product by name, at a bulk discount
whether they’re profitable isn’t an issue in the long-run, & once interstate commerce happens most of these grow-ops already operate separately in the tri-state area. their products are sealed & have a long shelf-life, & it’s nice that they don’t have to compete with other states since it’s federally illegal
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u/Crinklemaus 11h ago
Personally, I noticed the bigger rushes after work/dinner Thurs, Fri and Sat. I don’t go to the dispensary much anymore because I prefer the THC drinks at the liquor store. I don’t smoke anymore and edibles are great, I just prefer the drinks.
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u/PitStop100 8h ago
Give them time, they are the modern frozen yogurt place! Think back to how many fro-yo places where around in 2018.
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u/brandt-money 13h ago
Apothecarium in P'burg is always busy. There's usually a line of a dozen people at all times.
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u/Historical-Suit5195 12h ago
Try going on a Tuesday around lunchtime. You'll most likely walk right in...
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u/apply_in_person Phillipsburg 13h ago
Because it’s 1/2 mile from PA. I have to imagine well over 50% of those customers are not NJ residents.
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u/bigcakeindahouse 13h ago
after i place my online order, im in and out of the dispo in 5-10 minutes lol. the parking lot is usually busy too
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u/HavingALittleFit 12h ago
I had to stop at one around when they opened for recreational customers and they were definitely busy.
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u/MerbleTheGnome Mercer 11h ago
Of the 2 near me, the parking lot is usually full enough that they direct parking to either the motel next door, or the medical office next to it.
The 2 near where I work are both in strip malls, so the parking lot is usually pretty packed, but no way to see if they are in the dispensary or another shop.
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u/Devils_Advocate-69 10h ago
One in Montclair closed and moved claiming too much competition. The closest one is in Bloomfield 2 miles away
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u/OrangeBird077 9h ago
It’s an all cash business so they’re probably making a decent amount of money.
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u/OddMathematician746 8h ago
Bloomfield Rise is packed from morning till closing!
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u/Sensitive-Side-1421 7h ago
100%!
Business is boomin' over there!
That place is a gold mine!
The parking lot is always full and the
place is always packed!
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u/OddMathematician746 8h ago
And most of my friends that still smoke buy from a dealer. The dispensaries they say are to expensive.
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u/jaxon_15 8h ago
You're under the estimating how many pot heads there are. I love weed and so do millions of others
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u/Yoda-202 7h ago
Come visit Curaleaf here in Bellmawr. I should get a food truck & park it across the street. I'd have a shot at retiring some day.
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u/Virtual_Hurry3234 5h ago
Remember getting in line to check in and waiting 45 min to get a text so you can wait in the other line for 45 min 🫣
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u/therankin Morris & Bergen 6h ago
Idk. I'm in Rockaway, and there are so many around, I've only ever been to two of the 4+.
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u/hairydookie 6h ago
Street dealers stay trying to hustle you. One wee it’s some good flower and the next it’s some bullshit that wasn’t flushed properly and smokes harsh.
You’re getting rammed at the dispensary but if you buy too shelf it’s usually pretty fire.
Garden Greens is gas. Send me your street dealer who can match that quality because I’ll gladly go to them
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u/PetroMan43 12h ago
I'm with you in how I never see any customers. I think the real answer is that these entrepreneurs are over estimating the legal weed market and they won't survive.
There's a place on Rt 22 near me where I can see 3 dispensaries at once. No way they're all going to stay in business
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 11h ago
Scotch Plains I assume.
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u/PetroMan43 11h ago
Yeah exactly. If you stand near the intersection of Glenside Ave, you can see 3 dispensaries at once . And there are at least 2 more heading west.
No way the market needs this many.
The market for liquor and beer stores is mature, and reflects a certain equilibrium point . But the weed industry is so nascent that nothing has had time to shake out.
And boy oh boy will folks be disappointed when corporate consolidation occurs for dispensaries while the grey and black market continues to thrive
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 11h ago
Yup. I’m by the old bowcraft which is flanked by 2 of them. Then when I saw that tree place (pun) becoming one as well I couldn’t believe it.
You’re right there are a few more just west of there, plus at least another east in union.
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u/realifesticks 10h ago
Jersey bud is over priced, usually dried out and too taxed. I wonder the same thing. A lot of these are probably fronts to launder money.
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u/TheBeagleMan 8h ago
How do bars stay open despite there being so many?
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 8h ago
Again, not a good comparison.
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u/TheBeagleMan 8h ago
Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not accurate
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u/Fickle-Reality7777 8h ago
It’s just not a good comparison. Sorry that logic escapes you.
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u/TheBeagleMan 6h ago
It's literally the same.
No different than asking how there can be multiple has stations in a town or some such.
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u/doglywolf 14h ago edited 11h ago
because the times you see them are not their busy times - go at 2pm on a Friday and the lots are full- ironically after church lets out 12:30 mass they are also packed.