Illinois Investigation into Cannabis Corruption Leads to Shocking Discovery

Is your information safe with your local dispensary? We collected information and sent secret shopped the top 10 cannabis dispensaries in Illinois and were shocked by what we found!

Cannabis is now legal in Illinois for recreational use but even since it's medicinal start, the dispensary owners and growers have made their mark on cannabis and they're making sure you don't forget it. Like the pharmaceutical corruption era of big pharma, we now face the government coming in and forcing businesses out, taking their rights to earn an income simply so they can take the business out from under them. Luckily, our business saw this coming and even with the gas lighting and attempt to rob us, we've lost a lot due to the greed of certain people. However, we stand firm and ensure our name is known too and certain dispensaries will recognize and attempt to help you succeed. You'd be surprised at what the founders of the Cannabis industry have had to endure this year alone. We sent in 5 different people to the top five dispensaries and had them cycle through them for a year and you'd be shocked by what we found!

Here are the top ten rated dispensaries and what we actually found there and we're rating them on a scale of 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest.

10. Mindful Dispensaries

This is surprisingly rated one of the top dispensaries but we're positive it's them rating themselves. This dispensary is run by a bunch of liars, thieves, voice actors, and folks that are NOT in cannabis for the health and healing side of things. On multiple occasions we've caught their staff on live streams, crossing state line with products meant for medical patients in Illinois. The staff have influential connections and they're wealthy, and they want to be more wealthy. This dispensary not only lied to an gaslit their patient, but then chased them online to undercut and steal their CBD sales, even though legally they can't sell CBD products in their dispensary. The products they DO choose to sell, hempbombs, has consistently failed labs and tested under mg limit or contained contaminants. As if that wasn't enough they also suck off their patients, share their personal information to mock them online, steal their sales and destroy their businesses. The icing on the cake was them having lose dogs out that run at working service animals... and them then kicking the patients, which is against federal law. (ada.gov) We even have the FAQ for service dogs listed here as we work closely with the ADA and our CEO herself had a seizure alert dog.

However this dispensary is wealthy and knows everything about you. They will gaslight and break you in an effort to ensure no one will believe you. Luckily, with people like us out here, we are able to catch it early and show everyone exactly how badly they use and abuse their patients. Here's a video by the talented ServiceDogPaws about them admitting in writing to breaking federal law and then banning a patient from medication. 

This is by far one of the WORST dispensaries in Illinois that needs to be overhauled. The ascetic is the only thing going for it which means they make too much money for absolutely no work. It's easy to succeed when you think you're above federal law. I wonder what else they're doing against federal law?

Our Rating: 1

9. Greenhouse

Greenhouse is one of those companies we worked with early on that suddenly stopped answering their phone and now own a dispensary. Take that for what you will but De La Cruz now acts as if they never spoke with us before and that alone was a red flag. Their dispensary was not open at the time of testing even though it claimed to be online therefore we were unable to visit.

Our Rating: N/A

8. Midway

Midway dispensary was a breath of fresh air, even though the parking was atrocious (as Chicago normally is) but they don't tow and allow hazard parking. The staff is cool and when one of our guys came with 5 minutes to closing, they helped them without making it feel like an inconvenience. The building is a very city like but they certainly make up for it with their staff and how they handle customers. With better space and some few additions, this dispensary group could really take off!

Our Rating: 7

7. Verilife

This company has always been ahead of the curve with licensing medical patients and online availability. Much like following business rise, they are geared towards mostly medical in one location and both in another. 

Other than their online prowess, this company was a hit or miss and nothing was reported one way or another.

Our Rating: 5

6. Rise

Much like Verilife, there wasn't much to report about RISE. They started mostly medical but they provide a significantly smaller menu for rec. While you can walk in directly with your medical card, the wait is long and outside for recreational. Other than that there was not much to report. The menu wasn't as big as Verilife but we expect their growth to go positively in the upcoming year.

Our Rating: 4

5. Earth Med

Walking in here you'll feel like you're going to a pawnshop. They have tons of options but you'll be ushered into a tight rope line and have to fight for availability. The staff is very polite and they do what they can, but their selection of dabs and iso were so low our shopper went twice without being able to find anything they could benefit from. That's such a loss for the industry. Sadly, if you're recognized like our second shopper was, you'll be stalked online by this group as well. We were also offered to be in an "adult video" by one of the staff members on break, which was awkward. However, their online antics are very unfortunate.

Our Rating: 4

4. Windy City

This is a company we want you to watch. They come from a place of family and street smarts. Windy city started in the heart of Chicago and is connected to many underground artists and influencers that help the revolution continue through them. They look out for one another, they don't let each other fall, and they have unity unmatched to any other dispensary we've been to. They could use more space at their south location but you get the feeling you're included with this group. They're not coworkers, they are a family of people that think similar and can have fun with one another and it shows. Even with our company, it seems to be the Windy City picking us up when we have fallen. Their choice in influencers can't be matched and they pick artists that are on their way up but need the boost, something important to us here at NHC. We fully expect to break through the weed war on the right side and it will be with Windy City by our side. Even when you can't see the company in brand, it's always a staff member helping out the fallen which NO OTHER DISPENSARY WILL DO. TRUST US. 

They have 3 locations and you can choose a favorite but they all give off the same family vibe. When we leave the Windy City for business, they'll have an eye out on new brands, companies, influencers and they deserve their spot on top. We've been specifically working with a few of their guys who've moved into cbd, running them up the ranks. If there's going to be a movement or revolution, it will happen underground and no one knows underground like Windy City.

While looked at as not one of the big guys, they're actually quite big and we're hoping with their help to put the Windy City on the map in 2021. They have people in every facet from strain cultivation, to strain growth, to media, to having one of the biggest selections in the state. They're a natural group with a duality to them that really balances them out well, helping the people out that have been framed or buried, like we were at one point. They are the most fun to work with and they know how to right a wrong. 

The staff has the most extensive concentrate menu and friendly faces willing to explain them to you. I wish they were closer so I could make them MY dispensary of choice. You won't find a bigger menu in Illinois guaranteed. Some things here and there need improvement like a few of their online staff members, but they fix it really quickly. Just don't get between them and their rivals because they will not be able to see you there and they don't take the shit from big boy government weed and will break a block aid, a HUGE plus to us.

Our Rating: 8

3. The Herbal Care Center (THC center)

This is a nice, big facility. It's always clean and inviting. They could really use some assistance in parking, but it's not as bad as midway. The staff is chill, super easy to get along with, and they recognize you when you come back even if you've been gone a while. Directly after the service dog incident earlier, my dog went through a situation where he would bark at any dog (thinking he was going to be attacked again) and they handled the situation like pros, giving me a place to move him away from the other dog to stop the barking for their customers. They're all friendly, many of them are incredibly talented as well. They have private medical and easy access. I do wish they had a bigger concentrate menu.

Our Rating: 7

2. Consume

We literally love everything about this place except the difficulty with actually getting in the lot. They always have a great selection that you can order online through Iheartjane.com and they actually will have it ready for you, something most dispensaries are still having trouble with. On top of that the staff is always super happy and peppy. They're really sweet and helpful as well. The best part is you don't even have to get out of the car! They'll walk it right out for you! That's a benefit to our lazy and on the go moods!

Our Rating: 8

1. Zen Leaf

I actually regularly go here. Their staff is sweet as heck and they're pretty in the know with the online and offline perils of the business. They have a huge collection and while the lines are long but medical can skip it. The inside gets a little packed on the weekends which isn't the best situation for covid but we all work with what we have. They're getting into gaming and influencing themselves which helps us all out. They ARE super expensive in comparison to other dispensaries, even for medical, which is a downside but they make up for it with their speed and their late hours. They're open 9-8 and that helps our schedule tremendously better than the other places that close at 6pm. They have a great staff, huge selection, and a lot of their staff is going to glow in the upcoming 2021. We can tell.

Our Rating: 8

Finally we'd like to mention Medmen. They're a great group of men working together to better the movement. As we have relatives that work there and we know they recently had a break in, we thought putting them in the list wouldn't be fair due to bias we may or may not have. However their dispensaries are great as is their products and as a group of people with terrible luck who always seem to get the shit end of the stick, what they built from it is incredibly impressive and worthy of mention. I honestly hope the Medmen are seen for their position in this movement and not just based on assumptions people make about them. We have them behind us too, always pushing and making sure we're safe and we do our best to return the favor. To prevent bias, we simply cannot rate them, but we love them and think you'll love them too.

So, what do you think of our ratings of the top 10 dispensaries in Illinois? Do you agree? Disagree? Find us on social media and let us know! 

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