Columbus’ first medical marijuana dispensary licensed

After suffering severe back pain from a past car wreck injury, Nicole Huff, owner of Southern Flour Bakery at 1920 Highway 45 N., discovered the medicinal properties of marijuana after obtaining a Missouri medical marijuana card in 2020.

“I got a medical card and I was kind of apprehensive about that,” Huff said. “But it worked. I slept all night. I wasn’t crying. I wasn’t hurting.”

Now, Huff has Mississippi’s stamp of approval to expand her personal experience into a business venture.

Huff’s state-issued dispensary license was approved Tuesday afternoon, only 13 days after she finalized her application with the Mississippi Department of Revenue, which began accepting applications on July 5. It is the first dispensary approved in Columbus.

The new business, Wildflower LLC, will be located next door to Huff’s bakery in the North Gate Plaza. With the dispensary, Huff hopes to provide relief and care to her Columbus community.

“A lot of people that have certain illnesses, they do need it or the state would not have passed it and I want to help them,” Huff said.

The state legislature passed the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act in this year’s session. It allows people with certain medical conditions — ranging from cancer and Parkinson’s disease to chronic pain and glaucoma — to obtain a medical marijuana card from a doctor and receive a restricted amount of the drug per month through dispensaries.

The Department of Revenue approves dispensary licenses on a first-come, first-served basis, and the law prohibits dispensaries from operating within 1,500 feet of each other. That spells bad news for two other Columbus entrepreneurs who were hoping to open dispensaries.

Corey Herring has applied for a license to open in North Gate Plaza. Deneisha and Amber Glenn of Holistika LLC sought a license to run a dispensary in the old Tuesday Morning building at 2003 Highway 45 N. Both locations are within 1,500 feet of Huff’s approved dispensary spot.

The Dispatch reached Herring and the Glenns by phone on Tuesday, but all declined to comment on the record.

Huff plans to spend $200,000 of her own money before opening her dispensary sometime in December or January. She said that opening will depend on when grow facilities can produce the first crop. She is also looking at bringing in investors.

Wildflower will employ at least five workers. Though Huff did not specify what she will pay employees, she said it would be more than the $7.25 minimum wage.

Before obtaining her license, Huff had to obtain a business license with the Mississippi Secretary of State and submit her application to the MDR with plans for the building renovation, a local permit or intent to acquire one, a seed to sale tracking system to keep product accounted for, a disposal plan for any product gone unsold and a plan for how she will hire employees. She paid a $15,000 application fee and a $25,000 annual licensing fee before getting approved, plus 10,000 for the building to be surveyed and the detailed plan for renovations.

Renovations to the new space will cost around $150,000, Huff said. Marijuana products cannot be visible from the street and security must include cameras and a way for customers to provide proof of ID and medical card before being let in the actual dispensary area. She hopes to begin work on the building in August.

Security also is a concern for Huff, which is why she plans to spend $30,000 a month to have armed security officers at her store. She said that because transactions are all done in cash, tight security is necessary.

“They are going to have to get through my armed guard, my armed self and my 100-pound German Shepard,” Huff said.