NORWALK — As the city finally nears a legal cannabis market, its upcoming dispensaries will emphasize local hiring.
Fine Fettle will open a retail location 191 Main St., while Shangri-La will open at 430 Main Ave. Shangri-La’s Main Avenue location is one of two in the pipeline—the company has gotten approval to open a drive-thru location at 71-75 Connecticut Ave.
Ben Zachs, chief operating officer at Fine Fettle, and Nevil Patel, chief executive officer at Shangri-La Dispensaries, both said that sourcing from a local community is beneficial.
Zachs emphasized that in a city like Norwalk that contains disproportionately impacted areas, which are state-certified census tracts of places historically targeted by the war on drugs, hiring locally is crucial to fixing those historical affects.
“Part of the future of cannabis, we think, is understanding the past of cannabis,” Zachs said. “And if we can do our part in righting the wrongs and changing the history, we’re doing good in and for the community.”
Zachs said that nearly all applicants have identified themselves as residents of Norwalk or nearby municipalities like Stamford, Bridgeport, or Greenwich.
“Our goal is to hire as many people locally and as many people from DIAs (disproportionately impacted areas) in the state (as possible),” the Fine Fettle executive said. “And parts of Norwalk do qualify for that.”
The state recently approved two new DIAs in Norwalk.
DIAs are certified based on poverty rates and historical conviction rates for drug-related offenses in census tracts to find places in Connecticut targeted by the war on drugs.
Patel said the Shangri-La also focuses on hiring locally.
“If you actually notice all of our (listings), Norwalk is the primary location for the hire, so that in itself brings in individuals who are within, normally, 10 to 15 minutes of driving distance from a dispensary,” Patel said.
Regardless, Patel said the jobs will go to those best-suited for the positions listed.
“We don’t really target any specific individual,” the Shangri-La CEO said. “We list the job positions out there. We try to reach as many potential candidates as possible.”
Both companies have begun their hiring process and interviewing candidates for a nearly top- to- bottom staffing process that will bring in sales staff, also called “budtenders,” to managerial and supervisory staff.
The Fine Fettle and Shangri-La executives said that the hiring process is in full force as both companies vie to open Norwalk’s first dispensary.
By last week’s estimates, Zachs said the Fine Fettle retail location could open by the end of December or very early January—which is consistent with his estimate in September.
Patel said Shangri-La is looking at a grand opening in the first week of December.
H/T: www.thehour.com
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