The Top Shelf seeks to grow local recreational marijuana business

By AL STOVER

Staff Reporter

When customers walk into a recreational marijuana store for the first time, they might expect to walk into a smoke-filled room with no windows, Bob Marley posters hanging on the walls and a Cheech and Chong movie playing on a small television in the back.

Customers who walk into the The Top Shelf, will show the security guard their ID, go through the door and enter a clean room where merchandise is displayed in jewelry cases and on shelves.

"I wanted to make it more sophisticated," Florence Childs, owner of The Top Shelf said. "I wanted to get away from the stereotypes."

The Top Shelf, a recreational marijuana store located at 1305 S. Hayford Road, opened Jan. 10. Childs, who is retired, entered the Washington State Liquor Control Board's lottery for a retail license at the suggestion of her family.

"My family said 'you should really put in for that, you're the luckiest person we know,' and my ticket was drawn" Childs said. "It's (The Top Shelf) something I knew I could do with a good crew. So far it's worked out really well."

There are three workers at the store, one being manager Jenn Bordoy, who met Childs through mutual friends. The Top Shelf features buds, concentrates, tonics and Willie Nelson pre-rolls. The store carries strains from local farms, one being Happy Crowd Farms' Cherry Blossom, near Cheney, which has a 28.6 potency rate and a smooth inhale, according to its description. Prices range from $18-$50 depending on the strain and weight.

"A lot of people look for the locally grown products," Bordoy said. "We do have farms from Seattle and elsewhere but so far all of our business has been very local."

The store also sells cookies from Henderson Distribution Bakery out of Spokane. A cookie with 10 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) cost $12 while edibles with 30 milligrams of THC cost $20. The store also sells accessories ranging from $8-$50.

In the future, Bordoy and Child hope they can offer more strain and edible options for customers.

"It's not about having the most marijuana, but having a good variety and we're getting there," Bordoy said.

The store had its grand opening, Jan. 24. Where customers had an opportunity to talk with farmers and distributors

In addition to selling merchandise, Bordoy and Childs will answer questions customers may have about their merchandise. According to Bordoy, the store receives a lab report for every product it takes in and customers can ask to look at the lab results. She and Childs also remind customers to uphold the law.

"I ask that they take it home and don't smoke it in our parking lot," Bordoy said. "We've already been given a nice freedom and we don't want to abuse it."

Al Stover can be reached at [email protected].