Retailers statewide now have the opportunity to sell recreational marijuana after Ohioans legalized it and will alter how businesses operate. 

The proposal will go into effect Dec. 7, but this does not mean retailers will be in possession of marijuana on that date. This has caused questions to surface from citizens. 

The Ohio Department of Commerce will now include a Division of Cannabis Control, because of Issue 2’s passing. They will be responsible for laying out the rules and regulations when it comes to selling marijuana in the state.

“… retail outlets will not be able to sell until all the rules [are] developed by the newly created Division of Cannabis Control,” said Dwayne Siekman, CFO and co-owner of Bliss Ohio, a medical marijuana dispensary in Kent. “So we could see the first sales in Ohio probably around September 2024.”

The reason for the delay when it comes to recreational sales comes down to dispensaries needing to apply for an adult-use license, Dwayne Siekman said. 

“There’s a six-month time frame for us to apply for an adult use license,” Dwayne Siekman said. “Then you have rules that dictate how all the businesses will operate, so that could take up to nine months. That is why we are saying September 2024.” 

The delay is due to all the rules and regulations for dispensaries not being fully laid out yet, said Pamela Siekman, CEO and co-owner of Bliss Ohio.

“The state division, they’re going to write rules around all the protocols, and how the dispensation should happen,” Pamela Siekman said. “What we’re expecting is it to be very similar to how the medical dispensaries run.” 

The state will award a certain number of adult-use recreational licenses, with medical dispensaries receiving the option to apply first, Pamela Siekman said. 

“The existing businesses in the medical program will get to apply and have ‘first dibs’ for adult use,” Pamela Siekman said. “Then there is a two-year moratorium on only that portion of the industry being able to provide service in the adult market.” 

However, the city of Kent anticipates recreational sales coming to the city.

Bliss Ohio is planning on applying for an adult-use dispensary license, Pamela Siekman said. 

Once they are able to sell adult-use recreational cannabis, a few things will change regarding business operations, Pamela Siekman said. 

“Certainly we will have to check IDs, we have to make sure we are accepting inventory in a secure manner, that all the inventory and product that we would sell would be lab tested and certified,” Pamela Siekman said. “It would be tracked seed to sale, to make sure there’s not contaminants, mycotoxins, mold, and heavy metals. We likely would have all the same standard operating procedures. Aside from having a recreational user patient who must be 21 [years old], and then we would still be serving medical patients.”

Additionally, recreational marijuana sales would be taxed differently than medical sales, Dwayne Siekman said. 

“The initiated statute called for a 10% excise tax, which is different than the medical program,” Dwayne Siekman said. 

The amount of employees at the business would also be increased, due to an estimated increase in customers, said Haley Richards, general manager and designated representative for Bliss Ohio.

Currently, there are a wide range of marijuana based products available for customers, the same range would likely exist when the market opens up for recreational users, Richards said.

However, there is one product change that the store might see, Richards said. 

“The one addition that we’re hoping the division will allow is pre-rolls,” Pamela Siekman said. 

The first step in allowing recreational sales is consumer education. 

“We are trying to educate individuals that come here because I think last week or this week we’ve had 40 people either call or stop in because [they think] ‘Oh it passed! It’s available!,’” Dwayne Siekman said. 

Puff ‘N Stuff, a vape and tobacco retailer in Kent, does not plan on applying for an adult-use recreational license, said Jae Lerer, the store’s manager. 

“We are not going to become a dispensary for a lot of reasons,” he said. “One, we don’t have the space.”

Additionally, applying and becoming a recreational use dispensary can be a costly procedure, Lerer said. 

While not every retailer is planning to apply for an adult-use recreational license, there could still be a change in the way they operate their business going forward. 

Currently, there are strict laws on retailers, regarding the language they use in their stores, Lerer said. 

“Due to the nature of our business, there is a very specific line we’ve always had to walk that we cannot cross,” said Lerer. “We’ve had to follow very specific paraphernalia laws.”

With the passage of Issue 2, the rules that are placed on these businesses have eased up.

“There is going to be a lot less stress for the employees here, having to monitor language and walking that fine line,” he said. “It also is going to be a lot better for the customers because a lot of times people come in, and they don’t know what terms they can use. It can create confusion in what product they actually need.”

Going forward, Lerer said there will be a slight change in the way the store is advertised, due to the ability to use more descriptive language. 

“There will be some language change. I don’t see us changing how we advertise when we do campus stuff,” Lerer said. “When we do other types of promotions or other types of advertisements we can be more in depth.”

As for the future of Puff ‘N Stuff, Lerer said he expects more customers will check out the store.  

“It is going to bring a lot of people in who are just curious,” Lerer said. “We’ve already had an influx of people wanting to know details on it.”

With this curiosity in the air, both Ohio Bliss and Puff ‘N Stuff were excited about legalized marijuana, and were excited to see what the future holds for Ohioans. 

“We see a lot of support from the community, so we’re excited,” Dwayne Siekman said.

Olivia Montgomery is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].