Kobie Evans Worked for 4 Years to Get His Dispensary Open, COVID-19 Shut Him Down After 14 Days

4 Years to Get My Dispensary Open and COVID-19 Shut Us Down After 14 Days

Kobie Evans of Pure Oasis was a pioneer in Massachusetts Marijuana then COVID-19 Showed Up

Kobie Evans of Pure Oasis is a Massachusetts marijuana legend. Kobie was one of the first SE or EE applicants to get a retail dispensary license set up from start to finish. It was a long and grueling process that took up over 4 years of Kobie’s life. He was rewarded for all that hard work with the chance to open the first recreational dispensary in Boston proper. Kobie set up Pure Oasis as the first recreational cannabis location in Boston, hence having the first-mover advantage in a city or roughly 700,000 people. Yes, there were medical dispensaries set up like NETA in Brookline, MA and Patriot Care on Milk St in Boston, but no one had a recreational shop approved and open yet.

The Pure Oasis grand opening was covered by Pro Cannabis Media and none other than lead anchor Jimmy Young. Pure Oasis was a symbol that Massachusetts marijuana and the Cannabis Control Commission had righted the ship and things were finally moving in the right direction as far as their SE and EE applicants.

Then COVID-19 hit the state and Governor Baker, not a pro-cannabis fan, shut down all recreational sales of marijuana in the state. If you were a shop that had both medical and recreational licenses, you had to stop recreational sales. If you were a recreational shop only, as in no medical license, you had to shut down completely.

Kobie Evans got to be open for 14 days and then the shut down order came

We have covered the Massachusetts decision to allow medical but not recreational sales here on Cannabis.net as well as our live shows at Pro Cannabis Media. Governor Baker claims the long lines at recreational stores (due to the state dragging its feet over the past 36 month approving and getting recreational shops opened) poses a health risk during the COVID-19 crisis. He also claimed that since Massachusetts is the only New England state offer recreational sales, many out-of-state residence would be coming into Massachusetts for buy cannabis, not ideal for COVID-19 and virus spreading.

While his points are valid, there is an obvious middle ground or compromise that could have been reached. All dispensaries use POS systems and menu management software that allows for appointment making, online sales, pickup options, and now, delivery options. Just like many restaurants that serve curbside, takeout, or delivery, recreational cannabis stores could have processed orders, delivered to curbside, or done a pickup system. Delivery is not up and running officially in the state, but COVID-19 is now allowing medical dispensaries to deliver to patients. One idea floated was to only allow Massachusetts residence to order and pick up recreational items, as that would cut down on out-of-state buyers. So far, Governor Baker has not changed his mind and has said “recreational sales is a non-starter right now” in press briefings, while all stores selling alcohol are up and running as "essential services". Big crowd at the to buy wine, stay six feet apart, big crowd at the store to buy recreational cannabis, no way, shut it down.

Either way, Kobie Evans has kept a positive attitude and was gracious enough to sit down with Pro Cannabis Media to discuss his journey to this point, how we felt about being open for two weeks and then shut down, and what the future holds for Pure Oasis in Massachusetts. Click the YouTube video below to hear his update!