YBOR CITY— As the former vice president and activist for the Florida Cannabis Coalition, Carlos Hermida knows how difficult it can be in Florida for companies to open a dispensary.

Hermida says the strict laws in the cannabis industry can make it a very long and expensive process to obtain the necessary licenses and pay for the costly operational costs.

For this reason he decided to open Chillum Glass Gallery and CBD Dispensary, in historic Ybor City, to help companies desiring to get into the cannabis industry by distributing their products and educate people on the benefits of cannabidiol or CBD.

Although cannabidiol is present in the cannabis plant, it is not cannabis.

It is derived from the industrial hemp plant and lacks tetrahydrocannabinol, better known as THC, which is the component of marijuana that gets people high.

In addition, CBD is legal in all 50 states, it offers many of the same medical and therapeutic benefits that the cannabis plant can, it relieves stress and anxiety, increases focus, but dispensers don't have to follow some of the strict regulatory guidelines and patients do not need a medical identification card.

CBD Chillum Glass Gallery and CBD Dispensary distributes products from Florida-based companies such as Provida and Mindful Medicinals such as hemp powder, hemp joints, hemp blunts, coffee, tea, cough syrup, lotions, dog treats and more.

The glass gallery side displays functional glass art from local artists, which means the hemp flower can be placed in the glass and smoked.

"Chillum Glass Gallery and CBD Dispensary is a celebration of alternative culture," said Hermida in a press release.

"We want people to understand this is art, this is culture."

Art from the glass gallery ranges anywhere from $1 to $800 and products from the dispensary can range anywhere from $4 to $200.

Chillum held its grand opening Friday (June 29). The dispensary operates from 12 to 11 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 12 p.m. to 1 a.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and from 12 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday, and is located at 1717 E 7th Ave in Ybor City.

For more information visit chillumglass.com/

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