ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Cloud Cannabis wants customers to “live higher.”
Michigan-based cannabis brand will open its Ann Arbor dispensary at 1760 Plymouth Rd on Monday, Oct. 19
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Co-founded by Chief Development Officer John McLeod, a former Detroit Police Department officer who credits cannabis with helping him quit opiates, the company approaches the cannabis industry with a patients-over-profit mantra.
“This all started as medicine. It is medicine first in our opinion, and we want to make sure that patients are valued and taken care of first and foremost in this market,” McLeod said.
Cloud Cannabis' goal is to help customers “live higher.” It may be a fun play on words but the company wants to fight the stigma against cannabis use by helping customers become better versions of themselves. For McLeod, this has a personal connection as cannabis helped him stop using prescription medication, and he credits it for saving his life and marriage.
“This all started with me realizing that I had life outside of opiate addiction and could do so with cannabis,” McLeod said, adding that the idea expanded to how the company can bridge the gap between stigma and healing.
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The Ann Arbor location will sell cannabis for both medical and recreational use through curbside services and aims to educate customers with individualized recommendations. Team members use a teaching approach to explain products, dosages and proper usage.
McLeod said the company wanted to open up an Ann Arbor dispensary due to the city’s well-known forward and open approach with cannabis.
Born and raised in metro Detroit, McLeod said, “I think to be considered a legitimate cannabis operator in Michigan, you have to be in Ann Arbor, in my opinion.”
The company wants to honor all of the work in the cannabis industry that has happened through Ann Arbor.
As the brand’s second location, the store will support about 20 jobs, according to McLeod. He said that jobs created by the company, and in the cannabis industry, offer growth and upward mobility.
Cloud Cannabis has seen its own employees quickly rise in the ranks and move from entry-level positions to managerial levels. The brand plans to expand to 10-12 new locations in the next 18 months and intends to bring around 200 jobs to those who have been traditionally unemployed or underemployed, McLeod said.
The Ann Arbor location will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays.
To give back to the surrounding community, the cannabis brand is partnering with the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County. McLeod said that the brand will donate a portion of opening week sales to the local nonprofit and intends to support the association’s mission to end homelessness one person at a time.