Trying to find a compelling story behind one individual during these “turbulent” times — as my father calls them — proved more difficult than myself or my partner, Miranda Knight, could have imagined. We thought about the industries affected by the pandemic: small businesses, tourism and event planning were a few that came to mind. We thought about the individuals affected by the state of our world: those involved in the Black Lives Matter Movement, people whose hometowns suffered due to California’s wildfires or the immunocompromised who have had to pivot their lives amidst COVID-19.
Ultimately, we landed on Megan Souza. Souza is a small business owner that opened the first cannabis storefront in San Luis Obispo city. When Miranda pitched that idea to me, I automatically felt drawn to it. I’d never been in the store, but I’d seen plenty of photos of it on social media and loved its aesthetic. This is part of the reason we chose Megan’s Organic Market — we needed a story subject that was not only interesting to read about, but also was visually appealing. Not only was it visually appealing, it also appealed to various audiences. The controversial aspect of the cannabis industry in SLO was a nice bonus for us.
“It’s fun to get insight into an industry that is largely considered taboo, and be able to dig into the business behind it all,” Miranda said. “Most shocking was finding out that it’s not mostly college students who shop at the store, but rather Megan’s has a pretty big older clientele.”
I was surprised, too, to find out that the customers of Megan’s fell more on the ages 55 and up range rather than 30 and below. Not only that, but the clientele was the same for her original CBD store in Morro Bay as well.
For the video and photos, we decided early on that we had to go inside, since the look and feel of the store is a huge part of what’s made Megan’s popular amongst our peers. It was nice to meet Souza in person, and do in person reporting again, even if it was with masks on from six feet away. Even with no products on the shelves, the store lived up to the hype.
Megan was more than willing to share her entire journey in the cannabis/hemp industry with us, and had no shortage of knowledge on the legislation involved. Not knowing much about the industry or her products besides what I’d researched myself, this was a particularly intriguing part of the interview. So many of our contacts from the Community Outreach assignment asked the question, “Why now?” Cannabis has been legal for recreational use since 2016, but that didn’t mean there weren’t still hoops to jump through.
I think the thing that sticks with me from the interview is Souza’s poise throughout the difficult questions. She knows and loves the industry she’s in, controversies and all. Opening this shop has been in the works for 10 years, and it was evident how proud she is of the finished product.
“There will always be pushback, but cannabis is here to stay,” Souza said. “The people want it, and once it’s there, you can’t take it away.”