Someone Is Building The ‘Starbucks Of Pot’
Sixty-seven percent of Millenials support the end of marijuana prohibition, according to a recent Gallup poll. As our generation comes to dominate the voting population, we are sure to see a change in the laws regarding marijuana over the next few decades.
The success of Jamen Shively may catalyze the process, though. The former Microsoft corporate strategy manager has engineered and is postured to implement a corporate marijuana empire that will pressure the Obama administration to honor Washington and Colorado’s new legalization laws (state Initiative 502 and Amendment 64 respectively). Just a few weeks ago on CNBC, Shively advertised his new company, Diego Pellicer, as the future “Starbucks of pot.”
Shively was admittedly inspired by a few tokes of high quality cannabis, but his resume puts all stoner stereotypes to rest: he holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Berkeley, did graduate work at MIT and a fellowship with the National Science Foundation.
His powerful ethos has given responsible consumption an entirely new life, as he casually admitted to National Geographic that roughly 70 percent of his most successful peers and colleagues throughout his career share his marijuana habit. He jokes that marijuana is in his blood; beneath the obvious meaning of the quip lies a quaint family history.
Diego Pellicer was the name of Shively’s great grandfather, who was the Vice Governor of the island Cebu (a Spanish Colony) in the Philippines during the Spanish American War. Before he was killed by American soldiers, Pellicer was the largest grower of hemp in the world at the height of the Spanish Empire.
Shively hopes to honor his great granddad’s legacy by creating the first premium marijuana brand. Like fine wine, high quality cannabis can have delicate and eclectic value, appreciated only by the most refined consumer.
If the Department of Justice continues its begrudging tolerance of the state sanctions (as it has most recently), Diego Pellicer has the potential to make the dreams of all marijuana users and libertarian advocates’ come true.
The black market for marijuana is projected to be worth somewhere between $100 and $200 billion. Shively is postured to professionalize this market first, by commissioning over 700 grows in Washington. His projections indicate each month they will produce 2,000 pounds generating twenty million dollars in retail sales.
If this federalist experiment is successful, expect more states (especially the heavily indebted and socially liberal ones) to adopt similar laws in the future, beckoning more green ventures, jobs and prosperity.
With the end America’s longest and most costly war (on drugs), green entrepreneurs such as Shively may have the opportunity to help alleviate our overstuffed and costly prisons, quell the devastation wrought by Mexican drug cartels, create much needed jobs, and inspire countless others to do the same. Ending the war on marijuana and allowing those like Pellicer to do business will eliminate a great many wasted tax outlays and generate tremendous revenues.
Taken one step further, Pellicer could be as crucial for American’s current economic recovery as Ford was to post-war manufacturing. As the Federal Reserve continues to delay tapering because the fundamental indicators of our economy’s health suggest sickness, and speculators warn of another bubble in the stock market, the question of prohibition should be a no-brainer.
Imagine: someday in the near future, Pellicer might offer a product so good and cheap it is exported all over the world and like Apple products – making marijuana a point of American pride.