You might not have ever had a legal stocking stuffer quite like this, but two months after the legalization of marijuana, Jimmy鈥檚 Cannabis Shop will be open Tuesday in Estevan, one week before Christmas.
This city鈥檚 lone marijuana retail outlet had to wait for a couple of months, as product became available and ready for sale.聽
鈥淲e鈥檙e really excited and relieved,鈥� said John Thomas, the co-owner of the outlet along with his brother David. 鈥淭he staff is really excited and they鈥檝e been as patient as they can have been. It鈥檚 just a relief to finally open.鈥�
They could have opened in October if they had the supply and Health Canada inspections but those hurdles have cleared and now the store is set to open.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really excited to finally be open in Estevan,鈥� he said.
It was a challenge to locate more producers, Thomas said, as they鈥檝e gone through the list of Health Canada producers who weren鈥檛 licensed to sell in Saskatchewan.
鈥淲e were trying to be more aggressive in going out and finding producers, rather than trying to work with them to try and get licensed in Saskatchewan,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淲e were successful in that and that鈥檚 one of the reasons we can open in Estevan.鈥�
As part of the 2015 election campaign, Liberal leader Justin Trudeau promised to legalize cannabis. Once he was elected prime minister, that promise became a goal to legalize on Canada Day weekend this year, but that was shifted to Oct. 17 as provinces created their own laws regarding cannabis and how it can be sold.
Saskatchewan went with a lottery system run through the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) for its aspiring retailers, and Jimmy鈥檚 Cannabis won a few of those in the province, including the lone Estevan location.聽
When it was legalized, most stores in the province 鈥� including here 鈥� couldn鈥檛 open due to supply issues.
Now that the store will be open soon, Thomas believes the customer experience will be a good one for those new and experienced with cannabis.
鈥淧art of the customer experience is mandatory IDing for everybody regardless of age,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 regardless if you鈥檙e 19 or 90 that鈥檚鈥� kind of the rules the SLGA has set out. But we hope to have a great customer experience, whether they are new users or those who are very knowledgeable on the product. We should have something for everyone.鈥�
Thomas said his staff should be able to provide education as needed to talk about the products.
He said they鈥檝e learned some lessons from a couple of their locations which opened closer to the original legalization date.
鈥淥ur starting point here will be much further ahead than when we opened Oct. 17 and we鈥檝e been able to take some of those lessons and bring it to here,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s a shopping experience, Estevan will have a much greater selection and better products than two months ago when we were really struggling with supply.鈥�
Once the grand opening happens, Jimmy鈥檚 will be open 11 a.m. 鈥� 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
