CTS Herbaceuticals Incorporated

Meet the partners and founders of CTS Herbaceuticals Inc. from left to right: Shenae Clarke (C.E.O), Thi Thuy Trang Do (Human Resource Manager) and Camille Elvin (Operations Manager).

CTS Herbaceuticals Inc. is a cannabis dispensary located in the G.T.A in Scarborough. We are your dedicated source for all your medicinal needs.

Vision Statement
Cannabis refined, retooled and refocused for a better future

Mission Statement

At CTS Herbaceuticals Inc. our commitment extends beyond our product offering, we offer "more than just a high". Our aim is the eradication of youth overdoses nation wide, a goal we hope to achieve by  positioning ourselves as the most trusted, most ethical and most reliable online cannabis dispensary. Together we are building a community where people are protected.

Company History
CTS Herbaceuticals Inc., was founded in 2017 by Shenae Clarke, Thi Thuy Trang Do and Camille Elvin. Few months before, three people who are studying at Centennial College started their group assignment, they did a research about healthy treatment products and its affects. While doing the research, the founders discovered the incredible effects of marijuana for medical issues and an idea of building up a new line of products that actually help people get better was triggered. In December 2017, CTS Herbaceuticals Incorporated was born. Three co-founders started-up the company by mobilizing the capital from family, friends and their own savings. CTS Herbaceuticals Inc. has their first store located in Scarborough, Toronto and a online website selling cannabis dispensary.
Perhaps to bring the best valued products to customers, CTS Herbaceuticals Inc. is on their way working hard every single day to provide more great products as promised. 

Types of Products Sold

At CTS Herbaceuticals we provide a wide range of herbal medicinal products, these include:

• Herba Gummies
• Herba Cookies
• Our Signature Herba Brownies
• Herba Hemp Soap
• Herba Oils 
• Herba Tea
• Herba Plant
• Herba Dark Chocolate Bar
• Herba Cannabinoids Capsules
• Herba Buds

Our company strongly believe in upholding the companies vision. Below you will find in dept information on our company`s SWOT, PEST and Competitive Analysis:

SWOT ANALYSIS:

PESTLE for “CTS Herbaceuticals Inc.”
Political Factors
Legalization - As of July 1, 2018, the usage and sale of marijuana will be legal across all of Canada. Ontario, being the only province so far, with a detailed plan for implementation of the rule changes, is an excellent jurisdiction for starting a marijuana based enterprise as there exists a framework in which businesses of that nature can operate.

Economic Factors
Disposal Income – Ontario’s minimum wage is set to increase to $14/hr. as of January 2018 and to $15/hr. as of 2019, while not life-changing for the segment of the Canadian population it will affect the most, it does represent an increase in income for those individuals most likely to purchase our type of products – specifically millennials.
Seasonality/Weather options - Opting to grow our own marijuana plants as opposed to sourcing them from other growers, means having to decide from the offset whether to employ soil-based or water-based (hydroponic) cultivation. While both present their own unique advantages and disadvantages, given the nature of the Canadian climate, we may be compelled to employ a hydroponic system. In doing so we not only mitigate any climatic impact but we can also maintain uniformity as it relates to our planting, growing and harvesting seasons. On the downside, employing a hydroponic system excludes our organization from offering our customers an organic product.
 
 
Social Factors
Socio-Cultural - With marijuana legalization looming, Canadian attitudes towards it are starting shift. With recent studies showing that half of Canadians want to try edible marijuana products, this shift in attitude presents a unique opportunity for a company like “Herbaceuticals” to capitalize on these findings. Moreover, these findings positions our organization to be the facilitator for many consumers’ first experience with marijuana. By reaching these customers first and ensuring a satisfying customer experience when dealing with our organization, we stand to build a lasting relationship with these first-time customers.

Health Canada – As opposed to smoking the product, Health Canada recommends that marijuana be ingested orally rather than by smoking as marijuana smoke contains some of the same ingredients found in cigarette smoke. With these recommendations, a company like ours who offer alternatives to the marijuana cigarette are poised to capitalize on the demand from customers who are interested in using marijuana – whether recreational or medicinal – but who are weary of the adverse effects of smoking the product and who tend to heed recommendations from federal agencies.


Environmental Factors
Environmental regulations – In addition to the licenses required to grow marijuana for commercial purposes, additional government approval is required specifically for operating a greenhouse. An Environmental Compliance Approval is required before a greenhouse can be made operational. This approval encompasses regulations related to water usage, wastewater disposal, waste handling and disposal and pesticide handling, usage and disposal. This multi-step process is fairly lengthy taking up to 2 years and cannot be circumvented. As such, operations cannot begin until approval from the province is attained.
Energy Usage – Hydroponic raised plants require on average 82 times more energy than those raised conventionally. (Bhamidiammarri & Tota-Maharaj, 2015) In keeping with our ethos of sustainability, alternative energy sources will have to be sourced. These alternative sources of energy (including solar a ndgeo-thermal).


Legal Factors
Zoning – In choosing a location for our operations, we’ll have to look buildings that have been zoned by the local municipality for commercial or industrial use or in “Employment Industrial Zones” (Cook, Tracey, 2016) in the case of the City of Toronto. Similarly, any building we chose as our base of operations will have to fall with the guidelines of the MMPF (Medical Marijuana Production Facility) which prohibits set-up of facility within 70 meters of a school or residential area.

Application Process – Health Canada handles all applications related to individuals seeking permits to legally grow marijuana. There is in effect a lengthy application process that requires that all individuals involved in the growth and production of any marijuana products be subject to an approval process that includes a lengthy criminal background check. Anyone employed within our organization will be subjected to this process and will have to meet the stringent guidelines. Anyone who has a criminal background of any kind will be precluded from participating in the industry.




Competitive Analysis

• Buds2go – online store for marijuana products (marijuana for smoking, marijuana oils, edibles, topical products, hashish, apparatuses for smoking, etc.)
• -company employs various media platforms for marketing and advertising (online presence on Instagram and Twitter as well)
• -based on website and Twitter and Instagram posts marketing seems targeted to the millennial crowd (crude humor, posts featuring celebrities, other references to pop culture)
• -unable to interface with customers because of the nature of the business however based on online reviews, customers seem very satisfied with the streamlined process of online sales this company offers.
• Online business – customers can shop 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
• -Online platform allows business to serve a multitude of customers, restricted only by the capacity of their server, the number of employees tasked with facilitating orders and the amount of product they have on hand.
• -Observing their online platform does not afford me the capacity to decipher how many customers they serve on a daily basis however the running ticker that they have included on their website lists customers, where they are from, what they’ve purchased and when. After observing this ticker for an hour, I was able to count approximately 30 different customers.
• Layout – N/A
• Very user friendly website, vibrant colors, tasteful design, clear labeling of the different product offerings. Retailer accepts all major credit cards along with Interac, E-transfers and Bitcoin giving almost everyone the opportunity to purchase their products. Process also in place to identify and verify that customers are of the legal age required for purchase.
• CSR – no clear CSR goals/initiatives listed on the website explicitly however the website seems vested in educating customers on marijuana products and their differences. Included on their websites are a “News” section and a newsletter customers can subscribe to that covers all the relevant issues surrounding the Canadian marijuana scene.
• Buds2go product offerings – Marijuana flowers(for smoking, edibles (chocolates and gummies), THC extracts and concentrates, hashish, vapor pens and topical products such as lip balms, soaps, bath bombs and massage oils. Based on the product ratings found on their website, all Bud2go products are classified as either AAA or AAAA. However, the standard for those ratings are not listed. By listing the rating framework to which they adhere, customers can be confident in knowing they’re purchasing a truly stellar product. In comparing their pricing to similar websites, it appears that Bud2go’s pricing is higher than what seems to be the industry standard e.g. a 8mL spray bottle of Mota THC spray is listed for $22 on their website but is only $14 on PotCargo. Similarly, a Flyte vapor ben is listed for $70 on Buds2go but only $60 on StashClub. In observing the website’s ticker, which lists customer purchases in real-time, it appears the best-selling items on Buds2go are the marijuana buds that customers use for smoking.