Buffalo Hemp to close Floyd store while aiming for state licensure
Buffalo Hemp plans to adjust operations, closing its Floyd store while keeping its Roanoke location open. Kindred Designs and Plant Matters, which share the space on Locust Street with Buffalo Hemp, will remain open at the address.
The Buffalo Hemp Company of Floyd plans to close its retail outlet in downtown Floyd in response to stricter state restrictions on the sale of hemp-based goods, according to co-owner Derek Wall. The store's last day of operation will be Saturday, Aug. 15.
But the seven-year-old company isn’t abandoning cannabis and hopes to transition into legal recreational marijuana, Wall said. The company believes its experience gives it an advantage, though its ability to obtain a license is uncertain.
Hemp is a variety of cannabis that contains non-intoxicating compounds, like CBD, which is used in many wellness products, as well as small amounts of the intoxicating compound THC. As purchases of hemp-derived, THC-boosted products boomed in Virginia and other states, lawmakers in Richmond have issued an evolving set of regulations that have “made it a very tough industry to navigate,” Wall said. “Buffalo Hemp makes no money. It’s a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. I kept it alive strictly for this day when retail cannabis was legal in Virginia to see if I could get a license.”
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Virginia plans to offer eight license types as it prepares to permit commercial cannabis sales for the first time. However, new state restrictions taking effect Saturday will sharply limit the amount of THC allowed in consumable hemp products.
The new rules “basically take 90% of our products off the shelf,” Wall said.
Buffalo Hemp plans to adjust operations, closing its Floyd store while keeping its Roanoke location open. Kindred Designs and Plant Matters, which share the space on Locust Street with Buffalo Hemp, will remain open at the address, Wall said.
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Other hemp enterprises, including the largest ones in the state, sued the state in Roanoke federal court, saying that the new regulations will decimate them. A hearing on their request for an injunction was scheduled for Wednesday morning. Buffalo Hemp is not a plaintiff in the suit.
Marijuana license applications will be accepted starting Feb. 1, with licenses to be issued by May 1, according to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The license categories include cultivation, processing, testing, transportation, product delivery and retail. Up to 350 stores are planned. Many other program details have not been released.
Wall argued that if he were advising officials, he would suggest the licenses go to enterprises such as Buffalo Hemp with industry-specific experience. It previously grew hemp. It runs multiple stores. But some observers have said the state may run a lottery, leaving the selection of licensees to chance.
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“We really don’t know where this is going to lead us to,” he said. “We’re doing our best to hedge our bets.”
He added: “We are operationally ready. We have a facility in Floyd that we bought not too long ago that’s about 17,000 square feet. We’ve got over $200,000 worth of growing equipment of which we are ready to buy more.”
In addition, Buffalo Hemp officials have identified a preferred location in the Tanglewood area of Roanoke County for a marijuana store if they receive a retail license, Wall said. Buffalo Hemp’s existing Roanoke store, in Wasena, is too small, he noted.
