The Local Source for News and Information Since 1980
There’s a brand new business in town – “new” in every sense of the word. CarolinePharma officially opened its doors to the public on July 9, 2025. It is the first cannabis dispensary in Caroline County.
The owners of CarolinePharma are Amar Kalidindi, Eric Willis, and Anil Cherukuri. Each is a old hand in owning small businesses; Kalidindi owns Cantner’s Pharmacy, Cherukuri owns Edwards Pharmacy in Centreville, and Willis owns Willis Signs out of Federalsburg.
Kalidindi and Willis have seen firsthand the natural medicinal effects of cannabis. “My father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer 18 or 19 years ago. He was Chief of St. Michael's police, a DNR Cop, and a Navy medic in the Korean War. The VA put him on a marijuana treatment,” Willis said, “it worked for him. And then I know some other people who are on it for things like anxiety, and it's really helped them.”
Kalidindi has a background in hospice care in addition to his experience being a pharmacist at Cantner’s, and he concurred that cannabis can be helpful for those dealing with painful ailments. He said he wanted to offer a local dispensary for the patients he was encountering who had to travel to Cambridge or Salisbury for their cannabis products.
Willis is homegrown Eastern Shore, having moved to Southern Caroline 24 years ago from Cordova. Since moving here and starting Willis Signs, he has been involved with various community efforts such as Cub Scouts, Little League, and recreational soccer. He met Kalidindi through his wife, who works at Cantner’s when she isn’t working as a schoolteacher, and they have been close friends ever since.
Kalidindi has been a pharmacist for over 22 years. He moved here from Virginia 13 years ago specifically to purchase Cantner’s, and he said Federalsburg has proven to be his true home. “I wanted to own a business, my own local pharmacy, and I really love it here in Federalsburg.” He said his life here so far has been “awesome.” “I love the rural setting. I love the Shore. Other people are missing out, the Shore is 100 times nicer than the city.”
Kalidindi first came up with the idea to open CarolinePharma in 2022. He began inquiring with the state of Maryland’s Cannabis Administration on obtaining a dispensary license, which are periodically given out in small batches.
“The state got our information and told us they'll let us know when the next round of licenses open up,” Kalidindi said. That notification came in the summer of 2023. That’s when Kalidindi gathered his friends Willis and Cherukuri to help make Caroline County history. “The licenses are based on the county jurisdiction, so the license holder can put it anywhere in the county,” Kalidindi explained.
He and Willis said they had originally thought to put CarolinePharma in Denton, but the town of Federalsburg showed immense support for their idea, “the people that you don't expect are the ones that really supported us. There are some very prominent people in this town that actually approached us when they found out we got the license, and they told us that we should do this in this town,” said Kalidindi.
Kalidindi said that working with Federalsburg was “a breeze.” He explained that the state already enforces certain zoning parameters for dispensaries, including a set number of feet they must be from schools, churches, and daycares. In some cases, individual municipalities can choose to further restrict where a dispensary can be placed, but that process often takes time – a luxury that dispensary license holders don’t have, as the license can be revoked after 18 months if serious headway hasn’t been made to get the dispensary open. The Town of Federalsburg was happy with following the state guidelines, giving Willis, Kalidindi, and Cherukuri one less obstacle to worry about. The business partners purchased the empty space next to Cantner’s, which was fittingly a previous doctor’s office. (We reached out to get a comment and insight from the Town of Federalsburg and did not receive a response by publication time).
CarolinePharma will have cannabis products from different flowers to powders both for medical and recreational purposes. Maryland legalized the use of marijuana products for personal recreational use in July of 2023. All of the commodities at CarolinePharma legally have to be grown and tested right here in Maryland.
While the response from the local community has been largely positive, the owners understand that there is still negativity surrounding cannabis and cannabis dispensaries. “The ones that frown on it, as you talk to them and try to educate them a little bit more on what we've learned…they kind of come around and realize that, yeah, there's a purpose of this. So, I think as we get open, it'll be even more welcoming,” Willis said.
Kalidindi stressed the benefits of having an affordable, natural product like cannabis over painkillers, “it's very reasonable and affordable for people that use it for pain. A lot of prescription medications, unfortunately in our country, are very expensive. This is very reasonably priced, and people have had a lot of luck with it.” Medical patients will face fewer barriers at CarolinePharma, with plans in the works for a separate cash register and special medical-only timeframes for medical marijuana patients.
One area of pride for CarolinePharma is their highly trained and vetted staff. Those who wish to work in a dispensary have to undergo an FBI background check and a state background check. They then must complete training related to regular business operations, safety and security, and cannabis-related education. Willis said the goal is to have a crew of knowledgeable staff members who can give individual customers a positive experience at CarolinePharma, as well as run a tight ship for the good of the general population; and they’re well on their way, having cut the pool of 150 applicants down to less than 20 total employees.
“All of the employees that we hire, we are going to provide them with a Responsible Vendor Training that is required by the state of Maryland,” Kalidindi said this includes making sure staff correctly IDs customers, doesn’t sell over the legal limit of recreational marijuana, checks medical patients against the state’s database, and charges the proper amount of sales tax based on the customer’s medical status. “On top of that, we're going to train all the employees on the medical benefits of cannabinoid products, the terpenes,” Kalidindi described how the almost 20 different terpenes found in various cannabis products can be used to alleviate symptoms of illness. As an example, he said certain terpene combinations could help curb nausea in cancer patients, giving them a better quality of life. “There are different products for different people, so we’ve got to provide training.”
Cannabis producers will also be coming in to inform the employees on the specifications of their products so customers from all cannabis experience levels can get personally tailored service. “We'd ask, ‘what are your intentions? Are you looking to relieve pain, or are you just looking to go out and have fun?’ And we’d say, ‘Look, try this. If it doesn't work, come back.’ … Everybody in here is going to be an individual. Most people will walk in already [knowing what they want]. But if somebody comes in for the first time ever, we can individualize each person,” Willis said.
Besides checking valid identification and ensuring proper procedures are followed, the folks at CarolinePharma hope to be an asset to the Federalsburg community. A lot of tax dollars are contributed through the cultivation, production, and sale of cannabis products. In just the first quarter of 2025, $17.5 million was collected in all of Maryland in tax revenue from cannabis sales alone. According to the law, a portion of this revenue is reinvested in local jurisdictions through initiatives like the Community Reinvestment and Repair Fund.
Kalidindi said he hopes that Federalsburg can reap the benefits of these taxes. He also said businesses like CarolinePharma provide much-needed job opportunities and widen access to alternative, affordable health management in our rural setting. “Eric's local, I'm pretty much local, the people who worked on building this place are all local people; the security guy who installed the cameras, the guy who worked on our parking lot, everybody's local,” said Kalidindi. Willis said as business owners, they plan to help out community as much as they can within state law.
Now that they’ve finally got the green light to open, big things are on the horizon for CarolinePharma’s first few months of business. “It's been a journey, you know, but we’re here,” Willis said.
