The Cannabis Industry During the Pandemic - Creating Jobs and Bringing in Tax Dollars
Cannabis dispensaries stayed open during the COVID-19 lockdown - and for good reason.
Cannabis has shown potential in aiding with a variety of ailments, and for that reason marijuana dispensaries, just like pharmacies and convenience stores, were deemed essential businesses and have been able to stay open during the quarantine. It’s been helping people cope when overall anxiety and stress levels are at their highest in decades. People have increasingly turned to cannabis for stress relief with fewer known side effects compared to pharmaceuticals and alcohol.
In 2020, sales of marijuana and infused products in Colorado exceeded $2 billion, bringing in over $32 million in tax revenue More importantly, the cannabis industry has been providing numerous jobs during these hard times. While businesses around the world went bankrupt or saw sales decline, resulting in millions of people losing their jobs - especially in the service sector, and namely retail - cannabis businesses continued creating new jobs every day.
Silver Stem Fine Cannabis has 8 stores in Colorado and Oregon, and a hand-picked team of over 100 professionals. We are extremely proud of the way they have maintained the highest level standards during the pandemic, and we are always looking for motivated and enthusiastic people to join our family.
We have previously discussed the details of becoming a budtender, such as requirements, how to obtain a MED badge and so on, and we offered tips on how to be a successful budtender.
Retail Sales Associates aka Budtenders are at the front line, and you see them every time you shop, but there is another team essential to Silver Stem’s success that works behind the scenes. Today, we would like to tell you a bit more about our own cultivation facility and what it’s like working there.
Silver Stem is proud to be among the leading producers of the finest cannabis in Colorado. We use the latest technologies, while keeping touch with the roots - our flower is grown exclusively in soil, and is hand-watered and hand-pruned. All of this is done under the leadership of the incredible James Thomas - a 5th generation farmer, professional engineer, and consummate professional with over 17 years of experience in the field of large-scale cannabis production.
The process of creating the finest flower starts with careful genetics selection. The handpicked clones enter the vegetation cycle and are grown to their full potential under the watchful eye of James and his team. This stage requires proper plant daily care, such as maintaining optimal humidity, light and temperature according to the plant’s needs. All done by hand.
Next is time to sow the results of our team’s hard work - the harvest. Mature plants are cut and hung to dry, which is called curing. Once that is done, the buds are sent to the Supply Chain & Product Distribution department to be turned into the final product. This is where select buds are picked into tiers - meaning one of our flower categories or the smaller nugs that go to popcorn or grinds, which are great for pre-rolls and making your own product at home. This is also where our trim team clears off the stems and leaves, packages different weights of flower into containers, and sends it directly to our store shelves.
If you want to start your path in the cannabis industry, join our Supply Chain & Product Distribution team as a Supply Chain Associate and work your way up! And if you have agricultural experience and training, have great attention to detail and are passionate about farming - you might just be right for the job of Supply Chain Associate. To see all job openings of the grow team, pick the corresponding department in the Careers section.
Working in the cannabis field with the Silver Steam team means a confident future, joy from work, a new and exciting career, and competitive compensation.
We look forward to welcoming you to our family!
