Columbia Care Transforms Florida Footprint to New Award-Winning Cannabist Retail Experience

December 8, 2021

Largest Market Transformation to Cannabist as National Rollout Progresses; Nearly One Third of All Columbia Care Retail Locations Are Now Cannabist

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Columbia Care Inc. (NEO: CCHW) (CSE: CCHW) (OTCQX: CCHWF) (FSE: 3LP) (“Columbia Care” or the “Company”), one of the largest and most experienced cultivators, manufacturers and providers of cannabis products in the U.S., announced it has completed the rebranding of its footprint across the state of Florida to the new Cannabist retail design and experience. To celebrate the occasion today, stores are holding honorary ribbon cutting ceremonies across the state.

“Our completion of the rebrand in Florida is an extremely important milestone in our nationwide transition to Cannabist. This is our first market-wide Cannabist launch and represents a critical step in Columbia Care’s evolution,” said Nicholas Vita, CEO, Columbia Care. “The Cannabist experience is industry-leading, as we aim to provide the best products and the best customer service in the industry, enhanced by our innovative technology solutions that facilitate an efficient, personalized and targeted shopping experience. We look forward to bringing Cannabist to even more customers and patients across the country in 2022 as we expand throughout our national retail footprint.”

Cannabist retail locations are home to premium products that focus on the highest quality and reliability. As part of that commitment to product quality, as in other markets, Cannabist Florida will also explore cultivation and distribution partnerships with fellow cannabis connoisseurs. Throughout 2021, Columbia Care expanded its product offerings in the Florida market, and patients now have access to more than 100 products including flower, extract, vaporizer cartridges, capsules, flavored edibles, pre-rolled joints and tinctures.

“It’s exciting to finalize the transition to our new Cannabist model and be able to offer the true higher experience to Florida patients,” said Jesse Channon, Columbia Care’s Chief Growth Officer. “Patients will continue to have access to the same high-quality cannabis products at their preferred locations, and they will now also have access to the retail improvements that reflect the new Cannabist brand and shopping experience, including our proprietary cannabis discovery tool, Forage. Our goal is to welcome patients no matter where they are on their cannabis journey, and ensure that their experience is enjoyable, accessible and memorable. We’ve seen a tremendous response to Cannabist transitions in other markets and look forward to sharing Cannabist with Florida patients.”

In September 2021, Columbia Care received approval from the Florida Department of Health’s Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU) to operate as Cannabist. Cannabist locations serving the more than 636,000 qualified patients in the state include: Cape Coral, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Melbourne, Miami, Orlando, Longwood, Bonita Springs, Bradenton, Brandon, Delray Beach, St. Augustine, Stuart, and Sarasota.

In addition to the 14 Cannabist locations in Florida, Columbia Care has more than 100,000 square feet of operational cultivation and manufacturing capacity, including more than 38,000 square feet of greenhouse space in Alachua that completed its first harvest in June.

For more information, visit www.gocannabist.com/florida.

About Columbia Care

Columbia Care is one of the largest and most experienced cultivators, manufacturers and providers of cannabis products and related services, with licenses in 18 U.S. jurisdictions and the EU. Columbia Care operates 131 facilities including 99 dispensaries and 32 cultivation and manufacturing facilities, including those under development. Columbia Care is one of the original providers of medical cannabis in the U.S. and now delivers industry-leading products and services to both the medical and adult-use markets. In 2021, the company launched Cannabist, its new retail brand, creating a national dispensary network that leverages proprietary technology platforms. The company offers products spanning flower, edibles, oils and tablets, and manufactures popular brands including Seed & Strain, Triple Seven, gLeaf, Classix, Press, Amber and Platinum Label CBD. For more information on Columbia Care, please visit www.col-care.com.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws and reflect the Company’s current expectations regarding future events. The Company has made assumptions regarding its ability to execute on brand and product initiatives, which although considered reasonable by the Company, may prove to be incorrect and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by any forward-looking information. Securityholders should review the risk factors discussed under “Risk Factors” in Columbia Care’s Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2021, filed with the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authorities on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and described from time to time in documents filed by the Company with Canadian securities regulatory authorities.

Investor Contact
Lee Ann Evans
Investor Relations
+1.212.271.0915
ir@col-care.com

Media Contact
Lindsay Wilson
Columbia Care
+1.978.662.2038
media@col-care.com

Source: Columbia Care Inc.