[Zombieball]

In downtown Vancouver the government website only lists one “legal” cannabis store yet a quick google search shows +20 listings:

https://justice.gov.bc.ca/cannabislicensing/map

I would suspect that many people purchasing on the black market are in fact purchasing from stores (not just “their weed guy”) but don’t realize the store is not properly licensed.

[klyrs]

Don't trust that; unlicensed shops have been closing down much faster than google's been keeping up. Source: I'm a customer that preferred the unlicensed shops because the product and pricing was better. I was never ignorant about their legal status.

In licensed shops you get a very limited selection and typically, a low inventory. They've got little sniffer pods where you're supposed to be able to smell the product but it's nothing like the old shops where they'd have a canister where you could really get a good whiff. Packaging requirements mean that there's a limited selection of quantities; and typically, the packaging is at least 3x bigger (and significantly more expensive) than previously.

My preferred purchasing pattern is to buy a single gram of a few unfamiliar strains, test them out, and then come back in a few days to get an ounce of the best one. With this pattern, I only need to go to the store a few times a year. With the new shops, they don't carry single grams, and you can't save on packaging by buying in bulk -- if you want an ounce, you'd have to buy 10 of the 3.5g canisters.

I was pro-legalization for obvious reasons but now I wish I had a good black-market hookup.