Can Cannabis ‘Bring Retail Back To Life’? Verano, Curaleaf, NewLake Capital Bet Big On Local New Jersey Market
The adage “location, location, location” isn’t just something company bosses say when scouting real estate — especially in the cannabis sector.
Picking the right space to grow, cultivate, sell and move products can make or break a brand. And for Verano Holdings Corp. (OTCQX:VRNOF), the right location came in the form of an abandoned Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) store.
What Happened: GVM Communications CEO Gia Morón kicked off Benzinga’s Cannabis Market Spotlight event on Monday (June 17) in New Brunswick, New Jersey, with a panel featuring Verano COO Trip McDermott, Curaleaf Holdings Inc (OTC:CURLF) senior Vice President Bobby Sciarrone and Newlake Capital CEO Anthony Coniglio.
The discussion centered on what the cannabis industry can do for the local New Jersey economy and the value in tapping the local talent. Verano, for example, first set up shop in the Garden State by breathing life into an empty storefront — typically an eyesore for surrounding residents.
“Our cultivation facility was an old Walmart,” McDermott told the New Brunswick Performance Center crowd. “We repurposed that and brought it back to life.”
Indeed, Chicago-based Verano took over a gutted Walmart on Route 22 in central New Jersey. It then held a job fair to hire 100 locals, …