Shoppers Drug Mart took its first step into the cannabis industry on Tuesday, officially launching its ecommerce platform for medical cannabis.
As of today, residents in Ontario can now log in and purchase medical cannabis through shoppersdrugmart.ca/cannabis.
Shoppers is the first Canadian pharmacy retail chain to be licensed to produce and sell cannabis.
“Today’s announcement is a leap forward for those looking for professional oversight and trusted support in this area,” said Jeff Leger, president of Shoppers Drug Mart in a press release.
“Medical cannabis, like any prescribed medication, requires the same level of counsel from a healthcare professional. As medical cannabis is increasingly prescribed to Canadians for its therapeutic benefits, our goal is to enhance the service and support that patients receive through this process,” he said.
Its new site offers more than just a way for patients to purchase the drug; it also provides detailed information on the various types of cannabis, how they work, their effcets, causes and effects and the different forms it comes in.
While the site itself can be accessed across Canada, only Ontario patients registered to buy medical cannabis are able to make purchases at this point. Though Shoppers states on its site that it is “working hard to be able to support all Canadian patients soon.”
Shoppers first announced in December that it had been granted a licence to sell medical cannabis online. And according to a CBC report, a spokesperson for the company stated it was still working through technical issues with Health Canada before it could launch the ecommerce platform and it was too soon to say when people would be able to start making online orders.
But Shoppers seems to have worked through those issues and now offers fresh and dried cannabis, plants, seeds, oils and medical accessories.
Shoppers states that it has signed supply and quality agreements with ten licensed producers that will help it provide products and medical accessories.
A quick peruse of its website shows that its suppliers include major Canadian licensed producer Aurora Cannabis, which made a splash in the recreational cannabis world this past year with legalization.
The pharmacy chain is also offering a team of virtual professionals through the site to provide counseling and support for patients, from helping with medical records to helping with strain selection.