Elgin's first recreational marijuana dispensary, The Record Store at High Haven, is now open for business.
“It's been a long journey,” said Maha Sulemanji Bortchek, CEO of High Haven Cannabis and a graduate of Larkin High School in Elgin. “We're excited to open a dispensary in our hometown.”
The Record Store, located at 15 Clock Tower Plaza, follows the concept of its two other stores in High Haven, incorporating a theme (in this case harkening back to the days of old record stores in the 1970s) as part of its identity: The company's Darien location is known as The Gas Station, and its Normal location is The Puff Palace.
Suleimanji Bortchek has helped set up dozens of clinics across the country and said he noticed most of them looked like sterile medical facilities.
“We wanted to do something very different,” she said. Taking a more fun approach, she said, will help reduce the stigma some people may feel when entering a recreational marijuana store.
“People ask me if I'm selling records,” Sulemanji Bortchek said.
After High Heaven Dispensary couldn't secure a desired lease for its Elgin store on Randall Road, it set its sights on this location in Clock Tower Plaza and opened on Saturday. (High Heaven Dispensary)
Behind a security door, cannabis enthusiasts can browse High Haven's menu, which features locally-sourced cannabis as well as “edibles, a variety of drinks and topical patches,” she said. “We carry anything you'd find in a traditional dispensary, anything infused with cannabis.”
High Haven hopes to work with large and small growers, including two based in Elgin, Sulemanji Bortchek said.
“Being a small business ourselves, we love supporting other small businesses and seeing them grow and become a part of our business,” she said.
“Everything is hand-selected. We have sourcing experts who have been in the business for years and know the factories extremely well,” she says. “We buy everything in small batches, so everything that hits the shelves is fresh.”
About 400 people came to the store on opening day, Saturday. “When I see the smiles on the customers' faces, I realize I'm doing a good thing,” she said.
On the way to the grand opening, Suleimanji Bortchek faced many obstacles.
She said she applied for a cannabis retail license in 2019 and began “wooing” the city of Elgin that year, building relationships with local leaders and holding discussions with city officials. She said the community and city council welcomed the idea, but there were hurdles to overcome, including the pandemic and a lawsuit High Haven filed against the state over the license application process on social equity grounds.
The company won the lawsuit and was awarded five licenses in 2022. The Darien store is set to open in November 2023, followed by the Normal store in May.
Finding a store in Elgin was a challenge, Sulemanji Bortczek said, especially since a dispensary needs a location that can accommodate sufficient foot traffic, ample parking and comply with state safety regulations.
After a lease for its Randall Road store fell through last year, the company set its sights on a new site in Clock Tower Plaza.
“If someone had told me when I was in high school that I'd end up running a pharmacy in town, I think a lot of people would have believed me,” Sulemanji Bortchek, a 2000 Larkin graduate, said with a laugh.
In fact, she says, “it's just crazy to even think about it.” Back then, there was no legal cannabis industry, and marijuana was “very frowned upon. There's a world of difference between how people view cannabis 20 years ago and today,” she says.
The interior of The Record Store cannabis dispensary in High Heaven is designed to evoke the atmosphere of a 1970s store that sold LPs and 35 RPM records. (High Heaven Dispensary)
While many states allow the legal sale of marijuana for recreational use by adults, Sulemanji Bortchek said he believes it's only a matter of time before the federal government fully approves it.
“I think it will happen sooner than we think,” she said, but she hopes lawmakers take their time crafting policy because it's a very sensitive industry and one decision could negatively impact existing pharmacy owners.
She also hopes to see more women and minorities entering the industry.
“Women of color are underrepresented in this industry,” she says. “There aren't many women of color running businesses, making decisions, starting businesses.”
“I'm glad we're setting a standard that not only women but minorities can participate,” Sulemanji Bortchek said. “This is a really great opportunity to be an example for the rest of the community. I've always said, 'You can't be what you can't see.'”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for the Courier-News.
First published: September 24, 2024, 1:43 PM
