A boutique advisory practice

Permitting and entitlements for regulated industries.

Led by Raaj Amthabhai. One advisor, principal-led engagements.

Costera Group advises operators, investors, and developers on the licenses, permits, and entitlements that determine whether a regulated business gets built — cannabis, alcoholic beverage, fuel and convenience retail.

Begin an EngagementView Practice Areas
Active Jurisdictions
New JerseyCaliforniaTexasMulti-state
The record
5,000+
Licenses & permits secured and managed
Across a 500+ site multi-state retail portfolio
42 of 45
Discretionary approvals won
CUPs, variances, and site plans — a 93% approval rate
80
Jurisdictions permitted in
Municipal and county authorities across all industries
$16.5M → $300K
Recorded liens negotiated down
Aggregate across all lien matters — a 98% reduction
12 states
Alcohol beverage licensing
CA, NV, NJ, TX, IL, WI, NY, IN, MS, AZ, CO, FL
30+
Regulated retail buildouts advised
Three delivered end-to-end at roughly one-third of market-typical cost

Figures reflect the principal’s full record across direct engagements and portfolio program management, 2018–present.

On the practice
I

Senior advisory, not a vendor.

Engagements are led by the principal. There is no junior bench and no offshore back office — even the practice’s document products are principal-authored, not content-mill output. Every deliverable is shaped by someone who has personally drafted the license, sat in the planning hearing, or negotiated the lien.

II

Cross-industry depth, by design.

Cannabis, alcoholic beverage, and fuel/convenience retail are governed by different agencies but share the same regulatory architecture: discretionary permits, suitability review, public hearings, conditional approvals, post-license compliance. The compounding expertise across categories is the practice.

III

Selectivity over scale.

A small number of engagements at any one time. Direct access to the principal. The work is deliberately limited to matters where the advisory relationship will produce a materially better outcome than a larger firm could.

Research product · Quarterly · 564 municipalities

The New Jersey Municipal Cannabis Opportunity Tracker.

A quarterly-updated dataset of every New Jersey municipality’s cannabis retail posture — opt-in, opt-out, license caps, amendment activity. The data operators rely on word-of-mouth for, in one place. Delivered by email at no charge.

View Sample & Subscribe →
New · The Document Library

The practice’s working documents, productized.

Application-grade NJ CRC templates — SOPs, business plans, financial models — drafted by the principal and maintained against current N.J.A.C. 17:30. Sold individually and as complete kits.

Browse the Library →
Engagements

Selective representation in regulated industry permitting and entitlements.

New engagements are accepted on a case-by-case basis. Initial conversations are confidential and without obligation.

Begin an Engagement →info@costeragroup.com