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Updated: April 17, 2026 @ 1:37 pm
The site of the upcoming dispensary in Paducah. NatureMed officials said they think there will be a strong demand for medical cannabis in western Kentucky.
NatureMed will open two dispensaries in Kentucky, one in Murray and the other in Paducah.
Robert Winn — the director of revenue and retail operations at Gold Leaf Management, which owns Speakeasy Dispensary in Nortonville, Kentucky — said the dispensary has had a successful opening.
The site of the future Speakeasy Dispensary in downtown Princeton.
The site of the upcoming dispensary in Paducah. NatureMed officials said they think there will be a strong demand for medical cannabis in western Kentucky.
NatureMed will open two dispensaries in Kentucky, one in Murray and the other in Paducah.
Robert Winn — the director of revenue and retail operations at Gold Leaf Management, which owns Speakeasy Dispensary in Nortonville, Kentucky — said the dispensary has had a successful opening.
The site of the future Speakeasy Dispensary in downtown Princeton.
PADUCAH — Medical cannabis dispensaries are opening this year across the commonwealth, including in western Kentucky.
Medical cannabis was legalized in Kentucky in 2025, but dispensaries have only begun opening this year. Robert Winn — the director of revenue and retail operations at Gold Leaf Management, which owns the Speakeasy Dispensary in Nortonville, Kentucky, and soon to be Princeton — said the Speakeasy Dispensary has been successful.
“We got some really good feedback from a few of those patients, just with how excited they were that it was in their area, and they never thought that would happen,” Winn said.
NatureMed, a medical cannabis company, will open a medical cannabis dispensary in Paducah and Murray within the next few months.
Myles Mayfield, the marketing director at NatureMed, said the company’s top priority for the dispensaries is patient education.
“We’re not really necessarily here to push a product that we think is the best for us. We’re here to make sure to listen to every customer and patient’s needs when they come in,” Mayfield said.
He said the staff of around 10 people will be well-versed in all of the products to find the best fit for the patient.
“(We will) be able to have someone that you can question face-to-face to make sure that you’re getting the right thing for your experience,” Mayfield said.
Mayfield also said that the company wants the employees and patients to have a meaningful and lasting relationship when it comes to their care.
“We are no way looking to have a one-time transactional interaction with someone. We’re looking to lay a foundation that can take folks further as they continue to use the plant,” Mayfield said.
NatureMed’s dispensaries will sell raw plant material, vapes, edibles and more. However, there are restrictions on what qualifies a patient to be prescribed medical cannabis and how much they are allowed to have at a time.
According to the Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis, to qualify for a medical cannabis card, a patient must have one of the following medical conditions:
• Any type or form of cancer
• Chronic or severe pain
• Epilepsy or other intractable seizure disorder
• Multiple sclerosis, muscle spasms or spasticity
• Chronic nausea or cyclical vomiting syndrome
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
Patients must also have no disqualifying felony offense convictions, receive written certification from a practitioner to use medical cannabis and apply to the medical cannabis program to receive a medical cannabis card.
Although NatureMed has not opened its dispensaries yet, Mayfield said he thinks there will be a strong demand for cannabis in the area.
All of the cannabis that is sold in Kentucky dispensaries is completely Kentucky-grown. Mayfield said he thinks that will be a driving factor for Kentuckians to stay in the state instead of traveling to a different state to purchase cannabis.
“I think when you are able to make sure that you’re sourcing products from the state, you get an extra layer of comfort that you know it’s being handled the right way,” Mayfield said.
Although dispensaries in Kentucky have already been successful, some patients have run into problems when trying to purchase medical cannabis. Winn said the issues have to do with patients’ medical cards, whether that’s the card expiring or not completing the two-step application process.
“When the program launched, there weren’t any stores open… There’s a handful of patients (who) had obtained their cards or gone through the consultation process, but hadn’t completed the second step,” Winn said.
Mayfield said he has heard similar problems from other dispensaries, and he recommends people prepare the necessary documents before trying to purchase medical cannabis.
Before venturing into the Kentucky medical cannabis market, NatureMed had only operated medical cannabis dispensaries in Arizona and Missouri. He said the staff are excited to sell medical cannabis in Kentucky, and he hopes it will benefit many.
“Our values truly lie in the benefit and the power of this plant, and we want to leave the world in a better place because of this plant,” Mayfield said.
NatureMed is expected to open its Paducah location in late March, and the Murray location is expected to open in May. Speakeasy Dispensary will open its store in Princeton in late March or early April.
For more information about Kentucky medical cannabis, visit tinyurl.com/ycxecwd9.
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