The new store on J Street in midtown Sacramento is light and airy, with gleaming glass counters, illuminated display cases and immaculate wooden floors.
Welcome to Crystal Nugs, the fourth storefront dispensary to open from a member of the City’s Cannabis Opportunity Reinvestment and Equity (CORE) program.
Crystal Nugs joins The Pocket Dispensary, Off the Charts and Embarc as storefront dispensaries that have opened with the support of the City’s cannabis equity program.
Also offering delivery services, Crystal Nugs, which celebrated its store’s ribbon cutting in November, holds the distinction of being the first Black woman-owned storefront dispensary in Sacramento.
“It’s an incredible honor to break barriers and pave the way for diversity and representation in the industry,” said Crystal Nugs CEO and co-founder Maisha Bahati. “Knowing that Crystal Nugs is setting a precedent and creating opportunities for others feels truly empowering.”
Bahati said the CORE program, which works to remove barriers of entry into the cannabis industry for individuals and communities disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs, played a critical role in helping her to realize her dream.
“If not for the CORE program, I wouldn’t have received the opportunity to open a storefront dispensary,” she said. “CORE provided me with close to $200,000 in both grants and loans. That helped substantially with the financial costs incurred for our construction build-out phase of Crystal Nugs.”
The Sacramento City Council in 2020 approved 10 new storefront dispensary permits, increasing the number of storefront permits allowed in the city from 30 to 40.
As directed by Council, applicants for the 10 new permits had to be participants in the CORE program. Those selected to be eligible for the permits also had to participate in a competitive Request for Proposals process.
In addition to the four storefront dispensaries that have opened, another six are working toward obtaining their business operating permits, according to the City’s Office of Cannabis Management.
To learn more about CORE and opportunities for CORE members, please visit www.sacramentocore.org.