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By Melinda Gwaltney
Looking on consumer trends, we can see that in 2024 the in store experience will be a deciding factor for customer spending in cannabis. Customers are tired of fast food modeled retail dispensaries and are hungry for new experiences and permanency in the industry. Long term customers ultimately want a great product, education and a wow factor when shopping. Simply competing for the lowest price is not a long term solution to bringing in steady sales and profits.
Creating a retail dispensary interior for your brand that resonates with your ideal customer isn’t easy. Appealing to everyone (throwing the net wide) is tempting. You don’t want to alienate potential customers and canna curious foot traffic, but that comes with a long term, high price. You will lose your brand identity and ultimately a valuable fierce following. Understanding your customer, who they are, where they shop, how much interaction they prefer, all the demographics. This information drives your store layout, merchandising, staffing operating procedures and also product placement. It’s vital to do your research.
One recent retail design project in particular checks all of the boxes. The dispensary is in Anchorage, Alaska. My client has owned cultivation and retail dispensaries for many years and is incredibly savvy when it comes to style. But even more so, she knows her customers so well that when she came to me with this wild, luxury experience idea, I knew she was on target. I may be naive but when I think of Alaska, I picture snow, moose, blue collar customers and more snow. Not Chanel stores or high end boutiques. My client reminded me that tourism accounts for thousands of visitors from around the world who are looking for the ultimate experience. They want to be wowed and her goal is for them to return home from their vacation remembering how fantastic their experience was at her retail dispensary.
She bought a dilapidated vacant former steakhouse and her crew went to work ripping it to the studs. Location and visibility was perfect and if you looked hard you could see the potential. The back half of the building, about 6,000 sq ft was reserved for cultivation which left about 2,000 sq ft for a retail dispensary and lounge. Fantastic parking and accessibility.
My client insisted that the entry be jaw dropping. First impressions matter, especially when the first interaction is asking to see identification. This can feel intrusive. We softened the experience with the ID check desk not being behind safety glass or talking through a little metal speaker box. A welcoming person thanks you for stopping in, checks ID and pairs you with an experienced personal shopper. The soaring ceilings and glass facade made that part easy. Accentuating the open-air feel, the lounge is visible through massive glass windows and doors. The lounge is to the left and the retail dispensary on the right. Entering the retail dispensary, you pass massive windows that give you a full view into the cultivation. Visually, it’s a massive grow showcasing the quality plants. Bright lighting and long spans of plant filled tables and. Customers love to watch the live-action of processing cannabis. It’s like a tour of the Willy Wonka factory. Seeing their future purchases growing in the next room forever connects them to the brand, the plant and the retail experience. By showing customers a glimpse into the process, trust is built and quality evident.
Inside the retail dispensary feels very much like a Chanel store. Each product is merchandised carefully with light and elevation. Adding luxury furniture pieces, art and materials all support the attention to detail. Employees are trained to assist guests like personal shoppers. There are no que lines to stand in or number systems. This adds to the perception of luxury. Attention to details, exceptional customer service and education. A secure walk in humidor houses premium products. There were many construction and design challenges. The building had oddly placed structural columns to deal with, which turned out to be a huge advantage. Accenting them with a deep charcoal color and adding built in displays around them turned them into a stunning, intentional design feature. The flooring was also a huge component because the building, a previous restaurant, had multiple level changes which were elegantly solved through raising a few areas and also adding ADA compliant easy sloped ramps. Finding creative solutions to unavoidable structural challenges is a part of every single project.
Interior and exterior lighting is crucial in environments where most of the year it’s fairly dark. We upped the quantity of general lighting by 20% and boosted its efficacy by using pale cream paint and finish colors as the backdrop. All displays are LED lit and special attention was given to color temperature. Nothing too cold or warm, just sitting in the crisp range of 3500-4000k. The space feels bright and airy, not cold. The lounge is the exception. It has moody flood lights that pool on intimate seating arrangements. The exterior is fully lit with modern, sleek sconces that make the building glow at night, even more so when there is snow on the ground. For the most part, all of these small details go unnoticed by the end customer. All they know is that they love shopping here, love the attention and can’t wait to come back. It’s not marketing, it’s design.
Projected sales for this location per ticket are between $65-$100, and each customer typically spends 30-50 minutes in the retail dispensary. Lounge visitors can purchase premium coffee and pastries spending anywhere from 1-3+ hours relaxing and enjoying the views from the glass atrium. The lounge also has the capacity and flexibility to host cannabis education events, tasting parties and live music. A complete package wow factor that caters to ideal customers. The best part is that while this is an unexpected shopping model for Alaska, it’s exactly what the customers want and the way we see the retail dispensary experience turning.
Knowing who your ideal customer is the first step to fleshing out what your store design will look like. Be okay with being niche and making it exceptional. Have a distinct brand voice and make sure everything you put out there matches it clearly. This is the foundation of a lasting brick and mortar retail cannabis dispensary.
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