Renamed, relocated CannaSaipan holds grand opening

CannaSaipan Dispensary & Lounge and VaprSpot held their grand opening last Saturday morning in Beach Road, Garapan.

Louis Rodgers, the owner of VaprSpot, who previously owned Canna Marianas on the second floor of the IT&E building along Chalan Laulau Road, moved his business to a new location last July 8 at the corner of Beach Road, Garapan beside Salt & Barber Shop.

“I’m formerly the owner of Canna Marianas. My wife and I are going to be moving to the mainland, so we saw the opportunity for us to be able to just go ahead and close that retail location down. The location really wasn’t a key location after IT&E moved in, you know, trying to compete with parking but ultimately, we decided we’re going to close,” said Rodgers.

Canna Marianas was a pioneering cannabis shop that opened in 2021.

The Canna Marianas is now CannaSaipan Dispensary & Lounge under the ownership of Connie Palacios. Rodgers mentioned that their almost year-long professional relationship started when he helped Palacios with her farm in Obyan located by Ladder Beach.

“With Canna Marianas it was just me but when Connie was looking to get into the cannabis industry, she came to us to seek some guidance. Since then, we’ve been pretty much working hand in hand,” said Rodgers.

Rodgers pointed out that vape shops and cannabis stores complement each other.

“Before even at the old location, we had a vape shop in Canna Marianas and now we have the vape shop in CannaSaipan and the two really work hand in hand. They’re both niche markets because not everybody vapes or uses these cigs and not everybody smokes cannabis in the broader market so they kind of pair well together. They do complement each other and from a business standpoint and just having that inside of here also helps to support operational costs, business issues, and stuff like that,” said Rodgers.

Rodgers also added that the Saipan market now is going through some challenges and he was hoping for the CNMI Cannabis Commission to conduct some marketing initiatives.

“I mean, cannabis is relatively new. Our Cannabis Commission is still learning some things I think that would help to maybe drive customers and maybe relax the stigmas that are out there. If there was some marketing done by the Cannabis Commission to show that there is support for the industry to generate public awareness. Support our local cannabis industry, which is a local business developed here from the ground up and that would really go a long way to help this industry at least support the economy. It’s not going to be as big as ever as the tourism industry, but it’s still a homegrown industry, and we need more things. Homegrown industries could probably help bolster the CNMI.”

Three of Louis Rodgers’ staff members were moved to CannaSaipan after the shutdown of Canna Marianas. He also mentioned that they will be hiring two more to cover the hours that they are open.

The event, which was attended by friends and families, started with the ribbon cutting at 11am, followed by a Judas Belt fireworks display for more than three minutes. It concluded with guests getting a tour inside the shop.

CannaSaipan Dispensary & Lounge and VaprSpot is open from Monday to Saturday, 11am-7pm, and Sunday, 12pm-6pm. For more information, call (670) 234-8277.