‘Here to get a little buzz’: Buyers flow into retail marijuana stores as Delaware launches recreational market

What are journalists missing from the state of Delaware? What would you most like WHYY News to cover? Let us know.

“What we do have is the Papaya Bomb,’’ Lex Meisenzahl explained to James Giroud as he stood before a computer touch screen in the Field Supply marijuana store in northern Delaware. “So on top of being relaxing, that is also euphoric.”

Giroud didn’t need much convincing from the budtender.

“Ok. Let me take that,’’ he said.

“Excellent,” Meisenzahl responded. “So in order to add that to your cart, just hit add cart right over here.”

And with that brief exchange Friday morning in Mill Creek Shopping Center west of Wilmington, the 70-year-old Giroud made his first legal weed purchase. Field Supply is one of 12 stores that made history in Delaware as the state launched its recreational cannabis market, more than two years after weed was legalized in April 2023.

Giroud, a retired warehouse manager who lives about two miles away from Field Supply, couldn’t have been happier to patronize his neighborhood shop.

“Just here to get a little buzz and it’s legal,’’ Giroud crowed as he waited for his order to be filled. “I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. It’s been a long time coming. And it’s a great thing too. It’s going to keep me from going out on the corner and looking for dirt weed.”

Giroud’s rush to buy weed at the store on opening day is exactly what state regulators and marijuana entrepreneurs were hoping for Friday. Indeed, he was one of dozens of people who flooded into Field Supply in the first half hour after the doors opened at 9 a.m. Several buyers waited outside long before then.

Randolph Kellett, an electrician by trade, was another delighted customer who lives nearby. Kellett bought a quarter-ounce, or 7 grams, of Papaya Bomb, which he says packs the “heavy buzz” he prefers, and a prerolled joint of the same strain.

“It’s a safe environment,’’ Kellett said of having legal retail stores. “I can come in here like a gentleman and ask for what I need and get what I want and pay with the money that I have and walk out of here legally.”

Field Supply is among the 12 medical marijuana licensees whose owners purchased $100,000 so-called conversion licenses to launch the market. The state has authorized 30 retail-only stores, but bureaucratic delays like holdups in FBI background checks for applicants have prevented those licenses from being awarded. Authorities think some of those stores can be open by early next year.

You must be at least age 21 to buy retail weed, and pay a 15% sales tax. You can’t buy or possess more than one ounce, or 28 grams, at a time. The 12 locations where recreational sales are now being offered are spread throughout the state.

‘It’s an adult decision. It’s an adult right’

While weed is now legal, many of the customers at Field Supply who spoke with a WHYY News reporter said they didn’t want to be identified because they don’t want their bosses or others to know they purchased the intoxicating substance.

“You don’t want your job knowing what you’re doing,’’ said one middle-aged woman who has been getting high “a lot of years” and was grateful she could now walk into a store to buy weed.

“I’m here because we’re finally allowed to be here,’’ said the woman, who was joined by a friend as she shopped for vape products. “Finally open for us in Delaware.”

Meisenzahl, Field Supply’s assistant manager, counseled the two women about the vape offerings.

“Honestly, White Widow is one of my favorites,” she told them. “As a hybrid, it’s definitely more relaxing. You can use it at any time of the day and it’s different for everybody. But for me personally, the White Widow is one of the best for a nice, leveling, mellow ‘I can relax today’ buzz.”

Meisenzahl said she was heartened by Friday’s initial influx of customers.

“Enthusiasm is pretty fantastic,’’ she said. “We’ve been waiting on this for almost two years. Most of the people are here to peruse and see what we have on the shelves.”

Field Supply owner James Brobyn, who heads the Delaware Cannabis Industry Association, said employees were filling about 30 online orders before the store even opened.

“I think it’s a good start. It’s a Friday and a work day so I think tomorrow might be our big day,’’ Brobyn said as the clock was about to strike 9 a.m. “But either way, we’re just really happy to have recreational sales here finally and be able to serve the people of Delaware.”

David Tuttleman, a Wilmington entrepreneur who has been involved in the cannabis business, was on hand to support his friend Brobyn and see Delaware’s recreational industry get going. Tuttleman also suffers from chronic pain and says marijuana has improved his quality of life.

“I believe in it,’’ Tuttleman said. “I think it’s good for people that need it. It’s not good to abuse. It’s not good for people to overconsume, but it’s good for those that need it and want it. It’s an adult right and it’s an adult decision and why not support that?

About 9:30 a.m., Delaware Marijuana Commissioner Josh Sanderlin arrived at Field Supply as he made his rounds of the five stores in New Castle County.

“I think folks are really excited and want to get out, get purchasing early, taking part in the historic day,’’ Sanderlin said. “Ultimately, I think today is the beginning of something very big in Delaware.”

“It starts today with the conversions but continues on throughout this year as we do new licensees and issue conditional licenses and get new cultivators, manufacturers, dispensaries online in the state.”

Sanderlin said his office will likely release initial sales figures and state tax revenues sometime next week, and report them on a regular basis.

Where can I buy retail marijuana now?

• New Castle County
  • Columbia Care Delaware, 5608 Concord Pike, Wilmington 19803
  • First State Compassion, 37 Germay Drive, Wilmington 19804
  • Fresh Delaware, 800 Ogletown Road, Newark 19911
  • The Farm, 240 S. DuPont Highway, New Castle 19720
  • Field Supply, 4555 Kirkwood Highway, Wilmington 19808

• Kent County
  • Best Buds (CannTech), 516 Jefferic Blvd., Dover 19901
  • Columbia Care Delaware, 200 S. Dupont Highway, Smyrna 19977
  • The Farm, 105 Irish Hills Road, Felton 19943

• Sussex County
  • Best Buds (CannTech), 23 Georgetown Plaza, Georgetown 19947
  • Columbia Care Delaware, 36725 Bayside Outlet Drive, Rehoboth Beach 19971
  • First State Compassion, 12000 Old Vine Blvd., Unit 102, Lewes 19958
  • The Farm, 34164 DuPont Blvd., Frankford 19945

For hours of operation, contact the store or check their website.

This story was supported by a statehouse coverage grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.