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Social Equity Partners
Investing in Arizona Social Equity!
Social Equity Partners was established to assist Arizona residents convicted of non-violent cannabis felonies to apply for adult-use marijuana dispensary and cultivation establishment licenses through the Social Equity Program. With the passage of Prop 207, 26 licenses are allocated for those directly impacted by cannabis prohibition. Social Equity Partners’ goal is to offer Arizona residents with cannabis convictions comprehensive support in receiving a license and establishing a cannabis business through the Social Equity Program. Founder Thomas Lopez was convicted in 2001 by the State of Arizona with a felony for marijuana possession and understands the obstacles a criminal conviction presents for personal and professional growth. Social Equity Partners offers complete support from application to opening with funding, branding, marketing, and operations to help local residents create local businesses that will generate revenue and help revive communities negatively impacted by cannabis prohibition.
Boutique Cannabis
One of Social Equity Partners' primary services is access to a fully conceptualized dispensary brand under the ELEVATE label. ELEVATE is a boutique dispensary that aims to modernize and deliver the highest-quality marijuana products for the most discerning consumers. With locations planned for Sunnyslope, Glendale and Tempe, ELEVATE aims to become recognized across Arizona with numerous sites that serve local communities. Unlike other dispensaries, ELEVATE is a small, independent business that keeps money in the community instead of generating profits for foreign corporations with little understanding or concern for local citizens. By partnering with Social Equity Partners, you receive a turn-key brand with a broad web presence, social media campaigns, and professional branding. ELEVATE is the brainchild of founder Thomas Lopez who has created multiple products within the musical equipment, cannabis cultivation, and pool repair markets. If you receive a dispensary license, you gain access to our unique partnership, start-up capital, and support through ELEVATE.
ELEVATE
A Boutique Dispensary Experience Targeting Multiple Areas Throughout Arizona
Gain Access to Local
Social Equity Partners has a pool of local investors who are community members that are looking to provide capital for starting dispensaries that will benefit native residents not funnel money into corporations. The non-refundable application fee will be discounted for Arizona residents with a felony cannabis conviction and Social Equity Partners will help qualified applicants complete their application, create a compelling business plan, and verify financial requirements. We understand that one of the primary barriers to entry when starting any business is initial capital and we link aspiring cannabis entrepreneurs with felony convictions to investors whose goal is to help support and reinvigorate local economic growth. Social Equity Partners is a unique company in that our vision is to specifically target native Arizona residents with felony convictions due to cannabis prohibition. Our investors have seen first hand the negative impacts that this has had on local communities and want to keep money in those neighborhoods. Our partnership gives qualified applicants access to comprehensive support financially, legally, all the way through launching an ELEVATE dispensary.
Economic
Our primary goal is to ensure that all funding remains local and stays in the community. By choosing to partner with us, you can positively impact your neighborhood and help reinvigorate local economies with locally-based investors' support. Because legal cannabis sales are new to Arizona, we are trying to establish dispensaries that actually benefit Arizona instead of generating profits for large foreign corporations. We believe that by investing locally, we can help shape a more prosperous, just, and progressive Arizona that benefits every resident. Because our investor pool is native Arizona residents, they are committed to keeping revenue in local communities and helping under served communities flourish. Our direct funding relationship presents a unique opportunity for Arizona residents with felony cannabis convictions. Because cannabis is still Federally prohibited, traditional funding is not a viable option for establishing a dispensary. Our access to hard money allows applicants to meet the funding requirements, as outlined in Prop 207. The financial obligations required to receive a dispensary license immediately disenfranchise many potential applicants. Our focus is identifying residents with a felony conviction and a high probability of obtaining a license under the Social Equity Program.
Partnership and Operating
Social Equity Partners’ services extend beyond traditional funding and offer convicted felons in Arizona the opportunity to maintain a majority stake in their dispensary or cultivation site. We take that one step further with our operating agreements, which can help aspiring entrepreneurs establish professional business practices and day-to-day operations. When you choose to partner with Social Equity Partners, you gain access to his unique perspective and experiences in growing a profitable company. We help residents with felony convictions identify a professional relationship tailored to their specific needs, goals, and experience levels. With the passage of Prop 207 and the Arizona Social Equity Program, our goal is to empower residents with felony convictions to serve local communities and reinvest in local neighborhoods. Social Equity Partners offers a full-service legal team to ensure that your operation is fully compliant from day one, and we believe in complete transparency from our investors.
Real Estate, Land Use, and
Navigating the shifting Real Estate market and identifying properties eligible for cannabis dispensaries or cultivation sites is difficult. Social Equity Partners offers full support from land-use lawyers, Realtors, and permitting specialists to help you identify and establish your cannabis site with professional support throughout the entire process. We understand that the many aspects of starting a cannabis dispensary or cultivation site can be daunting. Because of the restrictions on areas that can operate as cannabis dispensaries or grow labs, the available property is limited. Our team of professional Real Estate Brokers and Lawyers will help identify and obtain a property that meets the legal requirements while also pinpointing spaces that will attract customers while reinvigorating the local community. Zoning laws vary by city, and finding a property that qualifies can be difficult; when you work with Social Equity Partners, you can trust that negotiating a fair lease in a desirable space will be taken care of from day one. Because cannabis legalization is new to Arizona, there is a land grab for eligible Real Estate. Foreign corporations are doing everything they can to acquire these properties in local communities. Our goal is to help convicted felons identify and establish cannabis businesses before these corporations to ensure that our communities benefit from cannabis revenue.
Social Equity Partners offers a 51/49 partnership and will assist with funding and the application process, ensuring you maintain majority share of your dispensary, including application costs and verifying available capital to increase the chances of a resident with a felony conviction erecting one of the 26 available Social Equity Program licenses. The legal cannabis market is a multi-billion dollar industry and is projected to be worth over $73 billion globally by 2027. Our partnership increases the likelihood of an applicant to receive a license as we have proven funding and business plans already in place. The AZDHS will consider these factors as licenses are awarded on a case by case basis instead of a lottery system. Social Equity Partners offers a full-service partnership to enable convicted felons the opportunity to operate a profitable business with community investment that keeps the revenue in local neighborhoods and represents the ultimate goal of the Social Equity Program. While sizeable foreign investment is behind some of the larger dispensary brands, Social Equity Partners will build an empire of locally owned ELEVATE dispensaries in partnership with Arizona residents who have been directly impacted by a felony conviction. Our core mission is to create positive local change in communities that have been negatively affected by cannabis prohibition and keep revenue in those communities and allow those resident impacted to maintain a majority stake of their business.
Founded by Native
Our team understands the unique obstacles that a felony cannabis conviction presents because a convicted felon founded social Equity Partners. Founder Thomas Lopez experienced the hardships associated with personal and professional growth with a felony cannabis conviction on his record.. His goal is to allow native residents to enact positive change and rectify the injustice of discriminatory policing and cannabis prohibition. At Social Equity Partners, we know you because we are you. Our partnerships with local investors empower residents with felony convictions to help rebuild their communities and keep the revenue in Arizona neighborhoods. Unlike other investment firms that rely on venture capital from foreign investors, we are committed to Arizona’s future and transforming the lives of native residents with felony convictions.
Unique Access and
Because Social Equity Partners’ investor pool, founder, and team are all local Arizona residents, we can bring down the associated costs with opening a cannabis dispensary and are deeply familiar with regional zoning and land-use laws. Our team of Real Estate professionals has already identified potential properties throughout Arizona, and with an ELEVATE dispensary, you can focus on daily operations with established branding, marketing, and recognition. Our local connection extends into every aspect of this process, from legal support, funding, construction, and operational support. Additionally, when you choose Social Equity Partners, you gain access to a team of knowledgeable entrepreneurs and business owners. Foreign investors don’t understand the distinct needs and challenges presented at the local level and are not interested in building a positive foundation in local communities throughout Arizona.
Identify
Reach out today to find out if you’re eligible for a partnership
Apply
Work with SEP to navigate the application process
Plan
Our team will help you present your business plan and verified capital
Establish
SEP will help you establish an ELEVATE dispensary in your local community
51/49 Partnership
Maintain a majority stake in your dispensary
Launch
We will collaborate on getting your ELEVATE dispensary open and profitable
Reinvest
Revenue and profits will go back into local communities instead of foreign corporations
