The Nation’s First Drive-Thru Marijuana Dispensary Opens in Parachute, Colorado on 4-20

Report by Paula Antolini
April 21, 2017 8:15AM EDT

NATIONAL NEWS

The Nation’s First Drive-Thru Marijuana Dispensary Opens in Parachute, Colorado on 4-20

Many people find it amusing that the legality of cannabis changes based on where you are in the country. If it’s legal in Vermont then why isn’t it legal in Alabama? If CAFE’s Dispensary locations are listed here for anyone in Toronto to look at then why are drug dealers still on the street in the US? But, progress has been made for the pro-legalization movement in Colorado

“Tumbleweed Express Drive Thru,” the nation’s first drive-through marijuana dispensary, opened in Parachute, Colorado yesterday, on “4-20” of course, the Today Show, the Post Independent, and many other media reported today. The grand opening took place from 1 p.m. to midnight on April 20, 2017, and included T-shirt and sticker giveaways as well as food trucks.

Owner and CEO of Tumbleweed Express Drive Thru, Mark Smith, noticed that more and more people were knocking on the window of his marijuana shop to see if it was open. That same week a for-sale sign went up at the car wash across the street and Smith got the idea to open a drive-through marijuana store. The idea turned his local shop into an industry forerunner, reports the Post Independent. “I didn’t set out thinking this would be national news,” Smith said. “I didn’t have some big epiphany. I just saw a need for our customers,” said Smith.

Being the first drive-through for marijuana is quite the claim to fame. There are many marijuana dispensaries around the nation that are very well regarded – take this dispensary lansing mi which promotes wellness, for example – but this really makes Tumbleweed Express Drive Thru different. The store must follow rules and regulations of state marijuana laws, so it is the first store to have cars pull into the building to obtain the marijuana product. Also no one younger than 21 is allowed in the premises, or even in the car as a passenger. Security and surveillance is required at the point of sale (which means the use of dispensary management system software is mandatory alongside other provisions), no marijuana can be visible from outside the licensed premises, and basically the same laws are applied to the drive-thru as to a regular dispensary, said Smith. That being said, the products are sure to fly off the shelves, if trends around the country are anything to go by. Many places purchase wholesale CBD just to make sure they have enough products to supply their customers with.

The original Tumbleweed store opened in Parachute in February 2016 and has since expanded to Edwards, Eagle-Vail, Frisco and beyond. “Nearly 30 percent of the town’s tax receipts in 2016 were from marijuana sales, down from the previous year, showing that neighboring businesses are growing because of the new industry” reports the Post Independent.

The Tumbleweed Express Drive-Thru hours are: open 4 p.m. to midnight Thursday through Sunday.

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