This post was originally published on this site.
Join NY Cannabis Insider at our next industry networking event on Aug. 15 at Madame Mikette’s in NYC. Tickets will sell out.
Things haven’t been easy for David Falkowski as he works to get his cannabis processing company’s products on shelves, but he’s keeping the faith that opportunities will arise as more dispensaries open.
Long Island-based OMO Labs, LLC, a licensed Adult-Use Conditional Processor, is currently operating with a skeleton crew of about 10 people, making RSO-based gummies, topicals and vapes, Falkowski said. OMO’s products will likely sell well among customers who prioritize health and wellness, Falkowski said, but market dynamics have made it difficult to give buyers the opportunity.
“I know my products are fantastic once you consume them, but there seems to be a lot more involved than saying, ‘Hey, would you like to try my product?’” Falkowski said.
OMO Labs is storing thousands of units of gummies, vapes and other products, as Falkowski seeks out retail outlets on or close to Long Island that will buy them. The company’s location puts it in a unique geographical bind: Long Island is among New York State’s most populous regions, but skepticism toward legal cannabis among local leaders make a roaring weed retail market there unlikely.
Related: ‘Virtually nothing available’: zoning in Brookhaven stymying cannabis retail prospects
Dispensaries are starting to open up across the state, Falkowski said, but right now the only shops where OMO Labs could sell its wares are located in New York City, or farther upstate – both of which would require long delivery drives that would cut into the company’s margins.
And while the New York City stores aren’t too far from Long Island, the few shops currently operating are fielding calls from hundreds of licensed growers and processors across the state.
“There’s 300 operators trying to get on shelves, so [dispensaries] get inundated all day, while they’re also trying to do all this compliance work,” said Falkowski, who said he’s been in contact with several dispensary owners. “I’m waiting for Long Island to come online.”
For the moment, Falkowski is generating revenue mostly through hemp processing and manufacturing, as well as selling organic vegetables, he said. But as he and other growers and processors wait for more stores to come online, price compression appears to be driving down the value of the products they’re sitting on.
Related: Marijuana retail opportunities few and far between in Long Island
“There are a lot of hard conversations I have to have with some farming friends, because their stuff is not moving, either,” Falkowski said. “All of us are economically distraught, emotionally distraught.”
A bright spot for Falkowski and other growers and processors on Long Island is the Office of Cannabis Management’s announcement last month that a dispensary operated by the Budding Industry Group, LLC, is set to open at Industry Court in Deer Park. That shop hasn’t opened yet, but once it and other retailers start operating on Long Island, OMO Labs and other weed businesses in the area will finally have opportunities to flourish, Falkowski said.
The next year will be challenging, but Falkowski thinks OMO Labs will be able to hang on until the legal weed market fully opens.
“This is a year of survival, we just need to make it through this year,” Falkowski said. “We need to be frugal … but we need to still keep moving forward.”