Cannabis Growers of Canada president Chad Jackett from Liberty Farms talks to Kyle Cheyne from Leaf Compassion Cannabis Dispensary in this interview at the Legends Music Festival and Bio Cup earlier this month.
Cheyenne said, since opening up his first location in 2014, he’s seen the industry, and attitudes towards it, change.
With five Leaf dispensaries now in operation, Cheyne recently celebrated being the second licensed cannabis storefront licensed to operate on Vancouver Island.
“When I started, it’s been about six years now, there were only about six dispensaries in Victoria at the time and now we have over 100, for sure on the island,” he said.
While Cheyne said he’s been lucky that he’s never been raided or shut down, the business has faced an uphill battle, sitting down with lawyers, city officials and police, trying to let the public know that the business is there to help people.
Cheyne said he’s faced negative press and, over the years, seen the narrative shift when it was clear that public perception towards cannabis was improving, but he’s still looking forward to the industry moving more into the mainstream.
“I feel like, once it’s legalized I’ll probably sleep a lot better,” he said.