Columbia Care completes acquisition of Medicine Man cannabis company

New York-based cannabis company Columbia Care has completed its acquisition of Colorado’s Medicine Man cannabis company, it announced in a press release on Monday.

The purchase of Medicine Man follows Columbia Care’s acquisition of Colorado-based dispensary and cannabis cultivation company The Green Solution. According to the press release, the addition of Medicine Man’s assets to the company portfolio brings Columbia Care’s Colorado holdings to 26 dispensaries and six cultivation and manufacturing facilities under both brands.

“This marks the next step in the evolution of Medicine Man, from an ambitious family-run company to part of a best-in-class operation,” said Sally Vander Veer, CEO of Medicine Man. “Our experience with Columbia Care through this process has reinforced the reasons we decided to partner with them. The team has been incredible, fair and efficient over the last few months.”

The acquisition of Medicine Man began in June for $42 million, including $8.4 million in cash and $33.6 million in stock. 

Colorado’s cannabis revenue totals $11.5 billion dollars since recreational sales began in January 2014, according to the Colorado Department of Revenue, with sales in 2021 reaching $1.5 billion as of August. In the press release, Columbia Care CEO Nicholas Vita cited Colorado’s cannabis revenue as a motivating factor in the company’s acquisition of both Medicine Man and the Green Solution.

Longmont City Council approved the retail sales of recreational cannabis in October 2017, limiting the number of dispensaries to four within city limits. Per the Longmont Municipal Code section 6.70.240(E), it is illegal for a person to be a controlling owner of more than one cannabis dispensary, meaning Columbia Care will have to close either Medicine Man or Green Solution’s Longmont location.

With either Medicine Man or Green Solution shut down in the first quarter of 2022, there will be a vacancy for a cannabis license in the city. Longmont’s Marijuana Licensing Authority will convene a selection division to review any applications on file and begin the selection phase and review process. According to City Clerk Dawn Quintana, there are no plans for Longmont to expand past four retail licenses for cannabis sales.

Representatives from Columbia Care and Medicine Man were unavailable to confirm which location would be closing.