New marijuana dispensary, convenience store open in Whitmore Lake

Jennifer Timar, Livingston Daily
·4 min read
Quest Cannabis co-owner Chin Pathak smells marijuana flower sold at his Whitmore Lake dispensary, as general manager Adam Starnes operates a contraption known as a cannabis puffer pod at the store, Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.
Quest Cannabis co-owner Chin Pathak smells marijuana flower sold at his Whitmore Lake dispensary, as general manager Adam Starnes operates a contraption known as a cannabis puffer pod at the store, Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.

A new marijuana dispensary opened in Whitmore Lake in the back of a building that is fronted by a convenience store.

Owners of the two attached businesses at 8475 Main St. say it is a perfect pairing.

Quest Cannabis is the second recreational and medical marijuana dispensary to open in Northfield Township in the past several months, and more marijuana businesses are in the works.

The dispensary is located behind and connected to Quest Spirits, which offers some harder-to-find flavors of snack foods, craft beer, wine and liquor.

Chin Pathak and Kish Sutariya, owners of both businesses, invested a few million to start the business and renovate the former Bobber Down Bar & Grill building and create two separate suites that are connected by a hallway.

"We're trying to normalize the experience of going to a dispensary," Pathak said. "When you pull into that parking lot, we want people to have the same experience as pulling in to grab snacks."

He said a lot of people visit the convenience store after going to the dispensary.

"And there are a lot of canna-curious folks who come in."

Pathak said others are not interested in buying marijuana products and just visit the convenience store.

Quest Spirits, a convenience store, and Quest Cannabis, a marijuana dispensary, are open in Whitmore Lake, shown Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.
Quest Spirits, a convenience store, and Quest Cannabis, a marijuana dispensary, are open in Whitmore Lake, shown Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.

A budding local industry

Pathak and Sutariya are not stopping with the dispensary and store. They have a larger construction project in the works.

They are developing 127 acres near the interchange of U.S. 23 and North Territorial Road into a high-tech industrial business park.

A 30,000-square-foot marijuana grow and processing facility is under construction. They plan to expand the grow facility by another 30,000 square feet in the future.

MORE: New smoke shop in Howell catering to cigarette, vape and marijuana smokers

The development, which will be called Nova Business Park, will also feature five more lots that could be developed for other types of marijuana businesses.

"We're trying to develop this town and create jobs," Sutariya said.

In 2019, voters in Northfield Township rejected a proposal to ban marijuana businesses. Since then, township officials have awarded several permits for marijuana businesses.

Planted Provisioning was the first dispensary to open. It opened in September at 9545 Main St. in a formerly decrepit building across from the lake. Co-owner Matt Ritz and his partners are also improving the remainder of the building for a future tenant.

RELATED: Whitmore Lake's first marijuana dispensary to open Monday; two others expected within months

Quest Cannabis was the second dispensary to open in the township.

Outside of town, another dispensary is planned for 50 E. North Territorial Road.

Robert McCurren is a former emergency room physician who once worked as an emergency medicine director at St. Joseph Mercy Livingston Hospital in Howell. He pivoted to the marijuana industry and co-owns The WellFlower dispensary in Manistee. McCurren has said he wants the Territorial Road store to be WellFlower's flagship.

Quest Cannabis owners and staff recently began serving customers at the new Whitmore Lake marijuana dispensary, shown Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Pictured, from left, are co-owner Kish Sutariya, Jennifer Nelson, Adam Starnes, Jeff Kapnick, Rick Lawrence and co-owner Chin Pathak.
Quest Cannabis owners and staff recently began serving customers at the new Whitmore Lake marijuana dispensary, shown Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Pictured, from left, are co-owner Kish Sutariya, Jennifer Nelson, Adam Starnes, Jeff Kapnick, Rick Lawrence and co-owner Chin Pathak.

What's on the menu at Quest

Quest Cannabis sells recreational marijuana products to people 21 and older and medical marijuana patients 18 or older.

Their biggest sellers are marijuana flower and pre-rolled joints.

They also sell vaporizers, concentrates, edibles, tinctures and topical creams, as well as related accessories such as pipes and grinders.

Most of the products contain THC. The dispensary also sells products containing CBD and other cannabinoids.

They offer in-store shopping with help from staff they call "cannabis consultants," as well as curbside pick-up and delivery.

Sutariya said the shop is set up to make people comfortable going to a dispensary, with staff there to help educate customers about marijuana products.

"We wanted a one-on-one customer experience. Like, if you are looking for relief from something, they can help."

From left, Quest Spirits co-owner Kish Sutariya, general manager Adam Starnes, and co-owner Chin Pathak grab some of their favorite harder-to-find snack food flavors at the new Whitmore Lake convenience store, Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.
From left, Quest Spirits co-owner Kish Sutariya, general manager Adam Starnes, and co-owner Chin Pathak grab some of their favorite harder-to-find snack food flavors at the new Whitmore Lake convenience store, Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.

A different take on a convenience store

"The focus with Quest Spirits is to be a destination for craft beer, wine, liquor and munchies," Pathak said.

Among typical convenience store snack foods, the store sells harder-to-find flavors of popular brands.

"Did you know there is a mango KitKat, a brisket-flavored Doritos, Korean fried chicken Lays, Mountain Dew Oreos?" Pathak said.

"We're also talking about bringing in snacks from Europe and Asia," which are not typically available at convenience stores in the U.S.

He said they plan to fill an aisle with "exotic" snacks in the near future.

They also plan to add a cooler for things such as grab-and-go sandwiches.

Quest Spirits will stay open until midnight on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, which is later than nearly all of Whitmore Lake's businesses.

"In this town, there aren't many options other than gas stations," Pathak said.

Contact Livingston Daily reporter Jennifer Timar at jtimar@livingstondaily.com. Follow her on Twitter @jennifer_timar.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: New marijuana dispensary, convenience store open in Whitmore Lake