Courtenay’s first privately-owned retail cannabis outlet is open for business.
La Pachi Premium Cannabis opened its doors at 2270 Cliffe Ave. Friday morning, with a celebration that included an official ribbon cutting, with Mayor Bob Wells on hand.
“It’s been a long [process], a little bit of stress, but it’s all good – it’s all paying off now,” said La Pachi Premium Cannabis owner Patricia Mazzucca Cury. “I’m really excited to finally be open. To be the first private cannabis retail store in Courtenay means a lot.”
The store opened with approximately two dozen different strains of bud, as well as pre-rolled joints, edibles, CBD, and paraphernalia, such as bongs, pipes and rolling papers.
Mazzucca Cury said she studied purchasing trends on the website, and through other Island sources, to determine which products to have on hand for opening day.
“It was a matter of looking at what has been popular on the Island and what has been popular on the website… and affordability as well,” she said. “I want to make sure I have a good price that is comparable, if not sometimes lower than the government store.”
Mazzucca Cury said she has access to a huge variety of products in the wholesale website and plans to keep her stock fluid, based on customers’ wants and needs.
“Everything that is available for us to purchase, we will make sure we have [access to it] for the customer,” she said. “I don’t have everything in the store, but I have the opportunity for special orders, so if there’s something somebody wants that I don’t have here, I’ll make sure to have it for them.”
Wells said the opening of La Pachi represents a new industry in Courtenay.
“They are providing jobs, and not only that; they are providing a service to the rest of the residents in our community. This is where things are going, and it will be interesting to see how things play out [as more cannabis stores open],” said Wells.
He added that the stigma surrounding cannabis seems to be fading away.
“It’s been a long time coming for a lot of people, but I think to a certain extent it’s a non-event,” said Wells. “It’s not the ‘devil’ that some people may have painted it out to be, with legalization. I think people are coming to understand that this is just another thing that responsible adults can partake in, not just for recreation, but for medical reasons, etc. So I think it’s a step in the right direction.”
La Pachi is open daily from 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
For more information, Mazzucca Cury can be reached via email at lapachicannabis@gmail.com
