Stop and Smell the Roses is expanding and opening two sister stores, in Owen Sound and Hanover. From left, Hanover store operator and Roses Chief Financial Officer Cassie Berberich with Stop and Smell the Roses owner Cody Coulson.

Hub Staff

Stop and Smell the Roses, the Port Elgin business that sells industrial hemp products such as CBD, available for purchase for anyone 19 years and older, will be opening two sister stores this November.

One store, opening November 4, will be in Hanover and operated by company CFO Cassie Berberich. The second store, in Owen Sound, will be operated by the Cottrell family of Port Elgin, is located at 640 10th Street West, and will open on November 15.

Just over three months into opening the Port Elgin storefront, located at 1119 Goderich Street, Stop and Smell the Roses owner Cody Coulson said that progress is “happening very fast, but it’s really exciting.” Coulson said that since opening in July the stores have created over 10 jobs with the majority of customers being between 40 and 60 years of age.

Coulson said in an interview that “we’re in the age of information... and a lot of people are looking for the benefits of cannabis without a psychoactive high.” Coulson added that CBD acts as an anti-psychotic and is non-psychoactive. “It will block your CB1 and CB2 receptors which are the receptors in your body that will get and stimulate your high,” he explained. “They'll block those [receptors] and they activate other receptors like adenosine, vanilloid and serotonin, and those receptors mediate the release of things like dopamine and glutamine which mediate body temperature, pain perception, etcetera... that’s why I believe it works as a medicine, because it’s synergistic, you don't need something for pain, something for nausea, something for sleep, it’s one thing.”

Hanover owner and Coulson’s mother Cassie Berberich said it was time to expand. “It is that popular. We have clientele that comes from all over, it’s pretty impressive. I thought it would end here after this summer was over but it’s not, people will travel here just because the store is here,” she said, adding that business has grown faster than they expected.

The Hanover location will be situated at 215 10th Street, the corner of County Road 10 (7th Avenue) and County Road 4 (10th Street). Berberich said that Cody, who she refers to as “Mr. CBD” will be stopping by the Hanover location, where customers can schedule a consultation with him.

Stop and Smell the Roses sells a variety of CBD products from topical to sublinguals and even dog treats. Their most popular merchandise is a Miss Envy product called Phoenix Tears. “The Phoenix Tears oil, [oil is] the fastest way to get into the system, it’s 100 percent legal, all our products are,” attested Berberich. All three Stop and Smell the Roses stores are licensed for retail as the CBD they sell is derived from industrial hemp.

Find Stop and Smell the Roses online at www.sastr.ca.