We Merged The Group Chats: Green State Dispensary Becomes Upstate Elevator Dispensary

January 15, 2026

Turns out we didn’t need three brands to say “we sell awesome THC.” Shocking, we know.

So we scrapped a few logos, fired a few alter-egos, and relaunched ourselves like a band that finally found its sound. Same obsession with quality. Same slightly unhinged experiments. Just fewer email addresses. Here’s to streamlining the chaos — and here’s to always elevating.

This is the story of how we got here — from grow shop to dispensary to one unified name — and where we’re headed next.

2015: Before the Elevator, There Was the Garden

It All Started with a Grow Shop

Back in 2015, we launched Green State Gardener, an online cannabis grow supply storefront. Competing online was… not easy. So we did what felt natural: we opened a 5,000-square-foot brick-and-mortar shop in Burlington, VT.

Our goal was simple — bring cannabis to the people, one way or another. We taught grow classes, sold supplies, and built community while we waited for Vermont to legalize.

We were convinced legalization was right around the corner. Massachusetts went legal. Canada went legal. Vermont politely said, “dream on.”

Still, that early hustle planted the seed for something much bigger.

2017: When the Elevator Took Off

It All Started with a To-Go Salad

When the grow store started struggling, we took a leap and began selling hemp-derived CBD capsules. Within weeks, a few feet of counter space was outperforming the entire shop.

To get started, we smuggled CBD-rich hemp clones home from Colorado — hidden inside a to-go salad. (Yes, really.)

Those clones became the foundation for our first feminized hemp seeds, bred inside grow tents right there in the store. We planted those seeds and grew five acres of hemp in Charlotte, Vermont.

That salad sparked a movement: Upstate Elevator Supply Co., and what would become Vermont’s best CBD products.

2022: Finally, Full Legalization

From Grow Store to Dispensary

In 2022, Vermont finally legalized cannabis — and everything clicked into place.

We transformed our original grow shop into a dispensary and cultivation facility and launched Upstate Elevator Operator’s, our THC brand for the recreational market. Leveraging years of experience in formulation, effects, and flavor, Upstate Elevator quickly became a statewide dispensary staple.

Today, we’re Vermont’s best-selling hemp and cannabis edible and beverage brand.

This space is our skunkworks — where we test, taste, break things, fix them, and elevate new ideas before launching them nationwide.

Today & Tomorrow: Upstate Elevator

Same Operators, New Lift

Having three brands that all care about quality was fun. But also a bit messy. So we made it official: one name, one roof, one clean, elevated standard. That means better consistency, way more choices, and zero extra email signatures. (And yes, the good stuff stays exactly the same.)