Weed on Wheels:Medical marijuana delivery services triple in 3yrs

Weed on wheels: Medical marijuana delivery services triple in three years
By Tom Boggioni
Sunday, July 13, 2014


With more states legalizing medical marijuana, dispensaries are making it easier for their customers to get their pot by adding home delivery to their list of services.

A boon to customers who don’t have to leave the house, the delivery model allows dispensaries to cut costs by closing brick and mortar locations and centralizing distribution at a time when cities are attempting to limit the number of storefront pot shops.

As reported by the LA Times, medical marijuana delivery services have nearly tripled in three years, growing from 877 to 2,617, according to Weedmaps, an online directory for pot businesses.

Dealers see exponential growth since many of their customers are unaware that home delivery is available.

“I still believe 75% of marijuana patients don’t know delivery is a thing,” said Speed Weed owner A.J. Gentile. “It’s safer to engage this way. You don’t have to go to a sketchy dispensary. That’s why we get so many female customers.”

Over 200 dipensaries have closed in the Los Angeles area since voters approved Proposition D last year, which allowed dispensaries and their landlords to be prosecuted if the shops are not properly registered or if they fail to operate a legal distance from public parks, schools, child-care centers and other designated facilities.

With stores closing, weed dealers turned to home delivery to keep their businesses thriving.

“It’s the balloon theory,” explained Jeff Raber, founder and president of the Werc Shop in Pasadena, a cannabis testing lab. “They think taking down all the dispensaries will make it go away. But it’s not going away. It’s going to morph into something else.”

In California, state medical marijuana laws don’t currently address delivery services.

The law defines a marijuana business as including “any vehicle” used to distribute marijuana, but it is generally aimed at using zoning regulations to limit the number of storefront dispensaries.

Mark Kleiman, a drug policy expert at the UCLA, said cities should consider supporting the business model thereby eliminating storefront dispensaries.

“Storefronts are a pain,” Kleiman explained. “Do you want a weed store in your neighborhood?”

L.A.-based Speed weed currently employs up to 25 drivers dispatched out of several offices allowing for quick deliveries.

Prior to founding the company, owner Gentile studied operation manuals for Domino’s Pizza, Papa John’s Pizza and FedEx, learning the ins and outs of distribution as well as security, limiting the amount of marijuana or cash a driver may carry.

Gentile, who doesn’t operate any storefronts, hopes to one day sell franchises wherever medical marijuana is allowed.

Active in the growing cannabis investment community, Gentile also one day hopes top list his company on a stock exchange.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/07/13/weed-on-wheels-medical-marijuana-delivery-services-triple-in-three-years/?onswipe_redirect=never

Medical marijuana delivery services are on a roll


"It's the balloon theory," said Jeff Raber, founder and president of the Werc Shop in Pasadena, a cannabis testing lab. "They think taking down all the dispensaries will make it go away. But it's not going away. It's going to morph into something else."

California cities have mostly allowed the services to operate freely. State medical marijuana laws don't mention delivery services, which, like dispensaries, require patients to join as members of a collective.

A few cities, including Riverside, have banned marijuana delivery. The L.A. city attorney's office said mobile businesses are prohibited under Proposition D, but it has yet to prosecute any.

The law defines a marijuana business as including "any vehicle" used to distribute marijuana, but it is more generally aimed at using zoning regulations to limit the number of storefront dispensaries.

The owner, who declined to be named out of concern for his family's privacy, said many weed dealers, including himself, offered delivery long before medical marijuana became legal. "I'd always be driving to someone's house," he said. "People would page me on my beeper."

After registering and showing a doctor's recommendation, Speed Weed customers order off the company's website or call its delivery line. The L.A.-based firm has up to 25 drivers and several offices across the region, allowing for quick deliveries.

The company was founded in 2011 after owner Gentile studied operation manuals for Domino's Pizza, Papa John's Pizza and FedEx. He learned how to build a network of hubs to limit the amount of marijuana or cash that any one driver carries, a precaution against robbery.

The company's delivery area now stretches across 6,000 square miles, including all of L.A. County and the northern half of Orange County. Its patient enrollment has swelled to 19,000. Orders are capped at 4 ounces a month.

Gentile says he pays business taxes and is operating legally under Proposition D. Speed Weed, he says, doesn't have a storefront subject to the measure's zoning rules.

He hopes to one day franchise the business wherever medical marijuana is allowed. Active in the growing cannabis investment community, Gentile also aims to list his company on a stock exchange in the coming years.

His wife, Jen Gentile, handles the company's business operations, which are headquartered in Agoura Hills. His brother Gene Gentile (the only regular marijuana user of the three) handles VIP deliveries.

Gene's regulars include comedian Joe Rogan and Skyler Gordy, one half of the dance music duo LMFAO. Gene's daily duties can include waiting on the tarmac at Van Nuys airport for a pop star client to land in his private jet or picking up celebrities at Los Angeles International Airport to refill their prescriptions.

A recent delivery took him to the North Hollywood home of musician Mod Sun, a self-described hip-hop hippie from Minnesota who is performing in this year's Vans Warped Tour.

Gene pulled up to the house in a metallic blue Hyundai Accent, popped open the trunk and grabbed a black backpack carrying the day's deliveries. Mod Sun, whose off-stage name is Dylan Smith, immediately greeted him at the front door with a hug.

"The No. 1 dude in the world!" Smith called out to Gene, who appears coy about the affection he's garnered delivering pot to stars and semi-stars across town.

Gene brought out the white paper delivery bag, to Smith's applause.

"The magical white bag," said Smith, wearing ripped jeans and a T-shirt reading "Quaalude — 300."

Out poured packets of marijuana buds, gummies, hard candies and a fat joint in a container that indicated it was from the Emerald Triangle, Northern California's prime cannabis growing region.

"I consider Mod my brother," Gene said, swiping Smith's credit card for his iPhone payment app. "We talk about philosophy and positivity. It's more than just smoking weed."

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-marijuana-delivery-20140713-story.html



Dial-a-doobie! Medical marijuana company Eaze becomes the 'Uber of weed' with delivery service straight to your door in San Francisco

• Currently Eaze only operates in San Francisco but chief has U.S.-wide vision
• It promises to 'dispatch a professional caregiver' to deliver prompt delivery
• Even claims to be able to deliver the package within ten minutes to any home
• The service caters only for medical marijuana users who register with Eaze

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2713013/Dial-doobie-Medical-marijuana-company-Eaze-Uber-weed-delivery-service-straight-San-Francisco-door.html#ixzz39OOw63mN


Medical Marijuana Delivery Services Rise In California Amid U.S. Dispensary Crackdown

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/21/medical-marijuana-delivery_n_3314529.html


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http://www.latimes.com/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-rall-marijuana-delivery-services-20140716-story.html

LOVE IT!!!!!!