When you think of how supply and demand in a Dagga Private Club works, then the difference between a DPC and an over-the-counter weed store makes perfect sense. It also makes sense why you don’t advertise or franchise your Dagga Private Club. The illegal black market runs on the principle that supply is established first, demand is a problem that is later addressed. “First grow the weed, then we’ll worry about who to sell it to.” Sound familiar?

Well, a Dagga Private Club doesn’t work that way.

Foundational Principle #4: Supply follows demand

Read that again, and carefully. Just because “supply” comes first in the sentence, doesn’t mean it comes first in planning. It follows the demand of your members. That means you have to establish the demands that your members have first! So, that means you have to start at the very beginning: who are your members.

My recommendation is still that members of your Club must be people that you know and trust. You don’t want irresponsible  and ignorant and plain difficult people to make your Club a dodgy place or get you in trouble with the law. Once you’ve identified your members, you need to get some information from them to help you plan, like:

• What do they usually smoke? Indoor, outdoor, hydroponics, greenhouse, dabs, etc;
• How much do they usually smoke in a specific time period (like a month)?
• Do they have a specific strain preference?
• Do they have specific preferences relating to grow mediums, nutrients or the drying and curing process (to name a few)?

Once you have this information, you are able to start planning your grow. There are a few ways in which this can be done:

1. The Club cultivates the Cannabis

The Dagga Private Club buys or leases a property on which they can cultivate enough Cannabis to provide in the needs and requirements of their members. This is especially practical when all members prefer smoking greenhouse or outdoor, as this is affordable and easier to maintain for the Club. It does require the Club to have access to infrastructure, genetics and equipment, but the good news is that competent members of the Club can be employed as workers in the grow area. To compensate for these expenses, members are charged a membership fee, exclusive to the amount of Cannabis the Club provides them with. Membership fees go towards management of the Club and general overheads such as maintenance of structures or garden expanding.

2. The Members cultivate the Cannabis

In this option, the Dagga Private Club has various of its members cultivating Cannabis on behalf of the collective of the Club. These members cultivate Cannabis in their private space according to best practices provided by the Club. This doesn’t mean that the Club has a say in the grower’s operation, but that the grower should comply with minimum requirements to ensure the demands and needs of the members are met. Grower members should complete a costing model, so that the Club can monitor the grower’s expenses relating to the cultivation of the Cannabis. According to this, the Club should comply its own costing model to justify the price given to members to cover their portion of the production and administration costs.

3. The Club and some of the Members cultivate the Cannabis

This is probably one of the most popular and easiest ways to ensure that members have a variety of Cannabis available to suit their needs and requirements. In this scenario, the Club has a grow operation, most probably outdoor or greenhouse, while some of the members also have grow operations in their personal space, most probably indoor. This means that the risk for crop loss is greatly mitigated by having more than one location to rely on. It also ensures that a variety of strains can be made available if the Club carefully coordinates what is grown in what location. Members of the Club can once again act as workers in the Club’s grow and earn money for their labour and expertise. The Club must maintain a costing model for every grower as well as its own grow operation.

Speaking of crop losses, how does that form part of your planning for supply and demand of Cannabis in your Club? Well, it’s easy. As part of mitigating the risk of a natural disaster, infestation or other unfavourable happenings leading to the loss of a crop, the Club may plan for a buffer in their cultivation. This means that the Club chooses a margin of the total weight it needs to produce and adds it to their planning. This is justified in supply planning documentation as a back-up buffer.

So, you see, you can’t do anything until you’ve determined the demands of your members. You can’t truly say that you’re trying to cater to them if you’re not taking into consideration what they want. And, as I keep saying, Dagga Private Clubs are about the people.