Wednesday marked the first day of medical marijuana sales in Ohio, with retailers reporting brisk transactions.
Only four dispensaries were reported open in the state, a market that is projected to generate as much as $400 million in annual sales over time, according to Marijuana Business Daily estimates.
Early on opening day, about 20 people waited in a heated tent outside CY+, a Wintersville dispensary owned by Cresco Labs – a multistate cannabis company based in Illinois – to be among the first patients to purchase medical marijuana.
CY+ and at least one other of the state’s four dispensaries that opened on the first day put a cap on the amount of marijuana that patients could buy, a strategy that is increasingly common in new cannabis markets where demand can outpace supply.
That’s the case in the Buckeye State, where:
- Retailers will have a limited suite of products to sell because the state banned smokable marijuana, which means some products – including pre-rolls – can’t be sold.
- Only dried flower can be purchased initially because the state hasn’t given the OK for concentrates and infused product manufacturers to supply goods to the market. Dried flower can be vaporized as opposed to smoked.
- Only 14 cultivators, two testing laboratories and the four dispensaries are operating.
- Nearly 4,500 patients have received recommendations for medical marijuana.
CY+ planned to limit purchases to 2 ounces of dried flower per customer.
The Botanist, a Canton dispensary owned by Greenleaf Apothecaries, planned to cap patients’ purchases, too, said Caroline Henry, Greenleaf’s chief compliance and communications officer.
CY+ opened with nearly 30 strains of flower from three of the state’s operating growers and plans to carry concentrates and infused products when they’re available.
