Alicia Deals, up-and-coming cannabis entrepreneur and social equity license holder, opened Arizona’s first Cookies brand dispensary on June 24.

With this announcement, deals has become the first Black woman to operate a cannabis dispensary stemming from a license awarded from Arizona’s social equity program, a press release detailed.

The new Cookies dispensary is located at 2715 S. Hardy Drive in Tempe.

The opening event included special discounts, deals and giveaways all day. Rapper and entrepreneur, Berner, the founder and CEO of the Cookies brand, also performed at the dispensary’s ribbon cutting alongside Deals. 

Cookies is a leading provider of top-quality products and strains, offering numerous cannabis varieties and product lines to legal medical and adult-use recreational markets across the country.

Headquartered in San Francisco, the company was named one of America's Hottest Brands of 2021 by AdAge; the first cannabis brand to ever receive this accolade.

“The Cookies brand is authentic and innovative, which is important to me as a new cannabis entrepreneur,” said Deals. “I am proud to be entering the cannabis sector as a social equity license holder and the first to bring this popular brand to the state.”

Black entrepreneurs account for less than 2% of the nation’s cannabis businesses while women hold only 13% of executive roles in the cannabis industry, according to recent statistics.

To change this narrative, Deals was the recipient of one of 26 social equity cannabis sales licenses issued by the state of Arizona as the result of Proposition 207, which legalized adult use and required the state to promote the ownership and operation of licensed marijuana establishments by individuals from communities disproportionately impacted by the enforcement of previous marijuana laws.

In an ironic twist, Deals is a rising star in the cannabis industry while her father, Robert Deals, serves time in prison for cannabis-related charges. Using her voice, she continuously advocates for justice for her family, the release stated.

In addition to her dispensary work, she plans to launch Life Changers Law Firm and other entities in which she can help give people hope and change lives.

To learn more, visit https://cookies.co/stores/cookies_tempe.