Where to Find Legal Cannabis in California on Jan. 1

As the first state to legalize medical cannabis over 20 years ago, the plant is finally legal for adult-use in California. As of Jan. 1, select dispensaries are legally selling recreational cannabis to adults who are over 21, and CULTURE was able to connect with one location that is celebrating California’s new found FWEEDOM in 2018.

Caliva is an industry-leading brand and dispensary in San Jose, and the company is welcoming customers to partake in its FWEEDOM event, which starts at 9 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2018. There will be a celebration with music, food trucks, wellness stations, giveaways, and of course—top quality adult-use cannabis. CULTURE was able to connect with Caliva’s VP Branding & Marketing Rosie Rothrock to find out more about this exciting event and celebration, as well as how Caliva has positioned itself as one of the leading brands in California’s recreational cannabis scene.

Operating since 2015 in San Jose, Caliva is not a frontrunner by luck. Instead, it’s relentless hard work and effort that has brought the company to this point of success. “We have worked hard to get to where are today and are excited to be licensed and ready to open our doors to more customers in 2018! A second but large hurdle for us has been being able to scale our team at the same rate that we’ve been scaling the business,” Rothrock told CULTURE. “We’re always on the hunt for new rockstars across every part of our business (marketing, compliance, retail, finance, cultivation, sales, etc.) that are eager to be a part of a rapidly growing company in such a fascinating industry at a hugely pivotal moment!”

This pivotal moment is undeniably reason to throw a party, so don’t miss your chance to check out California’s burgeoning recreational cannabis industry by celebrating with Caliva on Monday morning. “We are thrilled to finally be celebrating FWEEDOM, and we’re pulling out all the stops on Jan. 1, 2018. The first 100 guests in line before our doors open at 9 a.m. will receive a mystery prize box (all 100 are winners) worth up to $500 in value.” Additionally, all customers will be entered into a raffle, plus there will be a ton of entertainment you don’t want to miss. “We’ve also pulled five lucky ‘Golden Ticket’ winners that we have invited for an all-access tour of Caliva’s grow and dispensary led by our CEO,” Rothrock stated.

According to Rothrock, as of Dec. 28, Caliva had received 14 separate temporary licenses, and the company expects to receive more over the next few days. “Although we are excited at the prospect of being able to provide to the entire cross section of the cannabis industry throughout the state, positioning for such has not been without its challenges,” Rothrock shared. “We opened our doors in 2015 in one of the most heavily regulated cannabis markets at the time, San Jose. Although difficult at the time, our success in this market and our committed approach to regulatory compliance since the beginning set a foundation that has allowed us to be nimble in pivoting to accommodate recent regulatory and compliance hurdles that were necessary in preparing to apply for state licensing.”

Are you looking for other legal cannabis celebrations on Jan. 1? Harborside is hosting events in Oakland and San Jose, with gifts and prices distributed to the first 100 people in line. Harborside Founder Steve De Angelo will be at the Oakland location.

Buddy’s Cannabis in San Jose is also having a Grand Opening for Recreational Sales starting at 9 a.m. There will be specials throughout the store and national media coverage as well!