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By Ashley Legassic

POT SHOP OPENS

Second private cannabis shop gets approval in Kamloops

Sep 13, 2019 | 2:01 AM

KAMLOOPS — A second private retail cannabis store in Kamloops has been granted approval and is set to open this weekend.

According to the B.C. Government website, Wizards has officially received approval and will operate at 240 Lansdowne Street.

Speaking with CFJC Today last month, City of Kamloops business licence inspector Dave Jones said a total of eight stores were expected to be open by the end of the year.

Wizards is the fourth legal store in the city — after the two provincially-run BC Cannabis Stores and The Shore Cannabiz Shop opened earlier this year.

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General Manager Philip Godin says he and owner Tawd Hamonic waited nearly 11 months for their application approval.

“Me and Tawd are local businessmen, we were born and raised here in Kamloops. And it just proves that if you decide you want to do something, and you go through and comply with everything you need to do, you can actually get there,” He says, “We want to be an example to other entrepreneurs in Kamloops.”

The fantasy minded retail operation, formed under Godin and Hamonic’s company — Green Tower Cannabis — will give customer a unique shopping experience.

“Wizards is all about the customers. We want this to be a fun, friendly atmosphere, and we want you to feel at home,” Godin says, “We’re doing a house system, so we’re going to have the four houses that people can come and join. There’s going to be ‘Growindor’, ‘HuffnPuff’, ‘Shatteryn’, and ‘Vapenclaw’.”

While they’re just getting set in this location for now, Godin says they could one day have more “Wizard” themed stores operating.

“Once you get approval for one license in BC, you have approval to open up to eight locations in British Columbia. Since we did that under a corporation, that’s allowed us to to potentially do a franchise model. And we’re open to people coming in and doing that.”

More than a dozen applicants in Kamloops are still awaiting approval, including the proposed Fiore Fresco shop.

The owners of that store applied for a business licence at the end of October, 2018, and received city approval, but are still waiting for provincial approval.