ÜMI Dispensary, a shop in Lincoln Park that opened last summer, is offering what co-owner Akemi Almeida says the industry has lacked: a safe space.

“To have ÜMI as a safe haven for people is our way of resisting the negativity of the world and channeling it into something healthy,” said Almeida, who graduated from DePaul in 2018. Inspired by the world’s current state, she added that she wants ÜMI “to remind people of the beauty of the world by gathering together.”

According to the dispensary’s website, “confidence, curiosity, and comfort” are at the forefront of the business approach, as they guide the community through their “cannabis journey.”

ÜMI’s goal of community building came partially from Almeida, who worked in various parts of the industry — from a CBD startup, living in the Colorado mountains at an organic research and development hemp farm, to an organic living soil grow in Michigan. Helping others has always been at the forefront of Almeida’s diverse experiences, which drove her to keep pursuing her practice. However, her goal was to open a dispensary of her own.

“It’s so cool to get to be a part of making people’s lives better,” Almeida said.

At DePaul, Almeida advocated with the local chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy to offer a way for people to use substances in a safe way, without shame for doing so. Almeida said this same goal followed her to her current role as business owner.

She says having the dispensary in Lincoln Park, at 2575 N. Lincoln Ave., “feels very full circle,” as DePaul was the place where she found her footing within the cannabis industry.

The cannabis industry in Illinois has seen its ups and downs. Cannabis sales revenue fell 13% in Illinois last year, and medical sales have declined since 2021. Many dispensaries have even gone out of business, and other cannabis business license holders have yet to open. According to state records, “Only 29 of 86 licensed craft growers are operational.”

However, Almeida says unlike many Chicagoland dispensaries, ÜMI has had steady growth.

Throughout Almeida’s journey in the industry, she saw independent companies being bought out by large corporations that “only care about the money.” It became important to her for ÜMI to carry “craft brands” based in Illinois that focus on quality.

Customer Kayla Conway, who recently discovered ÜMI, said she noticed the difference and quality. She had been going to another dispensary for years until she found ÜMI.

“The moment I came here, I felt like I was home,” Conway said.

Opening a business and navigating cannabis culture has not been easy for Almeida. Lucas Ewing, Almeida’s boyfriend who also works in the cannabis industry, noted that it can feel “like a boys’ club sometimes.”

But despite being a female business owner, Ewing says Almeida “hasn’t given up, and I don’t think anybody could make her.”

ÜMI sells a variety of products, including flower, edibles, vapes, topical cream, extracts and pre-rolls.

Almeida says there is a “better, easier and cheaper way to grow that is better for you and medical patients.” ÜMI is collaborating with an organic living soil grow in Springfield, Illinois, the first of its kind in the state. The grow is hoping to launch by the end of April, and Almeida hopes to “educate people on the organic way of cannabis.”

At ÜMI, Almeida has already met regulars at the store and is hoping it stays that way.

“I realized I have the life now that I’ve always wanted, working in the cannabis industry,” she said.

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