VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 28th, 2019 - PRESS RELEASE - Cova is the point-of-sale (POS) solution of choice for nearly every major cannabis retailer entering the coveted Ontario market. The key province has proven a serious challenge for private cannabis retail, with elusive licenses, strict regulations and high expectations. With no room for error, 20 of the 25 retail license winners, including The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co., Ganjika, Ameri, Superette, Hobo Recreational Cannabis Store, Fire & Flower, and Spiritleaf, are putting their trust in Cova software to ensure smooth sailing when they open their doors.
“Cannabis retail is far more complex than other retail environments, and compliance is a big factor,” said Gary Cohen, CEO of Cova. “We wanted to help our customers protect their hard-earned license and investment; that’s why we carefully designed our product to align with the nuances of cannabis laws and regulations. Our POS is equipped with automated compliance features like age verification, sales limit alerts and batch tracking to help prevent human error.”
Cova’s experience in technology and retail spans 20 years. Rooted in an enterprise environment, the retail technology company brings robust resources and infrastructure, while remaining agile enough to incorporate customer feedback and keep pace with the evolving cannabis retail industry.
Cova’s advanced platform has earned industry favor largely because the easy-to-learn software is backed by comprehensive support. The company’s premier launch team and ongoing help with processes and best practices was vital to retailers like The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. and Spiritleaf.
“We are very pleased to be opening our flagship Ontario Spiritleaf store in Kingston,” said Darren Bondar, president and CEO of Inner Spirit Holdings, the company behind the growing Spiritleaf franchise. “We trust Cova as our POS partner to support this milestone and power all our store operations. Having been in retail for 20 years, we know that an easy-to-use and reliable POS system is crucial for the success of a retail business. After spending over a year evaluating various POS systems, we chose Cova and have not looked back.”
The Kingston store marks the sixth location for Spiritleaf, Canada’s largest cannabis retail franchise concept. The Calgary-based company is rapidly expanding, with 50 approved permits in Alberta alone, over 20 franchise agreements in Ontario with more than 100 potential stores in development across the nation. Cova will continue to serve as a close partner to ensure that successful expansion.
In Toronto, The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co.--one of the first companies to be granted a license in the province--will open a 3500 square-foot store in the heart of downtown.
“As we approach the finish line, we couldn’t be more excited for April 1st and to welcome our first customers. As the first legal retailer to open its doors in the city of Toronto, we have a duty to set an example for current and future retailers, which means paying close attention to all of our vendors, from designers to POS software. We are confident in Cova’s overall approach, service offerings and their dedication to compliance, which is incredibly valuable to us at The Hunny Pot," said Hunny Gawri, owner of The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co.
“Cova is very excited to work with such dedicated entrepreneurs who share our values and commitment to propel the cannabis industry forward,” Cohen said. “These retailers worked hard to make an incredibly challenging deadline and meet all the government requirements. We’re committed to working hard and to continue earning their trust while we help them succeed in this incredibly exciting journey."