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The representative, wearing argyle socks and sunglasses perched on his head, huddles by a computer with Analytical CEO Brenton Dawber to go over the test results. Dawber speculates that the THC is getting stuck around the bottle tops because of insufficient use of an emulsifier. The soda rep takes it in. Stremlow, who joins them, tells the rep that he knows that the California company’s salespeople have been bad-mouthing the lab. If it doesn’t stop, Stremlow warns, he’s going to bring in all the lab’s clients—some of them dispensaries that buy the soda—and set the record straight. “I don’t think you’ll have many accounts left,” he says.
Analytical 360 has had to buy expensive new equipment that can perform additional tests required of marijuana entrepreneurs. The question now is where to put it.
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The rep, seemingly convinced by Dawber’s presentation, diffuses the tension. “I’ll let my sales guys know to correct their verbiage,” he says. Afterward, Stremlow says that he’ll have to take an even harder line when the recreational market comes online. “I’m not going to tell them how to fix their product. They’re going to have to pay for that.” Analytical plans to seek state accreditation so it can operate under 502, which obliges the lab to make certain investments. For instance, it has had to buy expensive new equipment that can perform additional tests required of marijuana entrepreneurs, such as those looking for pesticides. The question now is where to put the equipment. Needing more space, the lab found a building in Georgetown with receptive owners. The owners’ bank, however, threatened to call in its loan if they rented to Analytical. For months, the owners have been trying to find a bank that will refinance the loan. Meanwhile, the equipment is sitting in storage. While banks have been squeamish, others have expressed interest in investing in Analytical. Over lunch at the Tutta Bella down the street from their Wallingford offices, Stremlow and Dawber recall how a couple of retired guys with money to spare took them to dinner at nearby Blue Star Cafe & Pub. “They had been in gray markets before,” Dawber says. “Strip joints, porn shops,” is Stremlow’s recollection. At the end of the evening, Analytical’s founders concluded the retirees were more interested in reminiscing about old times than about putting down hard cash. No matter. Stremlow says he and his cofounders are wary of giving up an ownership stake to investors, even though the lab’s biggest challenges may lay ahead. As the 502 era gets underway, Analytical founders are expecting a surge of new labs. “Only the strongest will survive,” Stremlow says. “We hope we’ll be one of them.” E
French Food+Wine Festival
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