Mr. George Archos reports

VERANO EXPANDS WEST VIRGINIA MEDICAL CANNABIS DISPENSARY FOOTPRINT TO SIX STATEWIDE LOCATIONS WITH THE OPENING OF ZEN LEAF CHARLESTON

Verano Holdings Corp. will open Zen Leaf Charleston on Friday, Jan. 2, the company's sixth West Virginia dispensary and 159th location nationwide. Zen Leaf Charleston, located at 117 Summers St., is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 pm. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time. In celebration of the grand opening, Zen Leaf Charleston will host a ceremonial ribbon cutting Friday morning.

Zen Leaf Charleston complements Verano's five existing West Virginia Zen Leaf locations in Buckhannon, Clarksburg, Morgantown, Westover and Wheeling. According to the West Virginia Department of Health, there are currently over 35,000 approved medical cannabis patients in the state.

"We're thrilled to welcome patients at Zen Leaf Charleston as we expand our dispensary footprint across the Mountain State," said George Archos, founder and chief executive officer of Verano. "We are excited to open our sixth statewide dispensary in Charleston and look forward to serving the medical cannabis community as we plant roots in West Virginia's beautiful capital city."

In addition to six Zen Leaf retail locations, Verano's vertical West Virginia operations include a 40,000-square-foot state-of-the-art cultivation and processing facility in Beaver, where the company produces a variety of its award-winning branded products for medical patients, including (the) Essence flower, vapes and concentrates; Savvy flower and vapes; Verano Reserve flower and concentrates; and Avexia RSO (Rick Simpson oil), topicals, tablets and tinctures.

For additional convenience and accessibility, patients can choose to order ahead at on the Zen Leaf Dispensaries website for express in-store pickup.

About Verano Holdings Corp.

Verano Holdings, one of the U.S. cannabis industry's leading companies based on historical revenue, geographic scope and brand performance, is a vertically integrated, multistate operator embracing a mission of saying yes to plant progress and the bold exploration of cannabis. Verano provides a superior cannabis shopping experience in medical and adult-use markets under the Zen Leaf and MUV dispensary banners, including Cabbage Club, an innovative annual membership program offering exclusive benefits for cannabis consumers. Verano produces a comprehensive suite of high-quality, regulated cannabis products sold under its diverse portfolio of trusted consumer brands, including Verano, (the) Essence, MUV, Savvy, Bits, Encore and Avexia. Verano's active operations span 13 U.S. states, comprising 15 production facilities with over 1.1 million square feet of cultivation capacity.

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