SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cindy De La Vega grew up sleeping on the floor to avoid stray bullets from the frequent shootings in her Sunnydale neighborhood during the height of the War on Drugs.
Now, she’ll soon become the first Latina to own and operate a cannabis dispensary in San Francisco.
A mother of two, domestic abuse survivor, and long-time community activist with the City’s well known United Playaz group, Cindy is also a Verified Equity Applicant through San Francisco’s Cannabis Equity Program. Established to combat the effects of the War on Drugs on targeted communities, the San Francisco Equity Program is gaining momentum, and reaches another important milestone with the opening of Cindy’s store.
This moment is especially relevant in 2020, when cannabis has been deemed an essential service in California, states across the US look to cannabis legalization to help turn around the economy, and the nation is confronting perhaps its biggest moment of reckoning for social justice. Equity programs seek to create prosperity and secure ownership in the cannabis industry, which is poised to create billions of dollars of wealth over the next 30 years.
“I am an example of how Equity programs actually create real opportunities for people who will pour resources back into their communities,” says Cindy De La Vega. “I will use my position as CEO not only to ensure success of the store, but also to be a role model for women and women of color, showing them they are capable of becoming leaders and business owners.”
The new store, STIIIZY Union Square, is located at 180 O'Farrell Street, and will be open for its first day of operation on October 9, 2020. Operated in partnership with vertically integrated cannabis company Shryne Group Inc., STIIIZY Union Square will offer the same high value products the brand is known for across California. As a company whose employees are 51% Latinx and have women in several leadership positions, Shryne is uniquely positioned to support this partnership with De La Vega.
“At Shryne Group Inc., we are guided by the conviction that especially in the cannabis industry, social justice is as essential as sustainability and profitability,” says Brian Mitchell, Shryne Group’s chief executive and co-founder. “We are thrilled to have Cindy at the helm of STIIIZY Union Square and are optimistic about the success of our San Francisco footprint.”
Following the opening of STIIIZY Union Square, Verified Equity Applicant and professional boxer Karim Mayfield will own and operate a new dispensary in Potrero Hill in time for the holiday season, also in partnership with Shryne Group Inc.
About Shryne Group Inc.
Shryne Group Inc. is a Los Angeles-based cannabis holding company with a fully, vertically integrated asset and license portfolio covering the breadth of California, the largest legal cannabis market in the world. The enterprise is the result of the synergetic integration of profitable cannabis assets and veteran professionals who have come together for the opportunity to shape this industry. Our vision is informed by an intimate understanding of cannabis culture, its history and the collective expertise of decades of experience in diverse fields. Our STIIIZY product line is one of the best- selling cannabis brands in the market today. We are rooted in California, but currently have operations in Nevada and Washington - soon to be in Michigan, and distribution networks to future markets in more than 60 countries. For more information, visit www.shrynegroup.com.