A week before the World Cup, a Toronto cannabis shop has already got ahold of the trophy — sort of.
Cosmic Charlies is selling golden bongs that resemble the tournament’s prize and are marketed as “a true hat trick: portable, durable and easy to clean.”
“I’m not going to lie, I don’t know how many (I’m going to sell), so I didn’t get too many. I think I only stocked three or four,” said Sean Kady, owner of the Queen Street West shop, which is a short walk from Toronto Stadium.
“My thought was I could at least sell a couple and worst-case scenario, if I had one left over, I could put it out every World Cup. It’s a fun piece regardless.”
The garish bong is just one of the ways Canadian cannabis stores are hoping to score with local soccer fans and tourists attending the first World Cup in a place that has legalized weed.
While no one expects cannabis to overshadow the action on the field, many foresee at least a marginal lift in pot sales and dispensary foot traffic when Toronto and Vancouver play host for their combined 13 matches in June and July. (The remainder of the tournament will take place in the U.S., where some states have also legalized weed, and Mexico.)
The BC Liquor Distribution Branch, which supplies the province’s pot shops with product, is forecasting a “moderate” increase in cannabis demand on match days in Vancouver’s downtown core. Its Ontario counterpart pegged the potential sales boost some businesses near the action could see at 10 per cent.
“When you look at it on a micro level, there are certain stores that are right by the stadiums and they could go through multiple days of inventory and sales in one or two days,” said Mandesh Dosanjh, president of Inspired Cannabis Co.
His chain has several stores in downtown Vancouver, where B.C.’s allotment of games are being played. During the World Cup, they’ll be decked out in flags and on match days will offer promotions to draw more people in.
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