The move was a long time coming for owner Ashley Close, who bought the store at 511 Orchard Street, then a medical dispensary called Golden Alternative Medicine, two years ago. Close pushed the Golden City Council to include a recreational sales measure in the November 2021 election, which Golden voters approved, then changed the name of Golden Alternative Medicine to Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in anticipation of her new customers.
Close, a decade-long veteran of Colorado's marijuana industry, co-founded Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in Fort Collins in 2013, but she and her business partners have expanded quickly as of late. In addition to the newly recreational store in Golden, Close's brother has just opened four Verts locations in Missouri, and the company has a store in Michigan on the way. We caught up with Close to learn more about Verts going vertical and what she anticipates in Golden.
Westword: How did you get into the cannabis industry?
Ashley Close: I moved to Colorado from Ohio at the end of 2012, right after Amendment 64 passed. It wasn't the reason I moved, but it was certainly on my mind. Then, in 2013, the Verts partners and I came across an opportunity to acquire a license in Fort Collins.
Based on your experiences, how is operating a Fort Collins dispensary different from those in Denver?
The biggest difference is less competition. Obviously, Denver is quite saturated and is also the center of a large metropolitan area with lots of other municipalities, whereas Fort Collins is a bit of an island. We have a good amount of tourists come through the store, and Fort Collins is a big destination for people visiting Colorado. We get our fair share of CSU students, but our core customer base is made up of Fort Collins locals who are regulars at our store.
Taking over a store in Golden must be exciting. What's the response been like so far?
The response has been great. The timing was good, ahead of 4/20 and the beginning of Red Rocks season. As of now, we are the closest dispensary to the venue, and we love seeing new customers come in on their way to a show. The store has been very well received by the community, and people really like our new layout. We didn't re-create the wheel, but it's a different shopping experience, and people really seem to like it. We love Golden. My business partner, Dan Rowland, and I worked with the city since 2020 to make this happen, so it feels great to finally be able to serve the entire community.
Missouri's cannabis landscape is relatively new, but Verts already has four stores there. How did you expand so quickly?
The Verts stores in Missouri were started by my brother, Alex. He won the four licenses through the state's competitive application process for medical marijuana businesses. Those stores were able to add adult-use sales earlier this year after Missouri voters approved adult use last November.
Golden Alternative Medicine at 511 Orchard Street is now offering recreational sales as Verts Neighborhood Dispensary.
Courtesy of Verts Neighborhood Dispensary
Yes. Verts was established in Colorado, and Fort Collins will always be our home base, so to speak. We just got awarded our first dispensary license in Michigan and are always on the lookout for new opportunities that make sense for our team, our culture and the Verts brand. In this environment, you really have no choice but to keep looking for new opportunities.
As someone who operates a dispensary, what do you look for in cannabis when buying inventory? How do you decide what's good, what's not, and what hits the right value points?
I have entrusted my GMs in Fort Collins and Golden, and they both do an outstanding job of inventory acquisition. They're really good about listening to our customers and taking feedback on products. They anticipate the market well and work with our suppliers to get the best prices possible. Our customers aren't necessarily looking for ultra-premium products; they're looking for the best possible quality at the best possible price, so that's what we focus on. Inventory availability from suppliers can be inconsistent, and our GMs do a fantastic job of smoothing out those peaks and valleys.
What are your favorite strains, products or methods of consumption?
I don't partake all that often, but I really enjoy some of the topical products that are out there. Escape Artists makes an exceptional muscle soreness treatment cream, and I also love Mary's Medicinals products.
So much has changed in Colorado cannabis over the last several years. What do you see changing in Colorado's cannabis landscape over the next five years?
When I consult the Magic 8-Ball, it isn't great about giving me very specific answers! There are certainly things I want to see happen, such as 280E tax reform at the federal level, which will help all cannabis businesses in Colorado. I'd like to see continued success against the outside threats to our industry that would rather tax and penalize us into oblivion, and for those threats to eventually fade away completely.
The State of Colorado has done a remarkable job of regulating this industry, and we need to keep effecting smart changes and reforms that allow us to stay competitive. We've come a long way, but we still are not treated the same as other types of businesses, so my hope is that five years from now, the negative stigmas surrounding our customers and operations will have been traded out for a more appropriate, truthful and positive view of our industry.
