New Jersey Class 3 Wholesaler License Consultants

Would you like to wholesale cannabis in New Jersey? Do you know what it takes to win a New Jersey Class 3 Wholesaler License?

This Class 3 license allows a cannabis business to store, buy, sell, or otherwise transfer between licensed cultivators, other wholesalers, and retailers:

• Bulk recreational cannabis,
• Cannabis products, and
• Cannabis items.

The license does not allow you to sell directly to consumers.

Let our cannabis business license application writers make it simple for you to win a New Jersey cannabis wholesaler license.

The article below begins with an overview of the New Jersey wholesaler licensing program and the cannabis license application process, followed by a step-by-step guide on how to win a wholesaler business license in New Jersey.

Tips for winning Class 3 Cannabis Wholesaler Licenses in New Jersey

The Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC, or “The Commission”) regulates and oversees the entire adult-use cannabis program, including the scoring and issuance of Class 3 wholesaler licenses in New Jersey. Although these wholesaler license applications have not been released yet, now is a good time to begin preparing the documents you will need for the submission.

In addition, be aware that you can apply through the Commission for a temporary conditional permit, which allows your business to lawfully act as a cannabis wholesaler. Basically, a conditional permit gives you more time (120 days) to meet the requirements for a full license, such as proof of municipal approval and site control.

If you’ve already got that in hand, then you should apply for an annual permit, saving you the step of applying for a conditional to annual conversion permit.

Step 1: Get to know the cannabis laws and regulations in New Jersey

First, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the rules and regulations in New Jersey because each state governs cannabis differently. I suggest you read the following documents and focus on the areas related to the license application process.

In addition, be sure to review the following:

Next, once you understand New Jersey’s cannabis laws, you should determine what makes you eligible to open a legal cannabis business here!

Step 2: Determine if you’re eligible

Basically, anyone can apply as long as your entity is at least 5% owned by a New Jersey resident (no less than two years), none of the owners have disqualifying convictions, and none of the owners exceed the ownership limitations.

In addition, you must satisfy the following requirements:

• Be registered to operate your cannabis business with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services (DORES) to properly collect Cannabis Sales & Use Tax and Social Equity Excise Fees within at least 15 business days before conducting business in New Jersey,
• Possess both federal and state taxpayer ID numbers, and
• Remain in compliance with all provisions of N.J.S.A. 24:6I-31 through 56 and N.J.A.C. 17:30.

Also, each cannabis cultivation application in New Jersey must have at least one owner listed who has resided in New Jersey for at least two years prior to the date of submission. Moreover, New Jersey also requires proof that each owner of the conditional license applicant has an adjusted gross income for the preceding tax year within the following constraints:

• No more than $200,000, or
• No more than $400,000 if filed jointly with another individual.

if you exceed this adjusted gross income, do not worry. You will just have to apply the annual route, which has its benefits.

Step 3: Engage a consultant

Our New Jersey marijuana business licensing team is run by some of the best cannabis business application writers in the world. We have already helped several of our clients engage successfully in cannabis-related activities in the state of New Jersey over several years and win licenses.

We can manage your application for you from start to finish. We’ll write your business plan, operating plan, and all technical writing requirements of the application. In addition, we’ll ensure that you have compliant contracts with security vendors and contractors.

Allow our New Jersey Cannabis License Consulting firm to manage your application for you. We’ll assist with raising capital, lining up real estate, and working with your municipality and local organizations to garner support.

In addition, we offer extensive post-licensure advisory services, from initial facility design to negotiating the sale of your company.

In the next section, we’ll discuss the steps involved in forming a business entity for your processing activities.

Step 4: Form a business entity

At this point, you should form a legal business entity as defined by New Jersey for your cannabis wholesaler application. Work with your attorneys to determine the entity type most appropriate for your goals.

We commonly find cannabis applicants form limited liability companies (LLC) or corporations for their applications.

However, keep in mind that a cannabis business can only operate under its entity name registered with New Jersey. An alternate name, trade name, or DBA cannot be used while conducting cannabis business (including in advertisements).

When forming your business entity, keep in mind New Jersey’s definitions of the following:

• Diversely Owned Businesses – minority-owned, woman-owned, or disabled veteran-owned and certified as such by the New Jersey Department of the Treasury in one or more of the listed categories.
• Social Equity Businesses – owned by people who have lived in an Economically Disadvantaged Area of the state, or who have convictions for cannabis-related offenses (expunged or not).
• Impact Zone Businesses – located in an Impact Zone, owned by people from an Impact Zone, or employing residents of Impact Zones.

These cannabis business entity types will be prioritized in the licensure process to be reviewed before applicants of other entity types – even if the other business has applied first.

If your business entity is eligible for these definitions, your wholesaler license application will be prioritized in the licensure process. Your application will be reviewed before other applicants – regardless of the timing of your submission, so long as it is within the deadlines. Find out how to register at The Office of Minority, Disabled Veterans, and Women Business Development.

You can find more information on the order of priority for review and scoring in this graphic supplied by our New Jersey Cannabis License Consulting firm.

Now, let’s discuss the importance of a detailed business plan.

Step 5: Develop Business Plan

First, a well-developed business plan is crucial proof to the Board that your entity will safely and successfully produce adult-use cannabis products for New Jersey consumers.

Equally important and central to New Jersey’s cannabis program, your business plan should demonstrate how your business will add to its social and economic equity program initiatives.

In addition, a solid business plan makes raising capital a lot easier!

Within your wholesaler (both conditional and annual) application, you must provide the following:

• Business Plan and Management profile
• Regulatory Compliance Plan
• Plan to obtain liability insurance

These sections will include at a minimum:

• Description of the proposed cannabis wholesaler business plan,
• The value proposition for consumers,
• An overview of proposed financing for the business,
• Product and pricing plan,
• Market analysis,
• Complete profile of the management, and
• A full overview of how your proposed cannabis business plans will comply with the regulations for wholesaler licenses.

Our cannabis team can help you fulfill all of these requirements, plus more. We provide full marijuana business planning services.

Plus, we’ll help you pitch your wholesaler business to both local organizations, investors, and most importantly, to already operating cultivators and manufacturers from whom you can purchase product. Also, we’ll help you connect and contract with other retailers and wholesalers to wholesale your bulk marijuana products.

Next, let’s discuss the necessity of raising capital, and showing proof of capital.

Step 6: Raise capital

First of all, winning a licensed wholesale business license in New Jersey requires a great deal of time and energy. It also requires money.

To this end, work with our New Jersey cannabis license experts. If you don’t already have the capital necessary for a successful cannabis business, we’ll help you pitch your business to cannabis industry investors.

Next, we’ll discuss the importance of facility location. In fact, this is one of the most critical aspects to a successful cannabis wholesaler license application. New Jersey municipalities have great influence over who may win a license within their jurisdiction.

Step 7: Choose a location

First, you must identify a location for your proposed cannabis business. New Jersey grants municipal control over adult-use business licenses. You’ll need to confirm that the municipality allows your cannabis wholesaler activities.

Secondly, your facility must comply with state laws and local ordinances, including appropriate zoning. Our New Jersey cannabis consultants discuss municipal control further, providing a handy list of municipal opt-in/opt-out status.

Once you’ve confirmed, then you can identify locations within the municipality that are appropriately zoned and compliant. Barring extraordinary circumstances (you’ve got money to spare and you found THE perfect place!), we don’t recommend signing a lease or purchasing a property until awarded a license.

Identify municipal ordinances allow and check zoning

Conditional license applicants in New Jersey only need to identify the location. However, applicants have flexibility to change locations once awarded the conditional license. The appropriately zoned and compliant location must be established before applying to convert to the annual permit. The Commission, at its discretion, will also forward a copy of the relevant application documents from your application to the municipality for its consideration that your application complies with its local restrictions.

As noted previously, keep in mind that New Jersey gives extra consideration to cannabis wholesalers located in Impact Zones and Economically Disadvantaged Areas (EDA). These CRC links provide excellent maps and lists of municipalities for both Impact Zones and EDA locations.

Lastly, we can help you choose a location that is compliant and will help you achieve the highest scores on your application. Please reach out to us if you’d like to speak with our New Jersey cannabis license application writers.

 

Next, we’ll discuss gathering local support in your chosen New Jersey jurisdiction for your cannabis wholesale business venture.

Step 8: Garner local support

Once you’ve locked down a location, you can begin building support from local organizations and the municipal government. Strong local support will help you score higher on your application. For example, gaining approval from your proposed facility’s neighbors lends strength and credibility to your application.

Acquiring local support shows business credibility, demonstrated investment in the local community, and also helps you to raise capital. Please reach out to speak with our New Jersey Cannabis Business Consultants about engaging municipal support for your business.

Now, onto the most important step in winning a New Jersey Class 3 Wholesaler License!

Step 9: Write and submit your application

Finally, you are ready for the most labor-intensive step proving the viability of your marijuana wholesaler business to the CRC. You’ll need to write a competitive application in a field in which hundreds of applicants may apply.

Although not released yet, the wholesaler application will most likely follow the requirements for the Class 2 Manufacturer and Class 5 Retailer licenses.

You have two routes you can take when it comes to applying for a cannabis business license in New Jersey:

• Conditional License Application, or
• Annual License Application.

Both the conditional and the annual license ultimately require the same documents; the conditional license gives you an additional 120 days to submit a conversion application for an annual cannabis business license.

Therefore, the conditional license gives you more time to include proof of municipal approval and site control. Ultimately, both application routes require the same material and plans, and the same fee payments. For a more detailed explanation, please see our Cannabis Consulting in New Jersey: Conditional versus Annual. Feel free to contact us directly to discuss which option is better for your wholesaler business strategies.

I will update this page when the wholesaler license application has been released. However, it will most likely require the same basic proofs for the safety and viability of your cannabis wholesaler business.

Conclusions on New Jersey wholesaler licensing

It takes time, capital, and energy to win a cannabis wholesale license in New Jersey. The competition is fierce and the well-defined scoring process requires attention to the details and exceptions. With an experienced cannabis licensing team on your side, you can significantly improve your odds of winning a license.

Schedule a call today to help us learn more about your plans. We can help you write and assemble your entire New Jersey wholesaler application, saving you time and money.

Additional information related to New Jersey wholesaler business licenses

Additional resources

• • The Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act (2019)
  • The Office of Minority, Disabled Veterans, and Women Business Development

Links to related articles

• • Cannabis Consulting in New Jersey
  • Manufacturer License in New Jersey 
  • New Jersey Cannabis Delivery License – How To Win A License
  • Cannabis Cultivation Application in New Jersey
  • New Jersey Cannabis Dispensary License: How to Apply & Win
  • New Jersey Cannabis Testing Laboratory License: How To Apply And Win