Moon Flower Hemp opens in Buckhannon

Published: Mar. 31, 2023 at 3:54 PM EDT
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BUCKHANNON, W.Va (WDTV) - Even though it was a rainy day, that didn’t stop the Buckhannon community from coming out and showing support for Moon Flower Hemp’s grand opening.

People were ready and lined up at 9 a.m. to see the groovy store on Main Street.

Sisters Riley and Macie Queen are the owners. While they were excited for the big day, they’re also concerned about two recent bills impacting their industry.

Among other things, the bills ban the sale of synthetic look-a-like products of delta-8, delta-9, and delta-10 in West Virginia.

The legislation passed because of concerns those products could fall into the wrong hands, mostly children.

Riley said they agree with some of the new laws, but say a new tax that was implemented at the same time will impact their business.

“They did implement an 11% privilege tax. So, we can’t put that on the receipt. We have to pay for that as a business. So, that’s a big challenge, but we’re still here.”

Riley said at first it was a fight for them. They were disappointed by the lack of efforts from lawmakers.

“We felt as though we were reaching out to all of our representatives in the state, and we only heard back from one. Being one of the leaders in the cannabis industry here it was a big disappointment because those decision makers are supposed to represent us, and they didn’t as far as the decisions that were made.”

However, the Queens sisters aren’t letting it get them down. They’re powering through and trying to educate people about what they say are the benefits of THC and CBD as a form of alternative medicine.

Macie said they want to be as transparent as they can.

“People can come in here and expect not only somewhere to purchase our products, but somewhere to experience them and be able to sit around, and hangout, and interact with our space. Learn a lot about cannabis while you’re here. We have endless education opportunities.”

Moon Flower Hemp is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. and Friday from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m.