Mother and son team up for Presque Isle’s newest recreational marijuana shop

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The newest recreational cannabis shop in Presque Isle will have a mother’s touch.

That’s because mother Bonnie McGinley and her son Matthew Ryan are business partners at Royal Leaf Apothecary at 418 Main St. McGinley’s vision for the shop has added education about marijuana and its uses and an emphasis on community connection, besides selling products.

Royal Leaf is the second adult-use marijuana store in Aroostook County’s commercial hub, and one of seven total shops existing or in the wings in Presque Isle. Medical marijuana retailers like Star City Wellness and Northern Maine Flower have done exceptionally well in Presque Isle, and Full Bloom Cannabis has also found success there growing the adult use cannabis market.

McGinley had the idea to open a marijuana shop in 2016, when Maine voters approved a referendum allowing for the sale of recreational marijuana.

“I recognized that I held the qualifications the people of Maine requested,” McGinley said. “I am a Mainer, with childhood roots in Orono. I have been a member of the Medical Marijuana Caregivers of Maine since 2017.”

McGinley has no outside backing and is providing all of the capital for the business. She also has done the research and made the necessary checks to ensure that she and her son are operating within the state’s laws and regulations.

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