EXETER – A sixth hybrid cannabis dispensary will begin offering recreational sales in the state on Tuesday.
Sweetspot Dispensary, operated by Plant Based Compassionate Care, will join five other licensed Rhode Island dispensaries that have been selling recreational and medical cannabis since recreational sales became legal on Dec. 1.
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In a statement, Sweetspot Brands LLC CEO Jason Webski said his business is “thrilled to expand our delivery model to serve both medical and recreational customers in a very personalized way.
“One key initiative is to use our cultivating experience to identify and supply the highest quality products in Rhode Island, bridging the gap between customer and producer,” he added.
The business, located at 560 South County Trail in Exeter, is so far the only licensed cannabis retailer located in Washington County, in the southern part of the state. It’s located on Route 2, about 1½ miles south of the R.I. Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery.
It will focus on eco-friendly practices, said Blake Costa, vice president of operations at Sweetspot, such as exclusively offering pesticide-free products and recycling water and plant waste.
Recreational cannabis has had a relatively slow start in the Ocean State, with recreational sales trailing medical cannabis revenue by almost $60,000 in the first week of December, at $786,000 to $845,400.
Rhode Island became the 19th state to legalize recreational cannabis sales in May. Massachusetts, meanwhile, began recreational sales in late 2018, which some observers have noted as a significant source of competition for Rhode Island’s newly legalized recreational dispensaries.
Currently, only compassion centers, which existed as medical cannabis dispensaries prior to the state legalizing recreational sales, can obtain retail cannabis licenses. Other businesses cannot begin selling recreationally until the state forms a Cannabis Control Commission, which has been running behind schedule.
In June, Sweetspot opened as the state’s first new compassion center in eight years, and the sixth compassion center overall.
The five other compassion centers already selling recreational cannabis in Rhode Island are the Thomas C. Slater Compassion Center in Providence, Mother Earth Wellness in Pawtucket, Aura of Rhode Island in Central Falls, Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center in Portsmouth and RISE Warwick in Warwick.
Sweetspot Dispensary also operates facilities in Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey and Maryland.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@pbn.com.
