Cannabis retailer opens
Newfoundland. Mountain View Farmacy is the only state-licensed business selling recreational cannabis in this corner of New Jersey.
| 14 Aug 2023 | 02:50
CA1 Customers at Mountain View Farmacy in Newfoundland order on electronic tablets by the display cases. It is the first state-licensed cannabis retailer to open in West Milford. (Photos by Kathy Shwiff)
CA2 Amanda Viglione, left, and Melissa Jung work the front desk of Mountain View Farmacy. The cannabis retailer held its grand opening Sunday, July 30.
CA3 An electronic display that customers use to order what they want.
Customers pay at the registers at the back of the showroom.
Products are displayed on shelves at Mountain View Farmacy, the first cannabis retailer to open in West Milford.
Music and food were set up for the grand opening of Mountain View Farmacy in Newfoundland.
Mountain View Farmacy had a steady stream of customers as it celebrated its grand opening Sunday, July 30.
The cannabis retailer, 74 Oak Ridge Road, Newfoundland, opened its doors June 17.
It is the first state-licensed business selling recreational cannabis in this corner of New Jersey.
The next closest is 41 miles away in Paterson, said general manager Tom Sina.
New Jersey voters approved a referendum in 2020 to legalize recreational cannabis sales to residents age 21 and older.
Mountain View customers must show an ID to prove their age before entering the showroom.
The business received an operating license from the state Cannabis Regulatory Commission in February.
The West Milford Township Council has endorsed the applications of several cannabis businesses, including Jersey Roots Dispensary, a retailer under construction at 1433 Union Valley Road.
Cannabis businesses in Sussex County towns, such as Newton and Vernon, are in various stages of the licensing and approval process.
Sina said five big publicly traded companies provide wholesale cannabis in New Jersey so retail prices are similar.
When there are more suppliers, retailers can be more flexible in pricing, as occurred in California and Colorado, he noted.
Meanwhile, Mountain View offers daily discounts on some items as well as loyalty programs.
As a small business with 10 employees, it emphasizes customer service, Sina said.
”I want to make sure people are taken care of,” he said, comparing Mountain View to a mom-and-pop store.
He considers it to be like a pharmacy where “the client is the patient and the doctor.”
While staff members are not doctors, they can make recommendations to customers as a friend would, he said.
Sina plans to offer phone numbers that customers may call to ask advice, even anonymously.
Salespeople are not pushing products, he pointed out. ”We don’t sell. We help people buy.”