As Missouri marijuana businesses cash in, small Black-owned shops are stuck in limbo

When Missouri allowed the first dispensaries to begin selling marijuana earlier this month, Andrew McDowell was frustrated.

Although he was happy for his community to finally have access to recreational weed, his Black-owned smoke shop in Raytown still can’t sell it. And he won’t know for months whether he’ll eventually be allowed.

“We would have liked to be a part of that first push,” said McDowell, who co-owns Funky Skunk with his longtime business partner Roderick Pearson Jr. “Whenever we do get our opportunity, we’re going to definitely make a lot of noise and we’re going to shake some stuff up.”

As the established marijuana industry cashes in on full legalization in Missouri, small-time players who want to break into the market are left in limbo. Black-owned mom-and-pop shops like McDowell’s Funky Skunk have to wait until later this year before they can apply to compete in a pool for smaller micro-licenses in order to sell or grow recreational marijuana.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, which oversees the state’s marijuana program, doesn’t plan to make applications available until June and won’t start accepting them until September. The state will then review whether businesses are eligible in December.

[Read more at The Kansas City Star]