Whenever a nascent industry begins showing signs of being self-sufficient, a curious thing happens – it gives rise to a range of new tertiary businesses. These new businesses support the industry by providing products and services the industry needs to reach maturity. Those that prove indispensable survive even after maturity is achieved. For proof, you need to look no further than the emerging cannabis industry.
Cannabis legalization has been a relatively slow and arduous process that started more than two decades ago. However, the movement has picked up a tremendous amount of momentum over the last five years. With that, we have seen a commensurate rise in tertiary businesses.
Here are just a few examples:
1. Cannabis Home Delivery
Home delivery was a big thing in previous generations. Your grandparents probably had milk and cheese delivered by the local dairy. A neighborhood teenager delivered the newspaper while the pharmacy was more than happy to stop by and deliver prescription medications. That all faded during the late 1970s and 80s. But now, home delivery is back.
You can get just about anything delivered to your door if you know where to look. In some places, you can even get cannabis delivered. Take Utah. It is one of the most restrictive states with a medical cannabis program in place. Pure Utah, a medical cannabis dispensary located in Payson, says cannabis delivery in Utah is nowhere near being mature. But it is available – in a state that many people thought would never legalize medical cannabis!
2. Cannabis DUI Legal Defense
Just as there are attorneys specializing in alcohol DUI cases, a growing number of attorneys are now offering specialized cannabis DUI legal defense. There is even a Salt Lake City company that pays a legal defense benefit to members charged with cannabis DUI. The benefit pays up to $15,000 to cover attorney costs, towing fees, and other related expenses. Their service is limited to Missouri drivers, for now. There are plans to expand to more states down the road.
3. Cannabis Massage Therapy
It is interesting to note that some of the tertiary businesses birthed out of the cannabis legalization movement are just adaptations of existing businesses. One such example is cannabis massage therapy. Yes, it is a thing. People who believe in the benefits of cannabis for general wellness embrace the idea of receiving massage therapy enhanced by cannabis-infused oils and lotions.
Some of those lotions and oils contain only CBD and other unrestricted cannabinoids. Others contain THC. Regardless, cannabis massage proponents say that it is the way to go if you utilize massage therapy for wellness.
4. Cannabis Clothing and Apparel
Not all cannabis plants are marijuana. Some are industrial hemp, a plant that has given rise to a new clothing and apparel industry. Hemp is a fantastic fiber for making resilient and durable fabrics. So much so that it is easy to find hemp clothing pretty much anywhere in the country.
Hemp clothing and apparel isn’t as much a tertiary business as an offshoot. By the way, it’s only possible because industrial hemp was legalized by the 2018 Farm Bill. Had that bill not been signed into law, we would still be importing nearly all our industrial hemp from overseas sources. Making hemp clothing and apparel wouldn’t be profitable.
There is a lot more to cannabis legalization than smoking joints and getting high. There is an entire business side to an industry that continues growing at an astronomical rate. Its success has given rise to tertiary businesses that would otherwise not exist. Such is the nature of free markets.