KITCHENER -- A Waterloo Region cannabis producer announced Thursday that it will open what could be the region's first retail cannabis store.
James E. Wagner Cultivation (JWC) plans to open a 2,000-square-foot retail store attached to its cultivation facility on Manitou Drive.
While at least three other stores are in the works in Waterloo Region, JWC's facility is scheduled to open in the first calendar quarter of 2020.
That could very well make it the first retail store to open in the region and will definitely make it the region's first on a licensed cultivation site.
This process is separate from the lottery system that other stores in Ontario had to go through to open.
In early November, the province revised legislation that would allow producers to open their own stores.
"Amendments in legislation provide us with the opportunity to respond to consumer needs," says President and CEO Nathan Woodworth in a statement.
"We plan to move forward as quickly as the regulatory and permitting process allows. We hope that this new direct channel will contribute significantly to our revenue and margin expansion in fiscal 2020."
JWC is set to produce more than 35,000 kg of cannabis per year.
In October, the company announced it had been given the okay from Health Canada to double its production.
