Melfort's cannabis store is set to open in mid-February at the same location on Burrows Ave. W. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

By Aaron Schulze

Melfort Cannabis

Melfort’s new cannabis licensees aim for mid-February opening

Jan 10, 2020 | 4:57 PM

After Melfort’s cannabis store was held in limbo in 2019, the two new licensees have picked up where operations left off.

Corey and Rhonda Bacon from Kinistino were named the first runners ups after the first licence winner, Dr. Jean Paul Lim from Vancouver, withdrew his application. The cannabis store will be located at the building Lim initially picked out on Burrows Ave. W.

Corey said he and Rhonda received a call from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) in June and they were given six weeks to decide if they wanted to proceed with opening Melfort’s cannabis store.

“We took the full six weeks to decide,” Corey told northeastNOW. “I had done a business plan previously… I heard a lot of people think anybody who got a cannabis licence is going to get a licence to burn cash. I didn’t believe that from the start or to this day. I think the numbers aren’t there yet but the research I did is going to be fairly on the spot for where we end up.”

Before being named runner-ups, Corey said he and Rhonda applied in the initial SLGA cannabis store licence selection process in 2018.

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The decision didn’t come easily. Corey said being a father of three boys and growing up viewing cannabis like any other illegal drug made him doubt the drug for many years. His said trying medicinal CBD influenced him to lean the other way.

“I’ve been looking for different cannabis opportunities for the last several years,” he said. “I had two previous injuries with my back that affected my ability to continue running the beef business I run now. I was looking to transition into something else and this came along. I wasn’t sure if it was right for us, but the more we investigated and talked to different people, it’s something we felt that was a possibility.”

While Melfort is a smaller market than communities such as Saskatoon and Prince Albert, Corey said hearing the number of residents driving out of town to purchase their cannabis surprised him.

“It’s not just people looking for recreational cannabis. There are grandmothers out there looking for CBD oil, gel capsules, you name it,” he said. “Obviously Melfort is a smaller market, but the research we did shows that Melfort can sustain one store. Our goal is to be good and responsible citizens. As a federally regulated product, there are limitations on our sponsorship, but we’re hoping there are ways — anonymous donations and whatnot — that we can support a lot of the community [initiatives] in Melfort and area.”

Corey said Melfort’s cannabis store is eyeing a soft opening in mid-February and a grand opening in the spring.

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow