It was this past Friday that retail recreational cannabis sales began in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Fluresh LLC opened its doors to become the first dispensary in the city to sell adult use products. The store is located at 1213 Phillips Ave. SW.
The company was also the first medicinal marijuana dispensary to open its doors in Grand Rapids this past February. The company added an indoor cultivation facility at its location in July.
Fluresh is requiring adult use customers to place orders online for curbside pick-up or delivery while medical patients can shop in-store with an appointment.
The company saw about 700 customers purchasing adult-use cannabis on Friday, said Fluresh Manager Nic Hernandez. The company had hired seven additional employees before launching adult use sales and is working to fill a few more positions according to Hernandez.
“We work with quite a few local organizations to make sure we’re bringing in talent from the community and folks who live here,” Hernandez said.
Fluresh applied for an adult use retail license in the city in August, said CEO Tom Benson.
Voters statewide had approved adult-use cannabis in November 2018, businesses were first required to obtain a medical license before seeking recreational license approval.
It was this month that the state Marijuana Regulatory Agency announced that starting March 1, 2021, recreational cannabis applicants won’t have to first hold a medical cannabis license in an effort to address unregulated sales.
The city of Grand Rapids has approved 31 medical cannabis land uses, 28 of which have a medical provisioning center license. Of those 28, seven dispensaries are operating.
Three more adult-use dispensaries have received preliminary city approval.
