Second longest-standing Peterborough pot shop to close July 2 – oversaturated market getting blame
PETERBOROUGH-Happy Dayz, the second longest standing cannabis store in Peterborough, is to close for good on July 2 throwing at least four store employees out of work. While the trend over the past few years has been to see weed stores open in the city, it is believed Happy Dayz, located on the east side of George Street between Charlotte and King Streets, is the first pot store to close in Peterborough since marijuana became legal for recreational use in the fall of 2018. That is according to Christine Closs, manager of the Happy Dayz Store.
However, across the province closing weed stores is not that unique. The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) which oversees the province’s almost nearly 2,000 weed stores reported that at least 32 stores in Ontario have closed since June, 2021.
“We began selling cannabis in August of 2019. It took us a little while to get our licence. We were the second store in Peterborough to sell cannabis. We sold accessories like pipes and bongs for years before that. I believe there are about 20 cannabis stores currently operating in Peterborough with more on the way,” Closs said. “I wasn’t overly surprised to see our store close. Our numbers have been on a downward trend for a while now. We already laid off several employees, but it is what it is. I didn’t expect to be changing careers at my age. But my experience has been when one door closes, another one opens.”
Closs said there is absolutely too much competition in the city and feels strongly that is what has led to their impending closure.
“We have the 20 stores in Peterborough alone. But then we have Lakefield, Havelock, Omemee, stores all around us. We also have Alderville – (the Indigenous First Nation Territory) which is only a 45 minute drive. Out there they have another ten to twelve stores. I understand Hiawatha Territory has also voted to allow stores. I’m not sure how long that will take to get up and running. So there is very heavy competition around here.”
Closs predicts that Happy Dayz will be the first of many to close in the Peterborough area.
She said she could not say much more and directed any further questions to the store’s owner, Calgary-based Fire and Flower. Company spokesperson Aaron Moody directed us to their website fireandflower.com but we did not see any reference on it to the Peterborough store closing.
Aren Arkarakas is a co-owner of the Kasa Kana cannabis store which has outlets in both Peterborough and Huntsville.
He said he lives in the Greater Toronto area but visits his stores in Peterborough and Huntsville often enough to see that both cities have more weed stores than they can support,. Huntsville, with a population of about 20,000, has at least six stores.
“I never want to see a competitor close down. It’s not good for the industry and it’s not good for the economy in general. Everyone has obviously put through the wringer with Covid over the past two years plus. It has been a tough go for a lot of people,” Arkarakas said. “At the end of the day, it’s the industry really correcting itself. Twenty stores in a city of 80,000 is major overkill. We knew this was a possibility – too many stores – and that’s one of the reasons we did not open in the GTA. Forecasting what is coming and knowing the market is all part of being an entrepreneur. The last tuning we want to see is people losing their business or losing their jobs. There are 1,800 stores in Ontario. Not all of them are going to be successful.”
