Good Chemistry Closes Two Denver Dispensaries

Good Chemistry has closed two of its four dispensaries in Colorado, including its original storefront at 330 East Colfax Avenue.

According to Good Chemistry vice president of brand Katie Kinne, the Colfax and Highland locations are only temporarily closed, and the company is keeping their marijuana business licenses active in hopes of reopening them at some point. However, this "difficult decision" also came with layoffs at Good Chemistry's corporate office.

"These decisions were not made lightly, but they are necessary to ensure the continued success of our company and its ability to serve the regulated market effectively," Kinne says. "Good Chemistry remains committed to the principles that guided our entry into the industry: support for a well-regulated market that provides safe, legal access to cannabis. However, it is crucial that regulations evolve to keep pace with the current state of the market. Economic pressures, high taxes, and the lack of enforcement against the illicit market and intoxicating hemp products continue to be significant challenges that must be addressed."

Good Chemistry still operates two dispensaries in Colorado: one on Broadway in Denver and another in Aurora. The company also has two stores in Massachusetts, according to Kinne. But as Colorado's marijuana market continues to decline, Good Chemistry founder Matthew Huron decided to pivot into more wholesale operations.

"In Colorado, we are going to reallocate some resources and production from those two stores to the wholesale market," Kinne says, adding that Good Chemistry's wholesale flower is already sold in several outside chains, including the Cannabist, Snaxland and Trees.

Good Chemistry's location in Highland was about four years old, but the original store in Capitol Hill was nearing its fifteenth anniversary. Huron, who moved from San Francisco to Denver in 2006, opened Good Chemistry as a medical marijuana dispensary in 2010, and expanded to four stores after recreational pot sales began in 2014.

"Matthew’s first location, Good Chemistry’s Colfax store, has been an integral part of the company, as well as the Colorado cannabis community. However, the market has faced increasing challenges in recent years," Kinne says.

Colorado dispensary sales have been tanking since hitting a record high during the COVID-19 pandemic, going from $2.2 billion in 2021 to $1.5 billion in 2023, a decrease of over 31 percent. According to state Department of Revenue data, this year is expected to come in even lower than last. Kinne and Good Chemistry say that high business taxes and fees on marijuana businesses, the illicit market, and intoxicating hemp products have "significantly impacted the legal cannabis industry."

"Unfortunately, Good Chemistry, like many self-funded cannabis companies, has not been immune to these pressures," Kinne notes.

Good Chemistry is one of several Denver dispensary chains to close or sell locations in recent months. Over the summer, Mighty Tree closed both of its Denver stores. In June, Altitude the Dispensary sold all three of its locations to a new brand called Fire Cannabis, which also purchased four dispensaries previously owned by Lightshade. Just last week, the Health Center closed one of its three locations, its longtime Uptown dispensary on Downing Street.