How can I open my CBD shop?
Opening a shop selling CBD products seems to be the biggest draw in the cannabis industry right now, in Spain at least. We see small shops springing up in our cities selling CBD cosmetics, ornamental CBD flowers, hemp clothing, CBD or hemp seed oils and even food products (from pasta to hemp coffee).
But what do you need to do to open a CBD shop? Can CBD products be sold legally in Spain? Are they the most profitable businesses in the cannabis industry right now? We try to answer below.
What CBD products can I sell?
Let’s quickly recap what we mean when we talk about CBD products. We mean products that contain CBD among their ingredients. Remember that CBD, also known as cannabidiol, is a cannabinoid that comes from Cannabis sativa or hemp. It is a non-psychotropic substance, not controlled by the United Nations, which the World Health Organization considers neither harmful to health nor addictive.
The lighter control of CBD, compared with other components of the plant (such as THC, the substance responsible for the psychoactive effect and the most controlled nationally and internationally), is probably its biggest attraction when opening CBD shops in Spain. But make no mistake: the fact that they contain CBD and not THC does not mean that anything goes, far from it.
There are many products derived from cannabidiol; some can be sold freely and others cannot. Today we see on the market that cosmetics, oils, food, candles and even ornamental flowers can make up the catalogue of a CBD shop.
The crux of the matter when selling CBD products lies in several aspects. First, that the CBD has been produced in countries where producing this cannabinoid is legal. Second, that the use of the cannabinoid is external (topical or ornamental) because food use has not yet been approved in Spain. And last but not least, where the CBD has been extracted from, and never selling in Spain the part it is extracted from, the bud of Cannabis sativa or hemp, because the flower of the plant is still controlled in Spain, both its production and its sale.
In the case of Europe, and therefore Spain, the sale of CBD products has enjoyed greater freedom since November 2020, when the Court of Justice of the European Union handed down a ruling stating that “a Member State may not prohibit the marketing of cannabidiol (CBD) lawfully produced in another Member State when it is extracted from the Cannabis sativa plant in its entirety and not solely from its fibre and seeds”.
This laid the foundation for selling CBD products in the Member States as long as the CBD has been produced in countries where it is legal to do so. But not all products are governed by the same rules.
On this basis, the CBD products that can be sold in a CBD shop in Spain, as long as the CBD has been produced in a country where it is legal to produce it, and as long as they are not intended for human consumption, are:
- CBD creams for topical use
- CBD flowers for ornamental use and aromatherapy
- CBD oils for topical use
Which CBD products can I register?
The CBD products that can and must be registered to be sold in shops are topical products. Although people tend to think CBD can be sold for human consumption, this is not the case, and the only product authorised in Europe is Epidiolex. Selling hemp products made from the stalks and seeds of the plant is a different matter, and they offer endless food and textile possibilities.
CBD cosmetics
One of the fastest-growing CBD industries right now is cosmetics. Topical uses of the cannabinoid are fashionable because of cannabidiol’s significant moisturising, soothing and antioxidant properties. That is why there is great demand for CBD serums, ointments, creams, shampoos and face masks.
To sell them, you must make a responsible declaration and register the product at national and European level. The CBD cosmetic product must be registered with the European Commission, through the Cosmetic Products Notification Portal (CPNP), attaching the information on the product’s ingredients, the labelling and a photograph of the packaging of the cosmetic. You must also state who the “responsible person” for the product and the “distributor” of the product are.
What is the best CBD oil on the market?
We would not dare to say which is the best CBD oil on the market because that depends largely on the user’s needs and which product best meets them. We can, however, look at the results of one of the few analytical studies carried out in Spain on the quality and safety of CBD oils on the market.
This study was carried out by the Spanish Medical Cannabis Observatory, which in 2018 analysed several samples of cannabidiol oils to measure the CBD content of the liquids, the levels of pesticides in the oils, and whether the analysis results matched the labels.
Although we recommend you look at the study’s conclusions here to draw your own conclusions, we would lean towards recommending the CBD oils from the Italian brand Enecta, which performed very well in this study, carried out in collaboration with the prestigious CANNA Foundation.
The ingredients of the Enecta oils matched the labelling, had good CBD levels and showed hardly any heavy metals or pesticides. And, although the study does not say so, the Italian brand’s prices are very reasonable, which makes Enecta CBD oils very competitive.
Do you need legal advice?
At S&F Abogados we specialise in cannabis law. Find out about our services for cannabis businesses, send us an online enquiry or call us on +34 919 532 802.
