Our Story
About Hii NYC
Hii NYC is focused on high-quality craft cannabis and the best micro-brand selection in all of New York City. This is the story of how a Brooklyn native with 30+ years in cannabis advocacy opened a dispensary the way he always knew it should be done.
Peter Beznos
Founder & CEO
The Founder Story
Peter Beznos
Peter Beznos has lived in Brooklyn his entire life. He has watched this neighborhood change, evolve, and become what it is today. More importantly, he has watched cannabis go from something criminalized and forbidden to something legal, regulated, and mainstream. And he has been there for all of it.
For more than 30 years, Peter worked in cannabis advocacy. This was not a job he stumbled into. It was a calling driven by belief that prohibition was wrong, that cannabis had legitimate medical and recreational value, and that the people who benefited most from criminalization were never the people who were actually hurt by it.
The opportunity to open a dispensary was not just a business move for Peter. It was a chance to prove that a cannabis retail space could be built differently. No corporate chains. No mass-market mentality. No shortcuts on quality or customer service. Just a real person from the neighborhood, opening a real business, based on real expertise and real community connection.
Licensed & Community-Rooted
Why CAURD?
When the New York State Office of Cannabis Management opened the CAURD (Community Access to Regulated Dispensaries) licensing pathway, Peter applied. CAURD is not for corporations looking to scale quickly across multiple states. It is for people from communities who have roots, experience, and something to prove.
CAURD prioritizes applicants with deep connections to their communities and histories of cannabis knowledge or advocacy. The licensing process is rigorous. You have to show you understand the cannabis industry, you understand compliance, and you understand your neighborhood.
Peter Qualified Because
- 30+ years of cannabis knowledge and advocacy
- Brooklyn roots his entire life
- Member of organizations committed to cannabis access and justice
- Willingness to be held to higher standards
License: OCM-CAURD-24-000102
What We Believe
The Hii NYC Standard
Everything at Hii NYC flows from one core idea: what should a cannabis dispensary actually be?
Run by Experts
Run by someone who actually knows cannabis, not someone trying to exploit a new market.
Trained Professionals
Staffed by budtenders who are trained professionals, not minimum-wage workers with a brief orientation.
Vetted Products
Products vetted for quality, not just what is cheap or high-margin.
Respect for All
Customers treated with respect, whether first-timers or daily users.
Neighborhood First
A neighborhood place, not a chain. Community-focused from day one.
Quality Over Everything
No shortcuts on sourcing, compliance, or customer service. Ever.
Expert Guidance
Our Budtenders
Your budtender is the single most important person in your cannabis experience. They should be able to answer your questions, explain your options, understand your preferences, and guide you toward the right product without pushing you toward what is most profitable for the store.
We train our budtenders to do exactly that. They study the products we carry. They understand cannabinoid profiles, terpene effects, consumption methods, and dosing. They know the differences between the strains we stock. They understand how Pax Era systems work and when they are the right choice versus flower.
More importantly, they are taught to listen first and recommend second. If you come in and tell us it is your first time, we will not push you toward expensive concentrates. If you have questions that feel dumb, they are not, and we will answer them fully.
What They Know
- Cannabinoid profiles and terpene effects
- Consumption methods and dosing guidance
- Pax Era and cartridge-system differences
- Edible explanations for newcomers
- Wyld, Left Coast, Bodega Boys product lines
- Current product releases and availability
Serving Brooklyn
Two Locations, One Vision
Each location carries the same careful inventory and operates with the same standards. But each location also serves its neighborhood. We pay attention to what Williamsburg customers want and what Bay Ridge customers want. We listen to feedback. We adapt. Two really good locations in two Brooklyn neighborhoods beats five mediocre locations spread across the city.
Giving Back
Our Community Commitment
Running a cannabis business is not just about selling cannabis. It is about being a good neighbor. It is about understanding that we operate in communities, we employ people from those communities, and we have a responsibility to give back.
That means supporting organizations working on cannabis justice, drug policy reform, and harm reduction. It means being transparent with our community about what we are doing and why we are doing it. It means hiring local, paying fair wages, and treating employees the way we treat customers.
It means taking seriously the fact that we are operating under a license that was designed to prioritize community applicants. That license is a trust document. We have it because the state believed we would use it responsibly.
Quality First
Our Supply Chain Philosophy
Everything we sell is tested, compliant, and sourced from licensed producers in New York State. We do not cut corners on sourcing. We do not carry questionable brands. We do not stock products that have not been lab-tested.
This means our prices might be higher than some places, and we are okay with that. The customer who knows they are getting high-quality, fully compliant cannabis is worth more to us than the customer who just wants the cheapest option.
The Future
What's Next
Hii NYC is a growing business, but we are growing carefully. We are not trying to become a national chain. We are focused on high-quality craft cannabis and building the best micro-brand selection in all of New York City. One small-batch grower, one trained budtender, one neighborhood at a time.
Peter Beznos did not spend 30+ years in cannabis advocacy to just make money. He spent it because he believed cannabis prohibition was fundamentally wrong and that a better legal cannabis world was possible. Hii NYC exists to help build that better world, one customer and one community at a time.
For adults 21+ with valid ID only. Do not operate vehicles after consumption.
Hii NYC Cannabis Dispensary holds a New York State Office of Cannabis Management license: OCM-CAURD-24-000102.
Visit Us Today
Two Brooklyn locations, trained budtenders, and NYC's best craft cannabis and micro-brand selection. Come say hii.
Related Pages
Contact & Locations
Find store hours, directions, and delivery info for Williamsburg and Bay Ridge.
First-Time Visitors Guide
Everything you need to know before your first visit to a cannabis dispensary.
FAQ
Answers to common questions about cannabis, our products, and dispensary visits.