Come Jan. 1, it will be legal to purchase and possess recreational marijuana in Illinois. And as the new year gets closer, several Chicago cannabis startups are beginning to imagine what the future holds for them under the new law.

For cannabis growers and dispensary operators, they can expect to attract a whole new set of buyers—not just those with a medical marijuana license. The tech-based startups that simplify how people buy cannabis or how marijuana companies advertise their offerings should also expect to find new consumers. And as happens with any big cultural or economic shift, new companies are likely to pop up once voids in the industry are discovered.

At the end of May, Illinois lawmakers approved a bill that would allow residents age 21 and older to legally possess 30 grams of cannabis, 5 grams of cannabis concentrate or 500 milligrams of THC contained in a cannabis-infused product. When the bill takes effect next year, it will also create a licensed cultivation and dispensary system.

Legalizing recreational marijuana will inevitably change a lot about Chicago. Cannabis sales are expected to generate new and much needed revenue for Illinois, and should help minimize the number of people behind bars for marijuana use and possession. But it’s also going to considerably change Chicago’s culture.

Soon, it won’t be uncommon to see a dispensary next to the local drug store or retailer. Dispensaries will be banned from setting up shop in most of downtown but intend to make their presence felt elsewhere throughout the city’s neighborhoods.

A rendering of Sunnyside, Cresco Labs’ cannabis retail stores.

“Chicago’s the most urban metro area that’s legalized [marijuana] at this point,” said Zach Marburger, the entrepreneur in residence at Cresco Labs, a Chicago-based cannabis grower and dispensary. “Once you start seeing dispensaries pop up on pinnacle real estate corners in Chicago, it’s going to have a real impact on culture and it’s going to bring a whole new set of folks into the space.”

Cresco, which went public last year on the Canadian Stock Exchange, began investing more than $1 million into building its own technology products since the legalization of recreational marijuana was announced, Marburger said. The company is also looking for new cannabis-tech companies to invest in, an initiative Marburger is leading. So far, Cresco has invested in two startups, and Marburger says he expects that number to grow to 10 by next year.

Marburger has his eyes on Chicago’s growing cannabis-tech scene as he looks for investment opportunities, and says he is eager to see how they flourish without the constraints of prohibitive marijuana laws.

For one Chicago cannabis-tech company, weed legalization will allow it to finally operate in the state it calls home. CannaTrac, which launched at the beginning of this year, is a startup that’s working to make the process of buying marijuana from dispensaries easier and more transparent with a smartphone app.

The startup operates a marketplace where dispensaries can sell marijuana products and consumers can purchase them using a secure electronic payment platform as opposed to cash.

Even though it’s technically Chicago-based, CannaTrac’s first market was Colorado because marijuana is currently legal there. Though it’s not technically illegal for CannaTrac to operate in Illinois, CEO Tom Gavin said it has been hard to launch at home because he couldn’t get a bank to agree to support the platform.

“We bank fully transparently in Colorado and we want to do the same in Illinois, but we’re limited in who we can go to,” Gavin said. “We originally [launched] in Colorado specifically because of the legislation and it obviously protected the company…even though the majority of our executives are Chicago-based.”

Once recreational marijuana is legal, Gavin said he expects business to grow, especially because the legalization will likely come with new legislation, like the SAFE Banking Act, which would protect financial institutions that work with cannabis businesses from federal prosecution in states where the substance is legal.

“With more cash in the dispensaries, there’s going to be an even larger outcry for a solution like we have in order for them to bank that money and show transparency,” Gavin said.

Kannatopia, a social media platform for cannabis users, launched in Chicago in 2015. It’s designed for users 21 and older who want to connect with other weed users, dispensaries and marijuana-centric brands.

“We provide a community for them to engage with other people, learn and share experiences and get exposure to all the different products and all the different things that happen across the industry,” said co-founder Kurt Akers. “One of our main priorities from the beginning was always keeping Illinois and Chicago the forefront of where we’re at.”

Kannatopia’s platform is geo-fenced to account for states that have legalized recreational and medical marijuana, which Illinois legalized in 2013. A third of the startup’s users are in Illinois, but once recreational marijuana is legal in the state, Akers said he expects local usership to grow even more.

“The legalization for Illinois just makes things simpler for us,” Akers said. “It gives us more credibility for the platform that we’re building for the Illinois market because we want to be a top cannabis technology brand in Chicago.”

Akers said he also expects the process of securing venture capital to be easier than it was as investors begin to pay more attention to the industry as a good (and legal) bet. Salveo Capital, a Chicago-based venture capital firm focused on investing in cannabis-tech, has backed a number of companies throughout the country, including Chicago dispensary Grassroots Cannabis. A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing from earlier this month indicates that Salveo is raising a $22 million fund.

Green Nyle, another Chicago cannabis-tech startup, offers on-demand virtual cannabis coaches, who provide personalized guidance on how marijuana can help lead a healthy life. Green Nyle Founder and CEO Jilea Hemmings said a large portion of the startup’s target consumers want to wait to use a service like Green Nyle’s until cannabis is legal.

“The legalization for Illinois just makes things simpler for us.”

“The legalization of cannabis will help our business tremendously,” Hemmings said in a statement to Chicago Inno. “Many have heard about the benefits of cannabis, but are waiting on the sidelines until it is fully legalized.”

The other benefit of marijuana legalization is that Green Nyle and other cannabis companies will have more freedom to advertise their services on social media, in print and in commercials in Illinois, a space that has been hard to navigate.

Chicago startup Fyllo recently raised $16 million to grow its business, which helps cannabis companies deliver ad campaigns that are compliant with state and federal regulations.

Other Chicago cannabis startups whose business is likely to grow once recreational marijuana is legalized in Illinois include CannaFundr, an online investment marketplace for companies in the weed industry, and Leaf Trade, a B2B SaaS enterprise software startup for cannabis companies.

“[Legalizing recreational marijuana] is going to be great for not only the individuals, but the small businesses,” said Gavin of CannaTrac. “These [companies] are going to have the ability to do stuff that they couldn’t before. They’ve been waiting a really long time to make money.”

In a historic decision, a U.S. appeals court on Friday said the federal law requiring that workers be paid a minimum wage and overtime applies to employees in the marijuana industry.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Colorado said the protections in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) apply to “all workers,” regardless of whether the business they are engaged in is illegal under federal law, reports Reuters. The court rejected arguments by Colorado-based Helix TCS Inc, which provides security services for marijuana businesses, that its guards were not entitled to overtime because their work is illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act.

Lawyers for Helix and a former security guard who filed the class-action lawsuit did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The ruling was the first by a U.S. appeals court to address the issue. Other courts have said that businesses engaged in unlawful activities, such as gambling or employing illegal immigrants, are still subject to the FLSA.

Colorado, California, and Illinois are among the eleven U.S. states that have legalized recreational marijuana use by adults since 2012. Many other states permit marijuana use for medical purposes. As noted by Reuters, in Friday’s decision, the 10th Circuit said that denying wage protections to workers in the marijuana industry would encourage employers to engage in illegal markets and give them an unfair advantage over legal businesses.

The court noted that Congress has repeatedly amended the FLSA to exempt specific groups of workers, and has never done so for employees of marijuana businesses.
The case is Kenney v. Helix TCS Inc, 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 18-1105.

Research analyzing marijuana and its effects on seniors is lacking, but a recent one conducted in Geneva provided some positive results.

Some of the most promising developments on medical marijuana are the possibilities it provides for seniors struggling with chronic conditions. Marijuana is known for its broad effect, treating a variety of diseases and disorders without providing significant side effects. This alone makes it stand out in a market filled with opioids and medicines that affect people’s quality of life.

While research on marijuana and its effect on seniors is limited, relying a lot on anecdotal evidence and the doctor who’s prescribing it, a small study that took place in Geneva provided some scientifically based proof.

In the study, 10 women with severe dementia were given a dose of cannabis containing CBD and THC. The study found that the higher the dose, the better the results, with patients demonstrating a calm and more positive behavior, less problems with rigidity and better ability to conduct their daily care. Psychotropic medications were removed from the women’s treatment and their behavior improved by 40%, making it easier for their caretakers to do their jobs and for the facility to run smoothly. No negative side effects were reported.

It’s hard for Americans to provide non-invasive medication and treatments for their seniors. Marijuana remains illegal on a federal level, making it challenging for researchers to conduct the necessary experiments and for patients to get the information they need. Still, small studies like this one are changing people’s perceptions. Once marijuana is legal, it means that many more trials and experiments can be conducted, and that the medicinal value of the plant could finally be unlocked.

Imagine looking for a marijuana-related job and then getting ready for your interview on an app?

It's possible now! A Las Vegas man co-founded an app called Can-Ed to help you learn more about the multi-billion dollar industry and how to land the gig you want.

Jason Sturstman did not want to be too blunt but tells13 Action News not everyone can work in the green industry because working in a dispensary requires a lot of knowledge.

“Extremely difficult and competitive," Sturstman says.

That's why he co-created Can-Ed; it's an app first of its kind, he claims it will help you get educated with certified courses.

"'[It will help with] how to get a job in the cannabis industry. The neat thing too is, you flip your phone to the side and then get [watch] some great classes," Sturstman says.

After watching several video lessons, you then take the quizzes, Sturstman says, will guarantee you a certificate to work in the cannabis industry."

The entrepreneur and marijuana advocate believes that “education and networking” are the two ways to get a job in the cannabis industry.

He believes an effective worker needs to be able to communicate and understand what the rules are in Nevada, and the science behind the plant and the various products.

One local business that favors the app is Acres Dispensary.

Nate Hinckley is the assistant manager, he admits to 13 Action News most job applicants don't have the knowledge required.

"The need for personal sales experience is huge but finding a person that knows how to geek-out on the science end of it as well as enjoys the sales aspect of it,” Hinckley says.

Hinckley prefers his employees to be able to know how to serve different clients who all shop with different needs.

"From medical all the way to someone who's recreational," Hinckley says. He hopes the app helps the community and future job applicants to get well informed.

Epidiolex, the first cannabis-based medication approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, is now available by prescription in all 50 states.

Can-ed has several features, it's not only for job-seekers. It recommends ways parents can talk to their children, depending on their age, about being a cannabis user.

"It provides you all the information about marijuana science, how the products affect you, maybe you just want a little bit of background on some of the compliances,” Sturstman says.

He too hopes the Can-Ed helps get the right information out as there are already too many misconceptions about the plant and its use.

Can-Ed can be downloaded by iPhone and Android users on the app store.