New York Cannabis Dispensary Series: Tropicana High - Grooving with Orange County Cannabis

Dispensary Name: Orange County Cannabis

Dispensary Location: 1308 Dolsontown Rd Suite 3, Middletown, NY 10940

Dispensary Owner(s): Father-daughter duo Howard Libron and Shantel Libron

Website: https://www.orangecountycannabisco.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/occ_ny/

Path to legal cannabis:

Excerpted from an article in the Albany Times Union:

Shantel Libron became emotional as she spoke about how meaningful it was for her and her dad, Howard, to finally open Orange County Cannabis, their long-awaited recreational cannabis dispensary in Wawayanda.

“I’m very proud,” she said Friday, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Her dad, who moved from the Bronx to Middletown 30 years ago, had served time in jail for a marijuana-related offense in the past, Libron said, and the news coverage of it back then affected her family. But now they are being celebrated as local business owners who have opened the mid-Hudson Valley’s first legal marijuana shop in Wawayanda, selling recreational cannabis and creating 20 jobs in their community. They would have liked to have opened in Middletown, Libron said, but the city and most of the surrounding towns opted out of allowing recreational sales there.

On hiring employees:

Excerpted from Patch:

Owner Howard Libron told Patch that he can’t wait to open his doors in the coming weeks to offer high-quality and tested cannabis products to the mid-Hudson Valley and surrounding areas.

“Having the opportunity to open an adult-use cannabis dispensary is surreal,” he said.

He said the company is looking to hire between 20 and 25 people in a range of positions.

“A history working at a cannabis dispensary or personally using cannabis isn’t a requirement,” Libron said, “but a passion for the cannabis plant is.

“I’m looking for people who support cannabis for both its recreational and medicinal features,” he said, “and are excited to educate others on the benefits and uses of the plant.”

On perseverance in the face of delays:

Excerpted from Mid-Hudson News:

After months and months of delays caused by, among several factors, state regulation delays and lawsuits, Orange County Cannabis opened its doors to the public on Friday.

Owner Howard Libron, a former truck driver, called it a “surreal” moment.

Chris Alexander, the executive director of the State Office of Cannabis Management, attended the grand opening which he acknowledged was a long time in coming.

“We committed ourselves to providing greater access to New Yorkers to have safer and tested products. So, we legalized them, and we have to create avenues for people to buy those products,” he said. “We’ve been growing them; our small farmers have been doing an incredible job producing them. But if we don’t have this access here, this huge access point in the Hudson Valley, then we’re not making good on that.”

On the ceremonial first sale:

Excerpted from Albany Times Union:

Immediately following Friday’s news conference, Howard Libron conducted the first sale in the store — to Shantel Libron, who purchased pre-rolls. The crowd cheered when she raised her receipt and danced. Howard later took a brief break from networking to look out over the crowd and the long line of customers.

“After so many months of seeing it empty, built and ready to go, now,” he motioned to the crowd, “it’s like, touchdown.”

The excitement being the first cannabis dispensary in the Hudson Valley:

Excerpted from article in News12 Hudson Valley:

The Hudson Valley’s first retail cannabis dispensary opened Friday in Orange County.

Orange County Cannabis Co. is located on Dolsontown Road in Wawayanda.

It’s the 45th conditional adult-use retail dispensary in the state and opened with a lot of local excitement.

“We had 10 orders before our doors even opened online. We already have 3 ounces sold. We have two different types of edibles sold. We had a soft opening with 20 customers in an hour,” said operations manager Shantel Libron.