B.C. cannabis stores forced to close as supply runs short

With a BCGEU picket line blocking the province’s liquor distribution branch and cutting off supply of legal cannabis, dozens of licensed pot stores have been forced to temporarily close their doors.

Burb Cannabis has consolidated its product at two of its four Metro Vancouver locations and closed the other two, because it doesn’t have enough inventory and can’t get more. Cannabis stores in B.C. are only allowed to get product from the provincial government.

“We have had to lay off 20 people so far and more to come if we are not able to get any inventory,” said Burb Cannabis co-founder Clayton Chessa. “It’s hard decisions especially after the turbulent times we went through with COVID, but there’s nothing we can do. If we’ve got no inventory to sell, we can’t employ any people.”

The executive director of the Retail Cannabis Council of B.C., Jaclynn Pehota, says at least 40 stores have had to close so far, impacting upwards of 400 employees.

“The folks that depend on that supply chain have been hung out to dry. There is no alternative for these businesses, they are absolutely being held hostage by this product shortage,” said Pehota.

Stores may be dependent on the provincial government supply, but consumers do have another option: illegal cannabis. “We will start bleeding market share back into the illicit market,” Chessa predicted.

That’s already happening. CTV News spotted an illicit dealer outside the closed Burb Cannabis location in Port Moody on Thursday afternoon.

The man was approaching customers who realized the store wasn’t open and offering to sell them cannabis. While he asked to remain anonymous, he made no apologies, saying, “If they’re going to sell out of product and people are on strike and can’t get stuff, might as well take advantage of it.”

Pehota said that was inevitable. “British Columbians are not going to stop buying cannabis during this product shortage,” she said. “The experience you had within minutes of them closing their doors there is someone who popped up to fill that niche, I think that’s very indicative of what we’re likely to see more and more of over the course of the shortages.”

Chessa agrees, and worries those customers won’t come back when licensed stores re-open.

“Once you convert a consumer from that side of the market to the legal side, then you shut your doors and you have to go back….it was hard enough converting them in the first place. I suspect there will be some challenges again to get them back into the stores,” he said.

Pehota said an end to the job action won’t solve the underlying issue. “I think the failure of this monopoly is obvious, and I think there is no alternative but to diversify our supply chain,” Pehota said, adding it’s not a matter of if there will be another disruption, but when.

Chessa says licensed cannabis store owners need to be able to source their product directly from farmers, like they can in other provinces. “I can get as angry as I want, but there is nothing I can do except to speak out, hope that somebody listens and gives us some sort of relief, so we can get some inventory.”