Marijuana Business Magazine April 2020

Marijuana Business Magazine | April 2020 72 Clear Value? Many executives agree that the value of cannabis trade associations—both at the broad industry and individual operator levels—is worth the time and money invested. But some involved in promoting participation in such associations say the perception of value isn’t yet widespread. “There’s definitely criticisms by companies and people that reform isn’t happening fast enough,” said Sabrina Fendrick, chief public affairs officer with California-based Berkeley Patients Group, a medical cannabis dispensary established in 1999. “I’d say those who don’t fully understand the decades-old socio-political context of the reform movement are probably impatient because it’s not happening on the timeline that they expected. But, looking at it through the lens that I have, all things being equal, reform is happening at an incredibly fast pace.” She pointed to her participation in the National Cannabis Industry Association, whose mission of federal policy reform helped advance the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act through the House in September 2019, as an example. “The number of years that they worked on that and the coalitions that they built was just inspiring. And it’s a hope that we can achieve the same kind of broad-based coalition building on the state level,” she said. Yet while supporting trade associations is part of doing business in every other industry, “That kind of infrastructure in cannabis is still under development,” said Ben Gelt, board chair and co-founder of the Cannabis Certification Council. “The aspiration is that we get to a point where the value is … clear and obvious.” – Celene Adams “Small- to medium-sized growers,” Farmer said, “don’t see the value in trade associations per se. So they end up creating their own co-ops or other kinds of … farmer-advocacy associations.” Berryessa, too, noted that association fees can be daunting—not only due to the size of a prospective member’s operation but also because of fluctuating market conditions. “The majority of businesses in (California) are experiencing cash- flow issues and stagnant or negative growth because of the inability of local governments to issue licenses for retail,” he said. “Often, when businesses are having to make hard decisions, they’re cutting what they view as nonessential expenses, and so the trade associations can be one of the first things to get cut.” Cutting association membership from the budget, however, is probably a mistake, Berryessa said. “Trade associations … are going to be the most effective at implementing change and bringing issues to the forefront for politicians.” Association dues vary. However, many associations have scaled participation rates, or a tiered system of dues. The NCIA’s annual dues, for example, range from $1,000 for a “regular” membership that, along with other services, provides discounts on trade-show tickets, access to a sales-tracking platform and eligibility to participate in NCIA subcommittees, to $5,000 for an “industry leader” membership, which offers all of the above plus “curated monthly insight reports” and eligibility to serve on the NCIA’s policy council. “There’s certain benefits that come with higher levels of membership,” Berryessa said. “But even if it’s just a basic level of membership, it still gets you access to the network, and the enormous amount of information, and the ability to participate on subcommittees.” Joining a trade association is fast becoming as much a tool of the trade in the cannabis industry as it is in other industries. But, like most other aspects of doing business, you tend to get out of it what you put in. Marcela Jarquin represents the Marijuana Industry Trade Association of Arizona at MJBizCon Associations Day in December. Photo by Soliman Productions Tools of the Trade