The 3-Letter Dirty Word: MSO
What They Are, How To Tell Good MSOs from Bad, and Why We Need Them
Let's pretend for a second that MSOs aren't all that bad.
Because they're not.
Not all of them.
And even the bad ones are necessary.
What is an MSO?
If you've been anywhere near cannabis in the last decade, you've heard this term.
For many, MSO means "the big dickhead at the top."
It's easy for to sum up all of the bad with one word, and put a name to a common "enemy". Much harder to get into the nuances, because that's where things get muddy.
By definition, an MSO is a Multi State Operator.
It is a business or brand that operates in 2+ states.
That's it.
An MSO doesn't have to be a big conglomerate publicly-traded company, just operate in more than one market.
Colloquially, MSO is used to refer to the "big guys," the publicly-traded companies that populate stock wires and are often the face of the problems of the industry.
These MSOs get the most visibility, which is why when we hear (and use) the term, it's often in relation to the public bad guys, even though there are plenty of good actors (you know, the "little guys", the "mom & pop's").
Not all MSOs are dickheads.
The good guys just get less air time.
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Good MSOs v Bad MSOs
So how can you tell who is "good" and who is "bad" in this crazy world of legal weed?
It's hard.
We don't want to support bad actors.
But we also don't know who the bad actors are.
And, frankly, many customers just don't care who they are.
(Walmart, Apple, Google et al have closets full of skeletons, and we look the other way).
But, for those curious, here are a few ways to know:
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