It’s the third dispensary to open after Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana last year.
WALKER, MINN. – Tribal reservations in northern Minnesota are dominating the state’s budding recreational marijuana industry. Three dispensaries are now operational in the region, with the most recent welcoming customers at a grand opening Thursday.
The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe is the first tribe to open a dispensary this year, but more are on the horizon. Two tribes last year blazed the trail for recreational marijuana sales: NativeCare on the Red Lake Nation’s reservation and Waabigwan Mashkiki (“medicine flower” in Ojibwe) in Mahnomen on the White Earth Nation’s reservation. Both tribes previously sold medical cannabis.
But in Walker, the Sweetest Grass Dispensary by Leech Lake Cannabis Co. is new for the community. “Everyone says, ‘We can’t believe we’re purchasing marijuana in Walker, Minnesota!'” business consultant Madison Marzario said.
Originally from Prior Lake, Marzario spent a decade in Colorado becoming an expert in the cannabis industry before bringing that expertise home to work with the Sweetest Grass.
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