Pot dealers who make a living on black market marijuana are going to stay in business, regardless of what the law says.

The dealers have a vast supply of weed, imported illegally from California and Washington, D.C. They've got a loyal customer base and years of experience.

And, unlike legal weed dispensaries, they can sell tax-free.

RELATED: I spent a night in New Jersey's marijuana black market -- and business is booming

The Asbury Park Press interviewed marijuana dealers and spent an evening at a marijuana "pop-up," an underground trade show where pot dealers and marijuana users sample new products, purchase hundreds of dollars worth of weed and simply get a taste of what's available.

There are chocolate bars and homemade rice and marshmallow treats — some with colorful cereal pieces, some with cookie dough, all with weed baked into them.

The prices vary depending on strain and the type of product. Pot brownies go for $10, vape cartridges go for around $40. An ounce of "L.A. Confidential" sells for $175.

It was the underground, black market equivalent of a beer festival or boat show.

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"People want legalization until they get here and see the black market," said David, a marijuana dealer in his 30s from South Jersey. The marijuana dealers spoke to the Press under the condition of anonymity due to the illicit nature of their work.

"They see that it's cheaper than legalized weed, and that it's much better," David said. "You can change their mind — they just have to experience this and see what happens when the law is in the hands of the people instead of politicians, corporations and the government."

Here are some of the reasons why New Jersey's marijuana black market isn't going away, according to the people who know it best — those who sell on the black market.

But first: The Asbury Park Press and APP.com gives you new perspectives and deep dives on NJ marijuana legalization -- including the black market. We need your help to keep continue off-the-beaten-track stories like this, so please consider a digital subscription.

Price

If all goes according to Gov. Phil Murphy and state Senate President Stephen Sweeney's plans, marijuana would be taxed at a flat rate of $42 per ounce — no matter the value of the drug.

If legal weed costs $300 per ounce, that $42 tax is a 14 percent tax rate. If the price drops to $200, it's a 21 percent tax rate.

"It'll be very hard for the state to compete with the black market when, obviously, part of what they're trying to do here is create an income base through taxes," said Sayreville Police Chief John Zebrowski, a vice president of the state police chiefs' association who works with New Jersey Responsible Approaches to Marijuana Policy, the largest legal weed opposition group in the state.

D.C., a woman in her 30s, who was selling $10 cannabis-infused brownies at the Trenton-area marijuana pop-up show, doesn't expect to lose any customers if the state legalizes weed. Instead, she may eventually gain new ones — who start by buying the drug legally but are eventually turned off by the high price.

RELATED: NJ legal weed business is cutthroat

"Yeah, you're going to get people who don't know their left from their right and won't know what to ask. That's who the state's going to capitalize on," D.C. said. "But, after a while, it'll be: 'Why am I paying taxes on this? Why am I paying double the price?'"

When that happens, D.C. expects those customers to find her.

Experience

D.C. has been selling marijuana for about two years. That means she likely has two more years of experience than any person the state puts in charge of regulating or selling legal weed.

"It's really going to be business as usual for me because the state has no idea what they're doing. They have no idea," D.C. said. "They have no idea what the people want. They just want to capitalize on what they think is a big revenue generator and make sure they get their cut."

MORE: What will NJ get from legal weed taxes?

D.C. has a day job that requires typical business skills — a knowledge base, customer service experience, an ability to network. Those are all replicated in her marijuana business, with an extra dose of passion — something she doesn't believe will be seen at legal weed dispensaries.

"You come to the underground and people know what they’re talking about," she said. "People are proud of what they do and the quality that they put themselves behind. People are so passionate about it and so passionate about what they do — even if it's technically illegal."

Confidence

New Jersey dealers contend they will be more emboldened than ever in a legal weed Garden State.

The marijuana pop-up event visited by the Press, which you can learn more about in a video above, was brazenly advertised on social media and the few dozen attendees were able to purchase a ticket through Eventbrite, a ticket service used by legitimate concert venues and expos.

And nobody vetted the guest list to try teasing out whether a police officer was on the list, said Ed Forchion, the marijuana legalization advocate known as "N.J. Weedman."

"If the cops wanted to stop these from happening, they would have by now," he said.

When discussing the possibility of arrest, marijuana dealers interviewed by the Press ranged from cautious to boldly confident.

MORE: Activists push for diversity inlegal weed market

In states with legal weed, arrests for marijuana possession have largely trailed off. For example, Colorado police made 413 arrests for marijuana possession — users are only allowed to possess up to 1 ounce — among those 21 or older in 2017, down from 5,600 before voters legalized weed.

For David, that simply means he can carry around at least some of his product without fear of arrest.

“But that’s only 5 percent of the problem. I can’t sell it or grow it, which defeats the whole purpose,” David said.

If he's arrested for selling marijuana, Forchion believes he'll be able to convince a jury that he wasn't breaking the law.

"I was just selling weed like the white guys" who own dispensaries, he said.

Survival

"I would love to quit my 9-to-5 and open a cannabis bakery full-time. That’s my dream,” D.C. said. "But they make it so hard. You have to take out loans, and have certain qualifications to even think about it."

Getting into the legal weed business is not as simple as walking out of the shadows. The dispensary licensing process is cutthroat and any misstep could lead to an application being denied.

Those missteps? Lack of capital, lack of business experience and a criminal record — all of which are things faced by street-level marijuana dealers. And even if they want to get in the cannabis industry, they likely won't be able to afford it.

HIGH HOPES: Legal weed changed Colorado, California forever. What's in store for NJ?

"That's the dream for a lot of people, for a lot of regular guys. If you have the clientele, if you know the right people, if you have legitimate money to back you on politicians on your side, you might end up in a decent situation," David said. "But who does? Nobody in an urban situation in New Jersey has the resources to operate under the guidelines they want you to operate under. There are restrictions that are impossible to meet."

As the New Jersey marijuana legalization bill is written, an office of the proposed Cannabis Regulatory Commission will ensure that 30 percent of all marijuana business licenses, including dispensaries, are given to business owned by minorities, women or disabled veterans.

According to the most current version of the bill, half of those set-aside licenses would go to minority-owned businesses, legally defined as enterprises primarily owned by a person who is African American, Hispanic, Asian American or American Indian.

The other half would go to women and disabled veterans, the bill states.

Advocates in other states considering marijuana legalization have pushed for easier access to marijuana licenses.

For example, the United Bodegas of America is pushing New York legislators for the right to sell weed in the 15,000 bodegas in New York City.

That's a start, David said.

By being tight-fisted with marijuana licenses, the legal weed industry is keeping out minorities, including African Americans. They are arrested for marijuana crimes at a rate estimated three times higher than their white counterparts, despite similar usage rates.

"This has to be in the hands of the people because we're the ones who are affected by it day-to-day," David said. "How many lives get ruined? There’s a lot of unemployed brothers because of marijuana, and a lot in prison. It has the stigma of racism."

Are you a legal weed supporter? Are you against it? Are you simply interested in the debate? Continue the discussion in "Let's Talk About Marijuana," our Facebook group dedicated to fostering discussion about marijuana legalization.

Mike Davis; @byMikeDavis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com