The Curious Case of Marijuana in Seattle

The Dispensary Experts: http://www.thedispensaryexperts.com

Introduction

It hasn’t even been one full year since the legality of marijuana stores in the State of Washington was finally approved by the council and the Department of Health.

Seattle dispensaries are already spending fortune on advertising.

As Expected?

This, as expected, saw a rapid spike in the number of over the counter marijuana vendors all over the states, more so in the major urban areas like Seattle and Vancouver.

A little dig into the stats maintained and provided by the State Liquor board reveals some unusual trends.

How About the Recreational Marijuana?

Combined recreational marijuana sales at all the dispensaries in Seattle fall behind those in Vancouver or even Yakima.

This makes a very interesting case and one worth analyzing.

One reason, often cited – quite logically so – for the sudden spike in the sales or demand of recreational marijuana all over the state is the media buzz and the feeling of ‘ultimate first amendment’ created by the Initiative 502.

This feeling of being free, of this novelty and notoriety of having recreational marijuana served to you on a sliver platter in a completely safe and legal environment might have driven the sales in the first few weeks but it seems to be rapidly wearing off.

Perhaps, the legality seems to put some people off and it can be debated that the mere action of smoking pot stealthily was the biggest rush-giver for many people.

Therefore, and evident trend sees major dip in the sales of recreational cannabis in Seattle.

Whatever the case, the recent trends in Seattle are confounding and intriguing to say the least.

What else?

But wait, there’s more to it than meets the eye.

A little ground hunting and legwork reveals the real reasons behind these stifling trends.

Recreational marijuana, as of this date, stands at more than double the price than the medical variant.

This very fact has driven the traffic from recreational marijuana dispensaries in Seattle to the medical marijuana dispensaries.

Even though a lot of paperwork and registry cards are needed to buy medical marijuana, ‘enthusiasts’ have found ways to buy marijuana from the medical dispensaries at lower prices, and some have gone so far as to selling it to the recreational dispensaries.

Medical marijuana doesn’t fall under excise taxes while recreational marijuana does, in Washington.

Hence, many recreational marijuana users have resorted to obtaining Green Cards that can be obtained with some efforts for as little as fifty dollars.

Conclusion

This immense disparity in the prices is causing these fluctuations, in the opinion expressed by the Seattle Times.

So, while Seattle City authorities are taking strict measures to stop these practices as well as code and zone violations, it’s entirely in the hands of medical marijuana dispensaries in Seattle to maintain clean and lawful practices.

After all, patients depend on them for palliative treatments.