This week, our cover story in the print edition of New Times dispenses a ten-step program on how you can jump in on the medical marijuana craze that is expected to hit Florida soon and become a pot mogul.
Or, not.
Writer Francisco Alvarado went out and did all the research on what it takes to become a marijuana entrepreneur and learned it's not as easy as it might seem.
The story follows Bob Calkin, a man who runs the Cannabis Career Institute, and his packed seminars at which he teaches ordinary folks what it takes to become a pot baron.
People in Florida who are looking to delve into the business are banking on the medical marijuana amendment passing in November and forking over their money to hear Calkin's tips.
And for good reason. Medical marijuana is potentially big business:
Assuming the amendment passes -- and there's a good chance it will, as polls are clocking support between 64 and 78 percent of the vote -- anyone who starts a medical marijuana business could make an astronomical amount of money. In Colorado, sales of medical marijuana were $328 million last year. In California, $1 billion. A study by Florida's Department of Revenue estimates that sales here would be $137 million to $5.6 billion a year.Wannabe entrepreneurs are salivating. Calkin sold out three seminars and plans eight more from now until Election Day.
But Alvarado gets practical on your ass, outlining a ten-step program that shows you exactly how much work and financial risk it'll take to become a medical marijuana magnate in Florida.
From knowing your medical marijuana history to getting yourself a medical marijuana lawyer to understanding that pot is, indeed, very much still illegal at the federal level, How to Get Rich in the Medical Marijuana Business (or Go Broke Trying) breaks it all down.
Click here for the story, or run out and pick up a print edition.
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