Second Cup's parent company just opened its first Toronto cannabis dispensary
Second Cup's parent company, Aegis Brands, opened its first cannabis dispensary just days ago in midtown Toronto.
The new chain of recreational cannabis dispensaries is called Hemisphere, and it was inspired by the idea of navigation.
According to a news release from the company, both the in-store experience and the brand as a whole are "built around the idea of offering wayfinding for Canadians in their cannabis purchase journey."
The first Hemisphere Cannabis Co opened Friday at 1703 Avenue Rd., which formerly housed a Second Cup location, and six more locations are scheduled to open in Ontario before the end of the year.
"It's no secret that we've been exploring opportunities within the cannabis space since early in 2018, and we're thrilled to finally be celebrating the launch of Hemisphere Cannabis Co. in Canada," said Steven Pelton, CEO of Aegis Brands, in a statement.
"With Hemisphere, we've created an environment that's entirely focused on matching customers with the right product for their desired experience — whether they're shopping for cannabis for the first time ever, for the first time in a long time, or for the first time today."
Aegis' family of brands now includes Hemisphere in addition to Second Cup and Bridgehead Coffee. The parent company was created as part of a corporate restructuring at the end last year.
Additional Hemisphere locations slated to open across Ontario in the coming months include:
- 518 Eglinton Ave. West (Toronto)
- 700 King St. West (Toronto)
- 65 Front St. East (Toronto)
- 955 Westney Rd. (Ajax)
- 171 Rideau St. (Ottawa)
- 3838 Innes Rd. (Orleans)
"We created Aegis with the vision of building a portfolio of amazing brands that can grow and flourish by leveraging the expertise that we've developed over 40 years in the Canadian retail and foodservice industry," Pelton said in the statement.
"Given our unparalleled access to top tier real estate assets across the country, and the incredible shared services that Hemisphere will be able to tap into as part of the Aegis network, we truly believe the potential for this brand is limitless."
