New Mexico Is Giving 1,500 Cannabis Licenses (And It’s Not Enough)

There are hundreds of eager prospective business owners in New Mexico. The New Mexico Cannabis Control Division recently announced that 1,500 prospective businesses are trying to get adult-use business licenses.

However, the majority of said prospective businesses are reportedly seeking a micro business license, which is a cultivation tier that doesn’t allow more than 200 plants within said micro business operations. The rise in demand for business licenses is a clear sign that the New Mexico cannabis business will be booming, and the state has no plans to limit the number of licenses issued.

We saw a similar “free-market” approach in Oklahoma’s medical cannabis market, and now, New Mexico is taking on that approach in its licensing process. John Blair, deputy superintendent for the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, told KRQE about the in-depth process within the cannabis industry in New Mexico.

He said that anticipating the demand for business licenses was somewhat impossible, but he’s pleased that there is much excitement across the state of New Mexico. “If a million New Mexicans want to get a license, we would license a million people.”

Within 90 days of applying for a business license, approval or rejection should occur within that period. As for sales, we should expect New Mexico’s cannabis industry to take off by April 1, 2022, which doesn’t leave much time to prepare.

But, according to state law, the rules for licensing retailers, transporters, or product manufacturers must be finalized by January 1, 2022. Although there haven’t been many opportunities for legal adult-use sales, entrepreneurs are ready to adjust themselves to the foreseen booming cannabis market along with the high level of competition.

An applicant named A.J. Sullins told the KRQE news station that his home state of New Mexico is expected to follow the trends demonstrated by other markets. This includes larger and greater players spending extensive amounts of money to acquire a small business and expand their economic footprint.

Sullins continued that he’s expecting quite a few people who’ve received licensure to notice how their costs are outweighing their revenue “because they didn’t plan for low-cost production.” He added that they’re going to start getting “consolidated or washed out within a three-year period.”

New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department and the CCD will evaluate the industry every September to ensure that the medical market is not overshadowing the adult-use market, and vice versa. They will also make sure that supply and demand are in alignment, according to the regulations drafted.