Through a partnership with Gage Cannabis — who we spoke to last month about its Michigan focus — Los Angeles-based cannabis brand and dispensary chain Cookies is coming to Canada.
“For the past decade, I’ve put taste and experience first,” said Berner in a statement. “I’m thrilled to work with Gage, a company that is just as passionate about our brand as we are, to provide Canadian consumers with some of the best flower and cannabis products available in the world.”
Cheetah Piss, anyone?
Cookies isn’t the first US brand to cross the border, but it’s the first to promise unique flower genetics only available in some states so far. Gary Payton, Georgia Pie, Medellin, Lions Mane, Soap and Cheetah Piss are just a few strains the company plans to grow (via cultivators NOYA Cannabis) for the Canadian market.
And with its playful and distinctive blue branding on dispensaries and packaging and celeb endorsements, Cookies is one the most recognizable brands in the game right now.
But… is it compliant?
Unsurprisingly, it sounds like Cookies — which could be a non-compliant name to begin with, since it’s (maybe) appealing to kids — may be able to ride the hype only so far under the Cannabis Act.
After the announcement was made yesterday morning, consultant Shane Morris tweeted that the promo vid already had to be edited once to remove non-compliant marketing material.
What’s next
Cookies strains will be available in Ontario to start through the OCS later this year. (But only if the OCS can straighten out their product calls…) Through its Gage partnership, they’ll also open a retail flagship store in Toronto before the end of 2021, which will also carry other brands available in the states: Lemonnade, Minntz, Runtz, Grandiflora, Powerzzzup, Run The Jewels and Collins Ave.
