Among the findings:
- The dispensaries pay their combined 40 employees an average of $17 an hour. All employees get two weeks paid vacation as well as maternity and paternity leave, and the companies are even considering adding perks such as health benefits and stock options.
- Their payroll estimate for 2014 is over $2.4 million, which is eight times greater than average Denver restaurants and retail stores
- Evergreen Apothecary is expected to post $2.7 million in sales this year, while Colorado Harvest Company is projected to generate $8.5 million in revenue.
- Those sales will translate into more than $1 million in tax revenue for the state and almost $400,000 for the city of Denver, the study estimated. That’s 10 times as much as the average for a non-cannabis retailer. A major reason: “The tax rates are more than four times larger” for marijuana companies, Strauss said.
Click here to read the full study.