Three retail cannabis shops opened this past weekend in Vermont, and the Cannabis Control Board says more are coming soon.Ceres Collaborative in Burlington continued to have a long line of people waiting outside of their newly-opened location on Monday. The scene was similar to what Flora Cannabis in Middlebury saw over the weekend as well. Co-Owner Dave Silberman said they saw around 1,000 people on Saturday and Sunday combined to ring in their opening weekend.“I’m relieved and ecstatic. This weekend went great, we had a wonderful opening ceremony,” he said.Silberman spent Monday in the shop preparing for another busy week ahead.“I’ve been working on legalization in Vermont since 2015 in the state house and locally trying to push the politics forward and get this done, he said. And then to have the privilege to be the first door to open? Wow, what an honor.”Cannabis Control Board Chair James Pepper said work to legalize marijuana in the state of Vermont has been ongoing since the 1980s. There are more shops expected to open in the coming weeks.According to the Cannabis Control Board, about 20 retail cannabis shops are expected to open soon, with 11 of those applications being in their final stages.“The board can’t issue a license until every aspect of that business is ready,” Pepper said. “Once we issue a license, the applicant is allowed to open their doors to the public.”Pepper said there is a lot that goes into certifying a business before the final stamp of approval can be granted.”We need to see the safe where they’re going to keep their cash and their products. We need to see that the security cameras are on and operational. We need to see a certificate of occupancy from the department of fire safety,” he said. All of the checkpoints that go into opening a retail cannabis shop are one reason why Pepper said it’s best to shop local for a clean, tested and safe product. Silberman of Flora Cannabis said he hopes his location downtown can supplement the founding principles of legalizing retail marijuana in Vermont and make others feel safe while shopping. “Flora is all about providing people a safe and comfortable environment to shop for cannabis and cannabis products. It’s important for us that people feel comfortable here and they’re able to have conversations with their bud tenders about their needs,” he said. Pepper said the Cannabis Control Board is looking forward to seeing the introduction of more edible and cannabis-infused beverage products. Silberman of Flora Cannabis said he is also looking forward to introducing sleep-aid products along with introducing more strains from additional local growers.
Three retail cannabis shops opened this past weekend in Vermont, and the Cannabis Control Board says more are coming soon.
Ceres Collaborative in Burlington continued to have a long line of people waiting outside of their newly-opened location on Monday.
The scene was similar to what Flora Cannabis in Middlebury saw over the weekend as well. Co-Owner Dave Silberman said they saw around 1,000 people on Saturday and Sunday combined to ring in their opening weekend.
“I’m relieved and ecstatic. This weekend went great, we had a wonderful opening ceremony,” he said.
Silberman spent Monday in the shop preparing for another busy week ahead.
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“I’ve been working on legalization in Vermont since 2015 in the state house and locally trying to push the politics forward and get this done, he said. And then to have the privilege to be the first door to open? Wow, what an honor.”
Cannabis Control Board Chair James Pepper said work to legalize marijuana in the state of Vermont has been ongoing since the 1980s.
There are more shops expected to open in the coming weeks.
According to the Cannabis Control Board, about 20 retail cannabis shops are expected to open soon, with 11 of those applications being in their final stages.
“The board can’t issue a license until every aspect of that business is ready,” Pepper said. “Once we issue a license, the applicant is allowed to open their doors to the public.”
Pepper said there is a lot that goes into certifying a business before the final stamp of approval can be granted.
“We need to see the safe where they’re going to keep their cash and their products. We need to see that the security cameras are on and operational. We need to see a certificate of occupancy from the department of fire safety,” he said.
All of the checkpoints that go into opening a retail cannabis shop are one reason why Pepper said it’s best to shop local for a clean, tested and safe product.
Silberman of Flora Cannabis said he hopes his location downtown can supplement the founding principles of legalizing retail marijuana in Vermont and make others feel safe while shopping.
“Flora is all about providing people a safe and comfortable environment to shop for cannabis and cannabis products. It’s important for us that people feel comfortable here and they’re able to have conversations with their bud tenders about their needs,” he said.
Pepper said the Cannabis Control Board is looking forward to seeing the introduction of more edible and cannabis-infused beverage products.
Silberman of Flora Cannabis said he is also looking forward to introducing sleep-aid products along with introducing more strains from additional local growers.
