COLUMBUS, Ohio — This is a historic week for dispensaries across Ohio.

While medical marijuana has been accessible since 2016, dozens of dispensaries now have the green light to sell recreational adult use products to those 21 and up. Dispensaries received their recreational licenses about a month ahead of schedule. When voters passed Issue 2, it stated sales would not start until Sept. 7, but the Ohio Cannabis Coalition worked with dispensaries and lawmakers to get sales going this month.  

Standard Wellness has three locations in Ohio. The Forest is their dispensary brand, and they have locations in Sandusky, Springfield and Cincinnati. All three of their locations experienced long lines and full parking lots, with wait times between 20 and 25 minutes. 

Products in the recreational space are the same as products in the medicinal space, however the stipulations for the two are different. Medicinal customers can purchase a 90 day supply or nine ounces, while those in the adult use space can only purchase a 10 day supply, which is about half of an ounce.

However, those purchasing for recreational use can make a new purchase everyday. Standard Wellness dispensaries saw about triple their revenue on Tuesday. However, it might take a while for the state’s numbers to catch up. 

“So the Ohio program does about $500 million of annual revenue,” said Jared Maloof, who serves as the CEO of Standard Wellness. “Conventional wisdom would say it should do $1.5 billion, however, that could be somewhat constrained by the small number of dispensaries, of which there are only 135 out there.”

Maloof said that while he expects the excitement to die down over the next few weeks, he hopes to see fewer restrictions in the coming months that will boost sales again.