The boss of a company that makes cosmetics with Cannabidiol (CBD) – an ingredient found in cannabis – said his bid for a permanent store in Leicester’s Highcross shopping centre has been rejected.
Steve Orton has been running CBD Global for around 18 months.
He is opening a store in Liverpool and had wanted to open one in Leicester.
But he said Highcross management had turned down his idea after he told them about the CBD content.
The business owner from East Goscote, which is in Leicestershire, said: “I have been trying to get a shop open in the Highcross since the start of the year.
“There seems to be so many empty units and closing shops in the Highcross so I got in contact with their representatives.
“As soon as I mentioned CBD they put the brakes on.”
He said the shopping centre had considered letting him open a pop-up store instead - but that was not what he wanted.
He said: “I’m not here for a pop-up store, I wanted to start up a permanent shop that is pharmaceutically trusted.
“Our staff would be educated on the uses and benefits of CBD in cosmetic products.
“I don’t understand why they wouldn’t give me a shop in the first place, when other stores in there are already selling products containing CBD."
A Highcross spokeswoman said: “Our priority is to make sure the retail and leisure brand mix at Highcross is as engaging and compelling as possible.
“When introducing new brands to the destination, like CBD Global, we often use pop-ups and temporary leases, as that allows us to trial the new offer to ensure there’s sufficient demand locally.”
A spokeswoman said they had no further updates.
