With the closure of cannabis company, Whoopie & Maya, in California this week and recent announcements of both international and regional cannabis companies making staffing cuts, the reality that the cannabis business is just business may be setting in.
Recent cuts:
- Canadian cannabis producer Hexo laid off 200 employees late last month.
- Another Canadian marijuana producer, CannTrust, let 180 workers go in September.
- California-based marijuana tech company Weedmaps laid off more than 100 employees in October.
- Pax Labs, a California vape pen manufacturer, gave out pink slips to 65 workers in October.
- Another California ancillary company, delivery tech firm Eaze, also laid off 36 employees in October.
- Oregon cultivation operation Golden Leaf Holdings in April cut its workforce by approximately 20% – about 33 employees.
While there are probably many factors involved in each layoff decision, and a wide ranging speculation about causes, each company must get along in their own regulatory and business landscape. And as we know those landscapes can look vastly different from one state to another, one city to another within a state.
The industry is bound to do what any nascent industry would, struggle, correct, struggle, correct until their footing has found an even keel.