This NJ dispensary is booming thanks to Pennsylvania’s bad weed laws
A shop across the river from Philadelphia manufactures shiploads from cross-border customers.
Medical cannabis dispensaries have been open in Pennsylvania since 2018. But the state’s 343,634 patients (2.68% of the state’s population) still struggle to find affordable medicines.
Non-medical consumers are also growing weary of Pennsylvania’s archaic possession laws, along with broken promises from lawmakers that a legal rec market is soon to come.
But the Curaleaf store in Bellmawr, NJ isn’t complaining about PA’s lack of access and affordability. The store is a short drive across the NJ-PA border from Philadelphia and sells about 11 packs of 3.5 grams per minute during business hours, according to initial estimates by MJ Research Co.’s Mike Regan.
Federal and state laws prohibit visitors from ingesting cannabis across state lines. But that doesn’t seem to stop many Pennsylvanians from driving down the street to buy legal, lab-tested products.
NBC-WGAL in Lancaster, Pa. reported seeing “a number of vehicles in the Curaleaf (Bellmawr) parking lot with out-of-state license plates, including tags from The Keystone State. Some medical PA patients may be drawn to NJ recreational prices of $45 to $60 per 3.5 grams of bud, rather than the $60 average they see at home. And they definitely take note of the $28 to $50 range that medical patients in New Jersey are now paying for an eighth.
Curaleaf executives said in a conference call this month that the company’s Bellmawr store is on track to hit $100 million in sales this year, up from $50 million before the first day of sales for Adult. At that run rate, Regan estimates the Bellmawr site is earning around $274,000 per day, or $4.9 million, as of April 21.
With 131 retail locations in 22 states, Barrons says Curaleaf is the country’s largest state-licensed cannabis operation.
All dispensaries in NJ took nearly $2 million from 12,000 customers on their first day of sale, according to the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission. With more growers and suppliers soon to enter the market, the garden state could see green as long as it takes for its neighbors to catch up.
Discover the best ganja in the Garden State
PA officials are also not happy with the current pot market
In December, Pennsylvania Gov. Tim Wolfe urged lawmakers to quickly get the state’s recreational cannabis market off the ground. But his tweets on the subject haven’t inspired Republicans and Democrats to agree on how to implement a healthy legal cannabis market.
“Pennsylvanians have spoken and they want us to legalize recreational marijuana.”
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf
Legalization advocates hope the boatloads of cash lawmakers crossing the river to New Jersey will help create more urgency.
John Collins, recently retired director of the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Bureau, warned the Philadelphia Inquirer that price fixing between big companies is a real problem in the PA medical cannabis market. In March, the State Health Department called for an investigation into allegations of price gouging in the industry, and others have pointed out that falling wholesale prices are not reflected on pharmacy menus.
PA’s medical program was signed into law back in 2016, but patients are still waiting for prices to drop, with some patients spending as much as $1,500 a month to legally secure their drugs.
Only Illinois buyers nationwide pay more per eighth of legal flower ($60.42) than patients in Pennsylvania ($58.86 per 3.5 grams). These high prices can force those with debilitating conditions to turn to street vendors and save 50% or more by shopping from unlicensed retailers. These products lack the laboratory-tested purity, quality, and dosage security of legal products. But for some patients, high prices in pharmacies leave them little choice.
What to Expect at NJ Pharmacies
So far, NJ shoppers have reported fast queues and a pleasant experience thanks to automated ordering systems and separate checkout lines for medical and recreational shoppers.
Related
After a massive first week, New Jersey still hasn’t run out of weed
In March, NJ regulators said the state was £100,000 short of the statutory supply needed to meet the expected surge in demand from consumers in New York and Pennsylvania. CRC officials feared the 15-minute drive across the Delaware River from Philadelphia could overwhelm places like Bellmawr’s Curaleaf. But this location hasn’t suffered a major shortage of medical or recreational shoppers so far.
The same is true of North Jersey pharmacies like RISE’s Bloomfield and Paterson locations and Montclair’s Ascend pharmacy, all of which are a short drive from New York City, another major metro area teeming with eager customers.
How NJ Advances in the Tri-State Cannabis Race
Curaleaf is one of the fully vertical cannabis companies that has been serving New Jersey’s medical patients for years. In April, Curaleaf’s Bellmawr location became one of 7 medical providers (known as alternative treatment centers) granted permission to open some of their existing pharmacies to recreational shoppers.
The expansion plan has been scrutinized by residents and the state’s CRC Board. Many advocates called for full transparency of the approval process and prioritization of applicants from marginalized groups.
On March 15, the CRC began reviewing hundreds of new applications for retail pharmacy licenses, but no award winners have yet been announced. As of April 11, the board had approved 102 applications for growers and manufacturers.
Related
New Jersey accepts cannabis license applications. How to apply
As of March 31, the CRC received 732 license applications. Of these, 511 were from diversity companies (70%), 213 from social equity companies (29%), and 310 from impact zone companies (42%), according to the CRC. Of the 732 applications received, 410 are currently being given priority.
Travel safe when you decide to buy
Every legal state that borders an illegal state sees booming sales in border-related stores. In Oregon, for example, businesses near the Idaho border see a steady stream of Idaho license plates outside their doors. In the early days of legalizing adult use in Colorado, Kansas state officials stopped by the border to profile and arrest itinerant tree lovers. But a federal court finally shut that down, ruling that Kansas cops couldn’t stop vehicles just because they had Colorado license plates.
So far, there have been no reports of state troop traps in Pennsylvania, but it’s wise to take precautions. Always lock your groceries in your trunk, no matter where you travel.
Meanwhile, Curaleaf is building at least two new locations in New Jersey that will be larger than the booming Bellmawr shop. Just in case the Pennsylvania legislature needed an extra boost to get things moving.
More of the Weed Wild East Coast
Joe Evans
Joe Evans is a journalist, writer, editor and contributor to Where’s Weed, Leafly and more with over 5,000 published articles on topics ranging from cannabis, politics, car news, sports, pop culture and even a cult. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeEvansBlogs.
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