Simply Pure, one of Denver’s longest-running Black-owned cannabis dispensaries, is staring down the possibility of losing its LoHi storefront at 2000 W 32nd Ave by the end of March. Owner Wanda James says the shop is still open while she tries to nail down a new lease, though staffing has been cut and hours have tightened. A widely shared Nextdoor post hinting at an immediate shutdown rattled customers and neighbors, and the uncertainty is highlighting just how rough the legal cannabis climate has become in Colorado.
An employee’s post on Nextdoor claiming Simply Pure would close on Saturday, March 14, sent the neighborhood rumor mill spinning before the message was taken down. According to Westword, James says the post misrepresented what is happening and that the shop is still negotiating with the building’s owner while operating with a leaner crew through the end of March. “Simply Pure remains open and operating, and we continue to serve our customers while we evaluate the future of our current location,” she told the outlet.
Market Squeeze Is Tightening Margins
State data helps explain the pressure behind those negotiations. Colorado Department of Revenue sales reports show annual retail marijuana sales sliding from about $2.23 billion in 2021 to roughly $1.21 billion in 2025, a major drop that has cut into revenue for both retailers and growers. The department’s Average Market Rate tables list the median wholesale “bud” price at about $649 per pound in Oct. to Dec. 2025, a steep fall from the market peak, with industry reporting following that median down from roughly $1,700 to $1,800 per pound in 2021. Analysts say the combination of collapsing wholesale prices, fewer active cultivators and shrinking store sales has triggered a wave of closures and consolidation across Colorado. The state sales reports and the department’s AMR release lay out the underlying numbers and methodology.
What Leaving Would Mean For The Storefront
James told Westword that the 2000 W 32nd Ave address is grandfathered under older location rules and might not qualify for a cannabis retail license if Simply Pure moves out. That wrinkle in the regulations means this is not just a dispute over a lease; it is a potential permanent loss of a long-standing cannabis storefront in the Northside that would be difficult to replicate.
A Pioneer Balancing Business And Politics
James and her husband, Scott Durrah, were early entrants in Colorado’s legal cannabis era. The pair opened the Apothecary of Colorado in 2009 and later created the Simply Pure brand, a trajectory detailed in interviews with Cannabis Business Times. On top of the business drama, James is juggling a public political role: she launched a primary challenge against Rep. Diana DeGette in 2025, according to The Colorado Sun, a campaign that throws even more attention on the fate of the shop.
For now, Simply Pure is still serving customers while lease talks continue through the end of March. What happens next will be closely watched, not only by regulars who rely on the store, but also by an industry looking at the LoHi dispensary as a bellwether for where Colorado’s cannabis economy is headed.
