Dispensary concept Sixty Four & Hope today announces the opening of its second of 21 locations owned by social equity cannabis licensees from South Los Angeles. The wellness-focused, culture-rich cannabis store named for Proposition 64, which legalized cannabis in California, and the HOPE for a more equitable future opened to the public on December 20th, in the Melrose District.
Rhavin L, owner Melrose District (Left), Mekonnen Garedew, owner Echo Park (Center), and Kalina Flores, owner Pico-Robertson (Right). [Photo-Tameka-Jacobs] 
Wally Knott III, owner Sixty Four & Hope, West Los Angeles [Photo-Tameka-Jacobs] 
Aja Allen, owner of Sixty Four & Hope, Mid-City [Photo-Grant-Henderson]
The cannabis store honors the plant culture that came before it with an enlightened, informed, & interactive store experience that emphasizes a product-first mentality. Including the social equity and underrepresented cannabis brands it chooses to carry and highlight, providing them with a platform to grow. This ethos opened the door to diverse and exclusive collaborations that strive for authenticity, including Angela Rye, Queen Latifah, Talking Terps, Clubber Lang by Ball Family Farms, itsPurpl by Jaleel White, and the newly launched RNBW and Insomniac collaboration. RNBW chose Sixty Four & Hope as one of four California dispensaries to offer free tickets to high-profile concerts like Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) and Rolling Loud.
Explicitly developed to produce economic parity for people harmed by the war of drugs, each business is projected to increase licensees’ income from $46,600 (under the poverty line in L.A.) to $450,000+ annually and create 30-40 jobs with benefits. (Income estimate based on average yearly revenue from three comparable dispensaries currently operating in Los Angeles.) With this increased income, they will create generational wealth for themselves and their families, while investing in and serving their communities.
4thMVMT is a startup built by a local entrepreneurial activist, recognizing a deficit in access to resources, financing, and business knowledge all but ensured failure. With the help of prominent investors Queen Latifah, Nas, Anthony Selah, Troy Carter, and Julius “J” Erving III, who see their support as a well-spent investment in underserved communities, they raised $19MM to provide all 21 with an average of $1.5MM in financing and resources to run a thriving cannabis business – at no upfront cost to the entrepreneur.
The dispensary concept will maintain an ambitious schedule to open all 21 singularly branded sites by the Summer of 2023. Here are the first four stores:
- Mid-City, owned by Aja Allen, a young woman from the Jungles near Crenshaw and MLK, sees this opportunity as a chance to uplift her life and the LGBTQ and South LA communities to which she belongs. “I grew up in an overpoliced area; family members and friends went to jail for cannabis offenses,” says Allen, a former exotic dancer who grew up with a mother who abused drugs. “For me, it’s not just about getting the opportunity; it’s about what I do with it once I’ve got it.” (Opened September 18, 2021.)
- Melrose District, owned by Rhavin L, a young mother from Leimert Park, hopes to use her store to educate young women and mothers like herself. (Opening December 20, 2021.)
- Echo Park, owned by Mekonnen Garedew who works in higher education developing university access for underserved populations. (Opening in March 2022.)
- West Los Angeles, owned by Wally Knott III, a young man from South LA who lost his savings trying to launch his own cannabis cultivation business without resources or financial support. (Opening in April 2022.)
