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There was a change in the provincial government prior to legalization that probably contributed to this loss. The previous provincial Liberal government had planned to sell cannabis through the provincially owned liquor stores. In June 2018 they lost the election to the Conservatives, who in August 2018 decided not to sell cannabis in the government stores but through private retailers[1]. However, as this was an unexpected change the first private retailers wouldn’t be operational until April 2019 [2]. So from the time of legalization, October 17, 2018 until April 1, 2019 the only way to legally purchase cannabis in Ontario was online and by postal delivery.

[1]: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-cannabis-priv...

[2]: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-cannabis-open...



This is why I read the comments to articles first. Thanks, @fraqed for adding important context!


It's still confusing. How expensive is it to setup a Shopify site and a third-party logistics company to send out orders?

I guess the question is: how much of the loss is one-time capital costs, and how much is ongoing.

Should Ontarians look forward to more losses, or to a more profitable system overall?


The Ontario government actually does use Shopify for its online cannabis store:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ontario-shopify-mariju...


Well, for one thing you have to make sure none of the data touches the US or companies that might share data with US agencies (particularly cbp) to avoid screwing over otherwise innocent people who like weed.


That's fine because Shopify is Canadian.


That's Shopify's problem.




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