Cannabis shop gets green light after 10 months
Store ‘a community where everyone can feel welcome,’ founder says
It took 10 months — but GreenPort Cannabis has received a retail store authorization and can finally open its doors to the public.
Vivianne Wilson, the store’s founder, told the Star she received final approval to move ahead on Sept. 28. The process of being approved meant waiting in a state of limbo, she said.
“I was waiting, and then there was no guarantee I was going to get it,” Wilson told the Star. “There was no communication (or) confirmation I was going to get it and there was a chance of my licence being delayed.”
Wilson’s aim is to establish an inclusive community-focused cannabis retailer in Toronto.
“We’re not just opening another store,” she told the Star in July. “We’re creating a community where everyone can feel welcome,” while celebrating the history of the plant and those who “introduced it to the world.”
She felt the application process often kept her in the dark about next steps and whether she was able to move to the next stage of the application.
Over the past 10 months, Wilson feared she’d need to shutter the store before it even had a chance to open its doors.
After receiving a retail operator licence, Wilson had to apply for a retail store authorization — meaning she couldn’t operate, despite having entered a lease agreement and going through the necessary renovation process to implement required security features. For months, the store has sat ready for final approval, but Wilson has had no opportunity for revenue.
In the months leading up to the opening, Wilson spent “a significant amount of money … just to keep the place empty,” she said. “That’s money I can never get back.”
Every aspect of the licensing process was difficult, Wilson said, from working with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, to opening a bank account at one of the few banks that handle cannabis accounts.
“Every single element of getting to the opening is really bogged down with red tape and extremely difficult for a small operator to to go through,” she said.
The AGCO, which handles cannabis licensing in Ontario, previously told the Star that licences are provided on a firstcome first-served basis. The
AGCO issues approximately 20 store authorizations a month, the spokesperson said.
“The AGCO has a team of compliance and licensing officials working on multiple files. All applications are processed efficiently and equitably,” the AGCO said. “Generally speaking, delays may occur based on the complexity of the file and if the AGCO requests additional disclosure information and must wait for a response.”
Wilson does see a silver lining to the delay: She’s connected with her neighbours in Toronto’s Little Italy community, where her store operates.
“I’ve had a lot of support in that sense and so that was a really motivating factor,” she said. “It allowed me to really focus on community and that has been my main focus for the past three months.”
GreenPort Cannabis, at 686 College Street, opened Saturday.