Cannabis retailers urge OCS to give up same-day delivery

The Retail Cannabis Council of Ontario (RCCO) has a bit of advice for the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS): It’s time to revise current approaches to better help the industry grow and evolve. The delivery service has provincial offices set up across Canada. “While retailers understand that the OCS has an obligation to ensure all Ontario residents have access to cannabis, most towns and cities are serviced with brick-and-mortar licensed retailers that offer delivery,” the RCCO, which represents more than 1,500 licensed cannabis retailers, reports in the paper. That said, “by limiting delivery to Canada Post, which offers a three-to-five-day delivery window, the OCS would effectively remove unfair competition between OCS and the licensed retailer.” Beyond delivery, though, the OCS could improve support for retailers by also making some changes to online offerings. Thirty-two pot retailers in Ontario had closed their doors since June 2021. Private cannabis retailers would also like some insight into pricing margins and OCS markup on products submitted by licensed producers so “retailers can feel confident that pricing practices are within the purview of the entire supply chain.” According to MJBiz, the OCS reports it is conducting “a holistic review” of its approach to pricing.