By SARATOGA SPRINGS — Silver Therapeutics, a cannabis company co-owned by a Saratoga Springs resident, opened the first recreational dispensary in the city last Friday on Weibel Avenue.
“We wanted to be first,” said Brendan McKee, a co-founder of Silver Therapeutics. “We wanted to be in the community as soon as we could.”
Beating other companies to the punch while navigating New York’s regulatory requirements was a challenge, McKee said, but no more daunting than dealing with the requirements in other nearby states such as Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont, where Silver Therapeutics collectively owns six other locations. McKee said that he tells aspiring dispensary owners that opening a shop is “probably going to take you twice as long as you think, and cost you twice as much as you think.”
Silver Therapeutics was keen to plant its flag in Saratoga because Josh Silver, a local attorney and co-founder of Silver Therapeutics, lives in the city with his wife and two children. Silver’s sister is also the license holder and partner for the Saratoga location, making it a woman-owned enterprise. According to trade publication MjBiz, 39% of cannabis executives in 2023 were women, an 18% increase from the previous year.
Aside from its ownership, McKee said that Silver Therapeutics distinguishes itself from competitors by working with wholesale partners to drive down prices, sponsoring community events, and maintaining a 90% employee retention rate.
“Our team members are happy,” McKee said. “We take care of them and, as a result, they take care of our customers.”
Located at 75 Weibel Avenue across from The Springs apartment complex, Silver Therapeutics is now fully operational and open daily from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.
