ANN ARBOR, Mich. — C3 Industries, a multi-state, vertically integrated cannabis company with headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has announced its entry into the Massachusetts retail market via a partnership with social equity licensee Brian Chavez, which encompasses three new High Profile x Budega retail locations in the city of Boston.
The first of the three stores, located at 43 Freeport Street in Dorchester, is celebrating its grand opening this weekend from March 17-20.
As part of the partnership, C3 Industries and Brian Chavez will also be opening locations at 561 Dudley Street in Roxbury and 3995 Washington Street in Roslindale. The stores will carry a wide array of cannabis products in all categories, and will specifically feature Cloud Cover flower, prerolls, concentrates and vape cartridges produced at C3's cultivation and processing facility in Franklin, Massachusetts.
Brian is one of the only social equity applicants in the country to obtain licenses for three stores in a major city and will serve as the CEO of the partnership. Brian comes from a family of small business owners and entrepreneurs, and two of his uncle's bodegas will be converted into stores. Brian and his brother Jaison ran an extensive community engagement process to get the three locations approved. Many in the community sent letters of support for the projects; in total, more than 1,000 letters advocating for the approval of the three sites were submitted.
"We are proud to be entering the Massachusetts retail market with Brian and his family, who are highly respected members of the Dorchester community and believe strongly in our mission to increase access to high-quality and safe cannabis products," said C3 Industries CEO Ankur Rungta. "We look forward to serving Boston consumers at the three new retail stores and hope that our partnership with Brian can serve as a model for the industry on how MSOs and social equity licensees can work together successfully."
The partnership between C3 and Brian is groundbreaking, with an experienced operator partnering across a portfolio of locations in a major city with a local family that has the trust and support of the local community. The partners will share responsibility for managing and operating the portfolio, with C3's corporate team providing additional support.
"Honestly, my family and I wouldn't have worked with most MSOs, but Ankur and the C3 team are not a typical MSO," said High Profile x Budega CEO Brian Chavez. "We had done everything we could to secure these licenses and were struggling to find funding and move these projects forward when we were introduced to C3's executive team, who share our passion for high-end flower and supporting the local community. We look forward to working with C3 and helping other small business owners partner with large MSOs in the future."
