Social Clubs (CSC) and the holistic consulting concept of Drehandel

Important basic of information beforehand

A 'Social' Club (CSC) does not belong to “you”.
⇒ A CSC is not a company that is supposed to make profits.

SPECIFICALLY:

A CSC is a registered association according to the German Civil Code (BGB) and belongs to the members collectively.

  • The club may only operate in accordance with its purpose. It may not be profit-oriented.
  • The purpose of the association must serve a social common good. 
  • In this case, the safe and cheap supply of its members with clean and high quality herbs and herb resin. 
  • Members may participate in the association.
  • Members elect the three bodies of the Association at the Annual General Meeting: 
  1. Board of Directors. 
  2. Board 
  3. Treasurer

Social Club (CSC)

What is a Social Club?

A Social Club is a registered non-profit association (e.V.) that functions on the basis of public association law.

In a Social Club, people join together to grow herbs and then sell it to each other at cost price and without the intention of making a profit. A maximum of 50g of flowers may be given out per member per month. It is important that all members are of age and that the flowers are not passed on to third parties. The consumption should take place either in the premises of the club (if that is still allowed) or in the private environment. Adult members under 21 are probably only allowed to purchase a herb with a maximum active ingredient content (amount still unclear).

A responsible Social club or CSC is also committed to promoting education and harm reduction and to identifying problematic consumption patterns within the membership at an early stage. In this way, the club contributes to a safer and better informed herb community.

How does a CSC work?

So let's think through what it takes to start and run an annex club based on Key Points 2.0:

Location and nature of the club premises

An CSC in Germany is located in location XY and membership is limited to a size between 7 and 500 people to ensure a personal and responsible community.

The premises are located in a suitable property. The club is not recognizable as such from the outside to protect the privacy of the members. Possible odor nuisance in the building or the neighborhood should be excluded and this should be ensured by suitable, technical equipment of the club premises. Likewise, any form of advertising measures should be avoided.

The clubrooms could be divided as follows:

  • Social rooms for workers
  • Social rooms and drop-off rooms for members
  • Changing rooms, showers, and toilets
  • Office for board and administration
  • Production (mothers, cuttings, growing, flowering)
  • Harvest and ripening
  • Storage 
  • Storage for consumables
  • Other

Please note that the clubrooms are only open to members. If you are interested in becoming a member or have further questions about the social club, please feel free to contact the respective board.

Your way to membership: The club's admission protocol

To become a member of a CSC, you must be at least 18 years old and have your primary residence in Germany. Please note that you are probably only allowed to be registered in one social club in Germany.

What is the process for joining a CSC?

Personal interview: You will have an interview with a trained professional from the club about your past consumption.

Estimated amount of consumption
When joining, indicate approximately how much herbs you consume per month so that the actual needs of the CSC should be determined as accurately as possible in order to plan production (quantity). The maximum amount of delivery per member per month is 50 grams.

Rights and duties
You will receive an explanation of your rights and obligations as a member.

Declaration
You must declare that you will not use the membership to give herbs to third parties.

Membership card
Upon admission, you will receive a membership card on which the above data will be stored in encrypted form. This is used for identification and internal administration purposes.

Termination of membership
You can terminate your membership at any time and without giving reasons.

Exclusion in case of violations
Members who violate protocol or commit herb-related crimes during membership may be expelled with immediate effect.

Hiring of employees
The club may hire/employ professionals for various activities to ensure the smooth operation of the club premises. Payment should be in line with the market.

Procurement and cultivation
Unlike an ordinary store, the focus of the CSC is not on profit maximization, but on cost-covering cultivation and sale of herb. In return, you as members support the professionals in harvesting and refining the plants.

Storage of products
After processing, all harvest products are stored in a secured storage area, to which only authorized persons of the Association have access.

Delivery to members
Herb will be delivered to the club premises. Dispensing quantities are recorded per member per month.

Sales processing and labeling
Sales and sales processing are recorded using a digital inventory control system. Drop-off containers are labeled and sealed with important information such as variety, active ingredient content, drop-off location, your name, and membership number, consumption warnings, residual moisture content, safe consumption instructions, and any federal herb tax that may apply.

With these transparent processes, the Social Clubs ensures that you, the members, always have access to high quality herb while staying within the law.

Consulting concept for Social Clubs (CSC) of Drehandel

Drehandel GmbH is a leading wholesaler for GrowShops and would like to support and accompany the founders of CSC in their establishment, as well as in their operation. 

Expertise and passion from one source

As founder and managing director of Drehandel GmbH, Dirk Rehahn brings extensive experience and qualifications in the industry.

Since 1995, he has been involved in various aspects of the herb industry, including working for major fertilizer and grow box manufacturers. He co-founded Hanf Journal and the German Hemp Association (DHV), was a board member of the Association for Drug Policy, worked for years with Jorge Cervantes, helped patients grow their herb, and has dedicated more than half his life to the legalization and social acceptance of herb as a stimulant. He loves gardening and has helped many a herb flourish. But more importantly for this project:


He has an extensive network of experts in lighting, climate control installations, indoor equipment, growing systems, water treatment and nutrient management, breeding and variety selection, production process optimization, harvesting, drying, ripening and finishing herb.

Although many things are still unclear, and we have to wait for the final legislation, we can already provide you with some initial help:

  • Help to determine the necessary production areas and peripheral infrastructure.
  • Rough plant and cost planning
  • Mediation to other social clubs
  • Answers to basic questions (FAQ) about founding a club in Germany

As soon as the legal framework has been clarified, we will assist you with the foundation of your club. Your CSC will benefit from our personal network and good contacts.

Our support for CSCs includes

1. help with the foundation of the CSC

  • Contact with the authorities
  • Search for a suitable software for the association (membership administration, preparatory accounting, cultivation registration software)
  • Basic ideas for space planning: cultivation and delivery in the same object? Social rooms? Rooms for the workers? Office for the board & administration?

2. facility planning for a permanent operation, determined by the essential factors of your CSC

  • Number of members
  • Members' monthly average consumption of seeds, cuttings, flowers, and other legal products of the club
  • Desired variety of cultivars
  • Proportion of other legal products apart from flowers
  • Method of cultivation (living soil, NFT, ebb and flow, hydro and aeroponics)

⇒ Plant planning includes, among other things:

  • Preparation of a schedule for the construction and planting of the rooms in stages.
  • Air conditioning and ventilation concept
  • Creation of a lighting concept (in cooperation with well-known brand manufacturers such as SANlight, hortiONE, Lumatek)
  • Design of cultivation systems and peripheral technology (water treatment, nutrient solutions, substrates)
  • Planning of cultivation areas for flowering phase, mother plants, cuttings, pre-growth
  • IPM (Integrated Pest Management) – preventive work to avoid the use of pesticides and fungicides
  • Variety selection/seed supply and cuttings production through contacts with renowned breeders in Holland, EU and all over the world
  • Concept for harvesting, drying, ripening and finishing
  • Personnel planning

3. help in the search for a suitable object / property.

Determination of the optimal size of the object
The necessary adjacent media (basic load requirement for electricity & water)
Search for good locations for the object in the local environment (not next to schools & day-care centers, yet centrally and nicely located for the members)

4. turnkey installation of the production facilities, air-conditioning, measurement and control technology incl. peripherals if desired

5. Beratung, Consulting & Trouble Shooting für die laufende Produktion

Laut Eckpunktepapier dürfen keine externen Menschen zum Anbau der Pflanzen eingestellt werden. Wir stehen euch jederzeit mit Rat und Tat zur Seite und stellen sicher, dass die Produktion rund läuft, die geernteten Blüten alle Standards und Erwartungen erfüllen und die staatlich auferlegte Dokumentationspflicht eingehalten werden.
Wir bieten verschiedene Stufen der Beratung und Betreuung, bis hin zur Remote Access Control – Fern-Überwachung und automatisierte Regelung der Anlage.

6. supply chain management

Maintaining continuous operation of the plant through optimized replenishment of consumables (fertilizer, activated carbon filters, water filters, hygiene products, occupational health and safety, beneficial insects).

Additional services and support for Social Clubs

In addition to the benefits already mentioned, we offer you additional support and services to make your club cultivation a success:

Trainings and Workshops

We organize trainings and workshops for your members to educate you in different aspects of growing and processing herb. This includes topics such as hygiene, safety and environmental protection.

Financial planning and management

We help you create a financial plan and manage your finances to build a solid financial foundation for your club. This includes developing budgets, monitoring expenses and optimizing financial processes.

Quality Management

We will help you establish a quality management system to ensure that your herb meets current standards. This includes the implementation of control and monitoring measures, as well as the continuous improvement of your processes.

With Drehandel GmbH as your partner, you benefit from comprehensive expertise and customized solutions tailored to your needs and goals. Our goal is to help you successfully launch and sustainably manage your Social Club.

Future developments and cooperation with CSC

In order to stay up-to-date and provide the best possible support for your CSC, we are always looking to expand our offering and collaboration and adapt to current developments:

Sustainability and Social Responsibility

We support you in implementing sustainable and socially responsible practices in your club. This includes, for example, energy and resource efficiency measures, the use of environmentally friendly materials, and the integration of social aspects into your club activities.

Promoting the culture

We are committed to promoting a responsible and enlightened culture and support events, projects and initiatives that pursue this goal. Together, we can help raise awareness of the many ways the herb can be enjoyed and reduce prejudice.

Our collaboration with your Social Club is focused on long-term partnership and mutual growth. By continuously adapting and expanding our offerings, we ensure that you will continue to benefit from the latest developments and innovations. 
Let's build a successful and sustainable future together for Social Clubs in Germany.

How to contact Drehandel and Club Consulting