Planet 13 Announces Plans to Open SuperStores in Orlando and Miami

Planet 13 today announced a definitive agreement with a subsidiary of Harvest Health and Recreation that will see the Las Vegas-based vertically integrated SuperStore retailer moving into Florida. The license at the heart of this agreement will allow Planet 13 to open as many dispensaries as possible, and the company plans to start with the Orlando and Miami medical cannabis markets.

The acquisition clocks in in $55 million.

"Florida has long been one of our most coveted markets with over 20 million residents, 130 million annual visitors and incredible consumer demand already demonstrated in the medical program. It was important for us to enter the market prior to a transition to adult-use to put the pieces in place to capitalize on this market in both the short and long term," said Larry Scheffler, Co-CEO of Planet 13, in a public statement. "We are excited to introduce our best-in-class retail experience and portfolio of popular products to the Florida market and to continue to build the Planet 13 brand across the United States."

As of late August, according to the company, there were 22 companies holding vertically integrated licenses in Florida, with 371 dispensaries among them.

This Florida agreement follows Planet 13's recent retail license win in Illinois (although that batch of lottery winners in Illinois' retail licensing program remain in limbo). The plan in Illinois is to open a similar SuperStore in the Chicago area.

The SuperStore model can be seen thus far in Las Vegas (with a 120,000-sq.-ft. "cannabis complex" just off the Strip) and in Santa Ana, Calif. (pictured above).

"After a lot of planning on how we wanted to approach this market, now is the time for action. We are well capitalized to complete the initial buildout of our cultivation and retail plan which includes a network of neighborhood stores in priority metro areas to support future SuperStores in Miami, Orlando, and other tourist destinations," said Bob Groesbeck, Co-CEO. We have a successful track record of completing large retail and cultivation buildouts on time and on budget. This expertise combined with our differentiated, experience-driven retail and diverse product portfolio gives us confidence moving into the Florida market."

Beacon Securities Limited is acting as financial advisor to the company in connection with the license acquisition.