Even as the cannabis industry continues to contract in Massachusetts, Southbridge-based Green Meadows has opened a third location, a new adult-use dispensary in Marlborough, where the company plans to add medical sales. The company was founded by the descendents of Gen. George Patton. His great grandson Rob Patton sat down with WBJ to discuss the […]
Even as the cannabis industry continues to contract in Massachusetts, Southbridge-based Green Meadows has opened a third location, a new adult-use dispensary in Marlborough, where the company plans to add medical sales. The company was founded by the descendents of Gen. George Patton. His great grandson Rob Patton sat down with WBJ to discuss the company’s expansion amid the larger troubles in the industry.
Why did you decide to open a new location in
Marlborough?
Our third store in Marlborough opened about three months ago. We were already north and south of Worcester, so we were looking for a new opportunity. Unlike our other locations, which are in existing buildings, this was an empty plot of land, allowing us to design our own aesthetic from the ground up. Being across from Apex Entertainment and other businesses helps our foot traffic, and we are in the process of securing our medical license there.
How do you stand out from your competitors?
Our guest service associates are the face of the organization and build relationships with guests and patients. That continuity helps us become part of each community. We focus on education, like our session at the American Legion in Sudbury. We aim to produce premium products and have always maintained a medical presence for veterans. We offer strong veterans discounts and help patients discuss options for anxiety, post-traumatic stress, or pain.
What products do you offer?
We are proud of our broad menu at all three stores. Popular categories include flower, pre-rolls, vapes, edibles, and beverages. We also offer tinctures, topicals, transdermal patches, and higher-dose medical products.
Our flagship items include two premium vapes: the Tank, a one-gram all in one, and Stellar, a two-gram vape with dual chambers and a switch letting consumers blend formulations. We have rolled out a new line of edibles under the Green Meadows brand.
How does you company give back to veterans?
As a cannabis company, we had difficulty donating to veterans’ organizations because we are federally illegal. So, we created a 501(c)(3) we call the Patton Alliance for Veterans, which is a way we can mobilize donations alongside other partnering cannabis companies, so they end up at veterans’ charities.
How do you address the stigma of cannabis?
Education is key. If you are a newer user, then going to a dispensary can be intimidating. The industry still has work to do to help normalize the experience and to help not just educate, but improve access to a degree to allow people to become more familiar and comfortable.
What are Green Meadows’ plans for the future?
The industry itself is changing very rapidly right now. So, we are focused on what is right in front of us, and continuing to be a healthy business.
I will say we do keep our eye on other states around us, where potentially we could get involved with introducing maybe one or two of our brands, but that's way down the line again. The immediate focus right now is just on Massachusetts and continuing to do what we do here.
How was Green Meadows founded?
My great grandfather was General George Patton of World War II fame. He married into a Massachusetts family with land in Hamilton, which became his vacation home between wars. They called it Green Meadows. My grandfather, also named George Patton, inherited it. He was a major general who served in Korea and Vietnam and was highly decorated.
After retiring, he cultivated the 60-acre property and taught himself organic farming, becoming one of the first organically certified producers in New England. Supporting veterans mattered deeply to him, and he made a point of hiring them. He named many of the fields in honor of soldiers. When he passed away, our family had to decide what to do with the land. My aunt and uncle saw that cannabis was becoming an interesting alternative for veterans, so we sat around the kitchen table talking about entering the cannabis industry.
We knew we did not want to be just a recreational shop. Offering medical products mattered to us, and at that time in Massachusetts that required full vertical integration. My grandmother initially said, “Over my dead body,” but she eventually came around after seeing the real benefits cannabis can provide.
Now we are here with three stores, plus cultivation and manufacturing.
This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by WBJ Correspondent Sloane M. Perron. 
