Colorado Barber Shop Owner Stands By Anti-Pot Smell Policy

A controversial sign displayed on the outside of a Greeley, Colo., barber shop may very well deter some weed-smoking clients, but the business owner isn't backing down.

In response to complaints over Hugo's Barber Shop reeking of weed, owner Hugo Corral has endorsed a pot stench-free policy that prohibits clients who reek of marijuana from entering the establishment.

The sign, which was put up three weeks ago, USA Today notes, reads: "Please do not come in if you smell like marijuana, there are families with kids who don't want to smell it. This is a business not your house. Thank you."

Corral says he has no problem with smoking weed -- which is legal in Colorado -- he just doesn't want the scent transferred inside his business, where he says about half of his clients were coming in smelling like it.

"I feel that it's my right to make the statement," Corral told CBS News. "It's the same thing as no shoes, no service."

"A mother calls and says, 'Hey we can't go in there anymore because we don't want it to smell like marijuana when my child's sitting there waiting," he told the news outlet.

The decision to crack down on the stench wasn't well received by everyone. Corral says he's been bashed on social media and that his store's been trashed on the outside. Although the new policy may have fueled anger, it is completely within Corral's legal rights to enforce it, a legal analyst told Denver news outlet 9NEWS.

"Business owners absolutely have the right to refuse service to someone who has been smoking pot, is drunk, or for any other reason as long as it's not an unlawful or unconstitutional reason such as race, religion or gender," Scott Robinson told 9NEWS.

While Corral may lose some of his clients due to the new policy, his business seems to be thriving, and he plans to move to a larger location soon, the outlet reports.

He's even taken to Facebook to thank some of his supporters.