It was May of 2019 when Manitoba began the process of allowing legal cannabis sales. Since that time, there have been many twists and turns on the way to Niverville getting a cannabis retailer of its own.
The wait is finally coming to an end, with Urban Flavours getting ready to open this month, a little over a year since they were given the go-ahead from Niverville’s town council to operate at their location on Main Street.
Harsimran Sandhu, co-owner of Urban Flavours, says that he and his two business partners are excited to finally get their business off the ground.
Sandhu expects the store to be open on January 22, but he says that cannot yet quite be guaranteed. Customers are encouraged to check the company’s website and Instagram pages (see below) for updates.
Urban Flavours will sell a wide variety of cannabis products beyond the standard fare.
“We will be selling edibles, cannabis-infused drinks, shatter, pre-rolls, oral sprays, CBD topicals, CBD capsules, accessories, cannabis flour, and more,” says Sandhu.
Urban Flavours’ cannabis will be sourced from across Canada, but they hope to support local growers as much as possible.
“We would love to support the local growers in Manitoba and ask that they reach out to us if we haven’t contacted them yet,” Sandhu adds.
As for pricing, Sandhu says that cannabis prices are set by the Liquor, Gaming, and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba (LGCA) and they do not allow him to disclose pricing.
When asked if they had received any negative pushback from Niverville after the difficulty of finally getting to this stage, Sandhu was unequivocal: “No. We have had incredible support and look forward to seeing our supporters soon!”
Four local residents have already been hired to work at the store, and Sandhu says that they plan to continue hiring locals as the need for staff arises.
Sandhu would like to assure the people of Niverville that Urban Flavours is safe in all regards. The LGCA sets very strict guidelines for the security of cannabis retailers and he wants people to know that Urban Flavours has exceeded those measures.
“The entire retail space, including exterior and all back of house areas, are monitored 24/7,” he says. “All cannabis is stored inside a highly secure vault which has enhanced security as well. All access into the cannabis vault is controlled through employee scan cards so we will be monitoring this closely.”
Sandhu and his co-owners Harvinder Dhillon and Said Mohamed have multiple other businesses throughout Manitoba. They have real estate holdings and gas stations/car washes and are involved in facility maintenance and food service.
Urban Flavours is located at 2-41 Main Street in Niverville. Once open, their hours will be Monday to Thursday 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Sunday 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
