Thanks for the picture @uncle_vinny. You’re our favorite uncle.
That second pot shop approved by the state at one intersection on Capitol Hill at 15th and Republican? It will be an Uncle Ike’s.
The latest twist in the As the Weed Turns-level soap opera playing out around 15th Ave E pot is that building owner Ian Eisenberg is, indeed, a big part of the plan to open a new pot shop on the corner.
We asked Eisenberg — a CHS advertiser — after seeing a sign teasing the Uncle Ike’s brand show up outside the construction underway to transform the former veterinary clinic into a new Uncle Ike’s.
We already knew another pot shop was coming to the street. And we knew it would be in Eisenberg’s building. In February, CHS reported on the approval of an I-502 retailer license for an entity called Lion’s Heart owned by Daniela Bernhard, a veteran of Seattle’s medical pot dispensary scene. The location for the permit is across the street from Ruckus which opened in December as the first I-502 pot shop on Capitol Hill.
Now we know Eisenberg will be involved in more than just developing the property he acquired for $1.5 million in 2015 and collecting rent.
Eisenberg declined to get into specifics of the arrangement but said that the 15th and Republican shop will be owned by Bernhard but be operated under his Uncle Ike’s brand and, we can assume, business model. While smaller pot shops have touted the quality of the marijuana or the quality of the shopping experience, Ike’s ads often are focused on price. In April, we reported on the $1.7 million per month in I-502 pot sales being generated across Capitol Hill and the Central District. Ike’s is so far controlling the lion’s share.
The 15th Ave E location will join the original at 23rd and Union — which continues to be the target of criticism and protest — and a new Uncle Ike’s White Center to form one of the first I-502 chains in the state.
Meanwhile, work continues at 15th and Republican but Eisenberg said it’s too early to say when Uncle Ike’s Capitol Hill might be opening. He also declined to provide an update on if Full Tilt is still planned to join the corner. Ray Angel is still part of the project, however. Eisenberg said there will still be a place for Angel’s Shoe Repair in the new two-story structure. Its old home across the street, of course, is now the home of Ike’s competitor, Ruckus.
I for one will continue to boycott Ikes. His tactics in all of this have turned me off. He could of fostered a comunity, but instead he wanted to be greedy.
huh? What “community” should Ike’s have “fostered”? How is he being any more “greedy” than that garbage church?
Aw shucks.
We’ve been going to Ruckus over the past few months after shopping at Ike’s (23rd and Union), exclusively, for about a year. While I walk out of both shops with exactly what I need, in most cases the same exact price, I would give a slight edge to Ruckus. When Ike’s shows up I will probably just go to the shop that looks less crowded at that time.
Ruckus>Ike’s. Better product and better prices and I don’t feel like I’m getting herded onto a cattle car when I shop there.
Ike’s bullshit “arcade” obstructionism was pathetic and not the kind of business we need on the hill.
ditto on the arcade obstructionism.
Same here. Ruckus is closer to me and isn’t run/owned/operated by garbage people. If Ike hadn’t done the arcade bullshit I’d probably frequent both places depending on what was in stock but he did so I won’t.
I’ll still be sticking with Ruckus.
They pay $15/hour and despite being a smaller store with lesser buying power, they have 2-3 strains at solid $9-$12/gram price points as well as competitively priced joints and edibles. They also keep selection fresher than I might have expected, with new stuff rotating in often.
They are missing the extreme, eye-catching deals ($5 joints and $6 grams) you will find at Ike’s, but in my experience the product selected for these deals is typically among the oldest and lowest quality bud available, stuff they are getting rid of. Ruckus doesn’t have $5 joints, but all their joints are better quality the typical $5 joint at Ike’s.
Plus, Ruckus has a neighborhood feel. The employees are relaxed, they recognize you after awhile. Some of them work at Victrola as well.
It’s all business, but in my mind Ruckus does good solid business.
I appreciate the space for Angle so that is a good thing but I made the mistake of mentioning Full Tilt to my kids and they are still asking me about it. Honestly I’m more interested in that than in a 2nd pot-shop.
Don’t forget Ponder either. Nice place and a lot less ordeal to shop at.
Wouldn’t Full Tilt be targeted to teens? That seems like a very questionable business at the same location as a pot shop. Yes, I know that teens can’t buy pot (legally), but it would send a message that it’s OK for them to use pot. One of the goals of legalization is to discourage use among teens.
It is okay for them to smoke pot…once they are legally able to purchase it.
Starbuds closed without much media coverage. Is there any news on whether another pot shop will replace it?
the arcade move was brilliant. they are competitors, they are not friends.