Marijuana Business Magazine January 2020

But the reverse can also be true, depending on the price of contractors, Rogoway noted. “Employees are expensive. If you have a vendor (whose services) you can just get billed for, that can be a savings,” Rogoway said. “Conversely, take a look at outside vendors and see if that’s the most efficient use of resources.” Outside vendors can account for plenty of services that also may be provided in-house, such as accounting, marketing, public relations and even security. 6 TALK WITH CREDITORS IF YOU GET IN FINANCIAL HOT WATER. A last-ditch strategy that may or may not work for companies in dire financial straits is to try to work out a deal with creditors, which may be a bitter pill to swallow but could give businesses enough leeway to keep all their staff on board. And that means being honest and up front with creditors, Grupo Flor’s Kogan said. “Communicate with people that you owe money to. Even if that means (saying), ‘I can’t pay you,’ communicate that. Because what (frustrates) creditors more than anything is a lack of communication,” Kogan said. Because of the lack of traditional banking and business loans for those in the cannabis industry, Kogan warned that the only real options for borrowing may be “predatory” lenders that often charge 20% interest or more. “If you borrow money, it’s going to be so cripplingly expensive and painful to your shareholders that it’s a very difficult decision to make,” Kogan said. “Some companies will have no choice but to do that.” Avis Bulbulyan Courtesy Photo John Schroyer is a senior reporter for Marijuana Business Magazine. You can reach him at johns@mjbizdaily.com. Fast todry. First tomarket. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bepex.com Maximize production and maintain product quality Continuously dry your freshly harvested cannabis and hemp in seconds to minutes. Or, dry and decarboxylate in a single step. Prevent decomposition and maximize product quality. Our proven technologies in drying solids help you get the job done quickly and efficiently. Find out how you can be first to market. 612-268-0320 Download our brochure: “Process Systems for Cannabis and Hemp” bepex.com/FAST DRYING DECARBOXYLATION SOLVENT RECOVERY MILLING