Marijuana Security: Top Tips for Cannapreneurs
No matter if you are a business owner or a cannabis master grower, before your marijuana business can take off, there’s something you need to address.
Trouble will smell you from miles away. All it takes is for someone to know that you have marijuana accessible to them. So mask the smell and avoid the trouble by implementing the best cannabis security tips into your business.
You might not be able to rid the thirst of temptation from trouble. But you can have a plan in place to prevent trouble from coming. If you are looking to become a cannabis dispensary owner, Your dispensary needs to be secure so in return, you and your employees are secure.
Your product is special! Your security should be too. And security measures at a marijuana dispensary are nothing to take lightly.
If you need help securing your product, then you’ve stumbled across the right page! Scroll further to get some awesome marijuana security tips on how to keep your hemp dispensary the safest it can be.
Possible Threats
It’s a known fact that many marijuana dispensaries only accept cash. ATMs are available at most sites. And cash businesses are always targets for physical threats.
As a business that stores customer and patient information online, you’re also a target for cyber threats. This is even more true when you store customer’s medical information.
But what’s your biggest threat? Your biggest threat, believe it or not, comes from within. According to some experts in the industry, 90% of both financial and product loss is due to employee theft in the cannabis industry!
The need for security at your medical or recreational cannabis dispensary isn’t a question. You know you need it and most state even require almost everything you will need. Now that you’re aware of all angles to expect possible threats from, let’s talk about how to prevent them.
Marijuana Security as a Team
Because employee theft is such a large threat, you’ll want to implement a specific employee hiring process. Your process should include background checks. It’s important that you’re bringing trust-worthy people on your team. Think about using a cannabis recruiting agency, like HempStaff, to help give you a larger pool of candidates and assist you in narrowing it down to the best ones. Most cannabis recruiting agencies will also run a background check on the potential employee as part of their service fee.
Employees should undergo extensive training that requires all employees to know how to handle your product and customer information. Safety is essential for both.
Only allow managers to access to the products. Employees should find a manager when a product is purchased. The fewer amount of people that have access to the product means fewer chances of theft.
It is also a good idea to train your employees on how they should act if they see theft happening. This could mean a threat by either another employee or someone else. Make sure your employees know exactly what to do! Many cannabis dispensaries have several types of alarms, including silent alarms, audio alarms and duress codes on their security system.
Security Systems
Just like any business, a marijuana dispensary should have a good security system in place. You want the security system to watch over your employees and the customers. Keeping an eye on everyone inside and out is a great place to start!
Install cameras inside and outside of your business. Make sure that the cameras record and can be played back when needed. You also want to make sure that the cameras are of good quality!
Install motion detector alarms at all points of entry. This includes windows and back doors. And match them with biometric locks.
Hiring someone to work security is another great idea. A patrolling security guard will keep a close eye on the floor to stop possible threats. And a patrolling security guard will prevent most physical threats from happening in the first place. However, keep in mind, as a federal rule, keep firearms our of your dispensary, the Cole Memo, which the government still looks to as a guideline, clearly states that firearms should not be used inside a cannabis establishment.
Hire a security service or armored truck for transporting your product and cash. These vehicles are equipped with armor and security technology. This will ensure a safe and threat-free transfer.
Take Inventory
It’s better to be safe than sorry. And you can never be too safe. Take inventory regularly.
Taking inventory assists you in identifying theft early on. It’s common for most people to start out small. They will steal small amounts of cash and product to hopefully go unnoticed.
It’s a good idea to take inventory after each employee shift. If cash or product is missing, you will have narrowed it down to employees on a specific shift.
And keep a safe or vault for large amounts of cash and products. Only have what is needed for the day outside of it.
Cyber-threat Prevention
As mentioned before, not all threats are physical ones. Cyber threats are another concern for your business. Take the necessary precautions to avoid these threats.
Some ideas for keeping your business’ data safe is to have virus protection, encrypted servers, and a backup system installed.
Virus protection stops malware and other viruses from entering your system and causing a crash. Encrypted servers stop hackers from accessing the data. And a backup system ensures all data is restored if needed.
Don’t Be Sorry, Be Safe
As a known marijuana business, you might not be able to stop trouble from smelling you out. But you can stop trouble from becoming a threat. It’s best to have a system in action to prevent threats from occurring.
And, of course, you’ll want a plan of action if they do occur. And remember, threats to your business are not only physical. Following these tips listed above is a substantial way to prevent and stop any threat.
For more questions concerning your hemp dispensary and how to implement the best marijuana security, head on over to our contact page! Our HempStaff customer service team is there to answer all your questions.
