Cannabis NB opening three new urban stores to compete with illegal market
What was once the location of an illegal dispensary in Saint John is about to become the new uptown storefront for Cannabis NB, as the crown corporation competes to sway customers from illicit shops.
“It really does speak to the fact that there is a market in uptown Saint John, and we want to be there to be able to capture that market and offer the access to the safe, reliable products,” said Lori Stickles, Cannabis NB’s president and CEO, in an interview.
An illegal dispensary was shut down last week, a block away from Cannabis NB’s new location in Saint John. A dispensary in Moncton was also shut down.
Since April 2023, a total of 23 illegal cannabis dispensaries have been investigated and shut down across New Brunswick. It’s estimated, anecdotally by Cannabis NB, that half of all cannabis sales in the province are illegal.
The new Cannabis NB location in uptown Saint John is expected to be open by mid-April. Cannabis NB is also opening a new location in downtown Fredericton on Queen Street, and in Moncton on Mountain Road around the same time.
Stickles said the new locations were in “underserviced areas.”
“We didn’t necessarily have a lot of opportunities for some of these locations, at launch,” said Stickles, noting initial uncertainty by some property owners in more visible locations before October 2018. “It’s very exciting to (now) be partnering with these landlords.”
Cannabis NB said 25 new employees would be hired for the three new stores, with building leases spanning two-to-five years. Right now, Cannabis NB operates 25 retail locations across the province.
Brad Poulos, an industry expert and business instructor at Toronto Metropolitan University, said increasing accessibility of regulated cannabis supported the primary reasons for legalization.
“Those were keeping cannabis out of the hands of youth, and getting organized crime out of the picture, which really then translates to eliminating that illicit market,” said Poulos. “It’s actually been proven that if you increase access to legal cannabis it lowers the amount of participation by the illicit market, which does itself actually lower use by youth because that’s their primary conduit into cannabis. We’ve seen that in the United States, as well as early studies in Canada.”
New Brunswick’s first privately operated cannabis store opened last June, and a new private retail location will open this summer in Saint Andrews following previous debate in the community about retail formats.
Cannabis NB’s ‘FarmGate’ program has allowed licensed New Brunswick cannabis producers to sell their own products onsite at their own facilities since 2021.
For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.