Camden cannabis dispensary opens in a neighborhood pharmacy, thought to be the first of its kind

Camden now has a dispensary for medical and recreational marijuana inside a neighborhood pharmacy, offering customers one-stop shopping and home delivery.

It is believed to be the first dispensary in New Jersey’s growing cannabis industry to be inside a pharmacy, said Anthony V. Minniti, owner and operator of Bell Rexall Pharmacy.

The Camden Apothecary opened with a soft launch Monday for elected officials and business leaders, making it one of more than 50 adult-use cannabis retailers in New Jersey, according to state data.

The dispensary operates in its own section within the pharmacy on the corner of Haddon Avenue, a mainstay in the community for nearly a century.

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Customers can order online and pick up their product in a secured area at the store where they must show identification. Buyers older than 21 can also order at a digital kiosk in the reception area with tables, chairs and love seats. Soft music plays throughout the space.

“We wanted to create a whole experience that was different from other dispensaries,” said Nichelle Pace, vice president of the Camden Business Association, who designed the space.

Minniti said home-delivery service within a 25-mile radius in New Jersey will be available in about a week. The pharmacy provides the same service for prescription orders, he said.

On the second level is a spacious bud bar for people Minniti describes as “cannasseurs” to smell products all grown and manufactured in New Jersey. They include flower, bud, concentrates, edibles, vapors and pre-rolled products.

“What’s good for stress?” asked City Council President Angel Fuentes.

“All of them,” responded Tim Bartolini, director of operations. “We have everything.”

Bartolini said he wants to educate customers about regulated cannabis to make sure they avoid bad experiences. The dispensary plans to add wellness items like topicals and tinctures, he said.

Camden currently has two cannabis dispensaries and two more have been approved to open soon in the 9-square-mile city of 70,000. Organic Farms opened last month with what its owner says is a first in the region: a cannabis drive-thru window.

Mayor Victor Carstarphen said the city formed a committee and met with residents and business leaders before moving forward with recreational cannabis sales. A 2% transfer tax imposed on every sale will be used for community programs.

“I was never against this,” the mayor said. “It has strong benefits.”

Camden residents get a 5% discount on cannabis products and 25% off paraphernalia and merchandise, Minniti said. Most of the contractors, vendors and employees of the dispensary are city residents, he said.

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Minniti said he expects about 100 to 200 walk-in customers a day to the apothecary, and 50 to 100 home deliveries. The store’s close proximity to Philadelphia makes it an easy commute across one of the Delaware River bridges, but the product cannot be transported over state lines.

He believes Camden Apothecary will be a model for other dispensaries around the country. Georgia recently approved a law that will allow for medical marijuana products at independent pharmacies, with restrictions, in addition to seven dispensaries.

A second-generation pharmacist, Minniti said he got the idea for the dispensary years ago when he discovered an antique bottle used to dispense liquid cannabis. The pharmacy, in business since 1931, appeared to have dispensed cannabis until the federal government banned it. His family purchased the business in 1997.

Minniti believes the dispensary will be popular among customers who frequent the pharmacy for many of their healthcare needs, not solely to have prescriptions filled. The pharmacy can manage any adverse interactions between their prescriptions and marijuana use, he said.

“I look at this as just another evolution of pharmacies,” Minniti said. “We’re really getting back to what the country used to have — medicinal use.”

The dispensary operates seven days a week. An ad on its website notes it will be open for Thanksgiving: “Stop by on the way to Grandma’s.”