Velvet Brings Its Award-Winning Dispensary Experience to Napa

Velvet Cannabis has opened a dispensary in Napa, the third store from the Martinez-based company.

President and Chief Operating Officer Matt Morea said his firm took over the Harvest of Napa downtown location on Second Street on June 16. It was formerly operated by Trulieve Cannabis, which manages 184 stores from its Quincy, Florida headquarters. Many are rooted on the East Coast.

Morea, who partnered with Farid Harrison, declined to provide details of the financials.

“We are thrilled to bring our award-winning cannabis retail experience to the community of Napa,” he said, further touting the store’s planned appeal to focus on providing an upscale experience, extensive menu of items and stand-apart customer service.

The retail cannabis shop, measuring about 2,500 square feet, will sell flower, edibles, CBD oils, topicals vapes and beverages. Beyond having budtenders on hand, a few areas in the store have been set aside for product counsels, but Morea noted many of his customers seem to already have their minds made up.

“They have an idea what brought them there,” he said.

His goals revolve around an industry well known to Napa.

“I’d like to partner with the hospitality industry,” he said.

Velvet Cannabis joins Abide and Perfect Union, which morphed into the recreational use from medicinal when the North Bay city went legal for adults in March 2022.

“We feel very fortunate being in this market,” Morea said.

The COO is fully aware that outside the boundaries of the city of Napa, conditions are different. As a jurisdiction, adult, recreation cannabis sales are still illegal in the unincorporated region of Napa County. This is despite over half of voters polled supporting it since California made it legal with the passage of Proposition 64 in 2016.

Cannabis delivery is legal in the county under the Medicinal and Adult-use Cannabis Regulation Act allowing for delivery in any jurisdiction.