KODAK, Tenn — CBD shops and products have popped all over East Tennessee, and a new shop in Kodak brings a unique twist.
It's able to help customers more easily with health questions because the owner of the shop is a pharmacist. Generally, you won't find many pharmacist owned and operated stand-alone CBD shops in Tennessee, but Brookside CBD and Wellness Center is able to offer medical professional insight into the drug.
"It's a little bit of a different model compared to a lot of the other shops in East Tennessee that sell CBD products," Kelly Snyder, the owner and pharmacist at Brookside CBD said.
Snyder noted he is a pharmacist whose main goal is to help customers.
"Well there really needs to be a place where people can trust the product, that can trust the information they're getting and that I can actually help people get the product that they need," Snyder explained.
Most of the ETSU grad's products are locally grown.
"The farmer that grows and processes this... I have him on speed dial on my phone," Snyder mentioned. "I could call him right now if I needed to."
Snyder noted that he cares more about a customer's health than making a buck.
"This is not about multi-level marketing or trying to sell snake oil or a product that's misrepresented," Snyder cleared up. "We're here to help the people."
Snyder is even able to make calls to healthcare providers to talk with your doctors and nurses about different prescriptions and CBD.
"I don't have a problem talking with doctors, in fact I prefer that if you're a patient that I get a chance to talk to your doctor and become a part of your health care team," Snyder explained.
Many states require pharmacists to be on staff at a dispensary, but Tennessee does not.
"We are really the medication authority so we should be part of this and if you're going to consider it medication then we should be involved," Snyder said.
Snyder explained how he designed the store to be welcoming and wants customers to feel at ease.
"I wanted to make it very comfortable," Snyder detailed. "I wanted to make it a place where my 80-year-old mother could come in to and feel completely comfortable and at home and ask questions and stay as long as she wanted to."
The FDA has not confirmed that CBD can treat different ailments like anxiety, depression, and pain, but Snyder says he has had many customers who have benefitted from the products.
Snyder also has a certification in Cannabinoid Pharmacotherapy from a program in Pennsylvania.
Brookside CBD is located near Chop House in Kodak, Tennessee.