New Cannabis Retailer Finally Licensed To Open In South Jersey

One of the largest growing industries in New Jersey over the last few years has been the Recreational Cannabis Retail Business.

In 2023, there was $800.2 million in revenue from Recreational and Medicinal Cannabis purchases just in New Jersey. This makes the Retail Cannabis Industry one of the largest financial producers in the state, on par with Sports Gambling which crossed the $1 Billion Revenue Mark in 2023.

However, at the start of 2024, there was only one full-service Cannabis Retail Store in Cape May County and only a few options within reasonable driving distance for South Jersey residents.

There have been accusations by state residents and local politicians that the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission has been slow in its approval process for new licenses.

According to NJ Biz, there have been 2,500 applicants who submitted applications for licenses with 1,344 applicants receiving conditional licenses. But only 209 businesses have been awarded full Cannabis Operating Licenses from the CRC at the start of 2024.

Good News For One South Jersey Cannabis Business

The Cannabis Retailer INSA has locations in Five states and the plan was to open their first dispensary in New Jersey in an underserved area of the state.

When the Middle Township Planning Board granted a Site Plan Waiver for a new Cannabis Retail Store back in January, the plan was for INSA to open its new retail outlet in South Jersey at the corner of Route 9 and Avalon Boulevard where the Wawa used to be open almost 20 years ago.

But the approval of a Cannabis Operating License by the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission for INSA Middle Township was delayed for months.  In the meantime, another Retail Cannabis Outlet got to become the second Recreational Cannabis Store in Cape May County.

The good news is on December 12 the New Jersey CRC finally reviewed and approved the INSA Middle Township application for a Standard Retailer Cannabis Operating License. This means the third Recreational Cannabis Retail Outlet will be opening in 2025.

While you wait for the grand opening of the INSA Middle Township Cannabis Outlet in 2025, here is a list of the stores in New Jersey that legally sell Cannabis in the state in 2024: