Cannabis at Winnipeg gas stations? Domo wants it, but province says no for now
CBC
Winnipeggers were only a few weeks away from being able to buy cannabis while filling a tank of gas, before the provincial government temporarily banned a range of new businesses, including gas stations, from receiving retail licences — a move that may have led to layoffs at one cannabis producer.
Domo, a gas station chain based in Winnipeg, was on the verge of selling cannabis at five gas bars in the city. They would have been the first gas stations in the provincial capital to enter the retail cannabis market.
But those plans were suddenly halted, when the province surprised the cannabis industry last month by temporarily pausing any new licences in urban areas for stores that want to add cannabis to their selection of other products.
The government says it wants to review the rules for these outlets, referred to as controlled-access stores, to ensure cannabis is kept from underage youth. The other type of retail licence is for standalone cannabis stores that are age-restricted.
Domo says it's "very disappointed" by the government's unexpected move.
"After a year-long extremely detailed application process, Domo was in the final stages of obtaining … licences for our five stores when government derailed the process," said an email attributed to chairman Douglas Everett and president Kate Everett.
The statement also expresses concern the government is prioritizing the lobbying efforts of the Retail Cannabis Council of Manitoba, which includes out-of-province members, over a partnership between a gas retailer and cannabis producer that are both Manitoba-owned.
Wowkpow, which runs a cultivation facility in Steinbach, is planning to lay off some staff and reduce hours for others, as a result of the government's decision.
The company ramped up production efforts because of the pending expansion into Domo locations, increasing the number of staff from three people to a dozen.
Wowkpow also bought a 5,000-square-foot facility in Oakbank for a processing lab. It's sitting empty.
Max Marasigan, the company's CEO, said Domo was planning to start selling a small selection of cannabis in May.
The government's decision "kind of broke my heart because there's a lot of time and funding that went into this. We prepared our facility to make sure we could keep up with the sales," he said.
"We had to hire more employees. Unfortunately, right now we're actually thinking about laying them off."
A cannabis producer and retailer, Wowkpow saw gas stations as a potential untapped retail channel.
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