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Chris Myers is a CAURD licensee and Owner/Founder of The Greenery Spot in Johnson City, NY.
Last month, I had the honor of opening the first adult-use cannabis dispensary in Johnson City and one of the first dispensaries in the Southern Tier. At the ribbon cutting, I was able to celebrate with family, friends, and partners who helped make the opening possible and start providing my community with easier access to a wide variety of tested, legal cannabis products.
But while The Greenery Spot’s grand opening went off without a hitch, I can’t say the same for the whole process of opening a dispensary. Here’s my advice for other dispensaries looking to open as quickly (and seamlessly) as possible, based on my own experience.
Get to know your community. Chances are, you’re looking to open your dispensary close to home. But even if you’re already familiar with the neighborhood (the sports team, nearby colleges, popular restaurants, etc.), you might not have a relationship with the elected officials and other civil servants that keep the town running smoothly.
Reach out early and build relationships so you can position your dispensary as a positive addition and assuage any concerns about cannabis in the community. (As we all know, legal cannabis keeps it out of the hands of underage kids because we ID for every purchase!)
Building these relationships helped create strong local support for The Greenery Spot and many of our local elected officials including Mayor Marty Meaney and Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, who celebrated beside us at the grand opening.
Hire the right partners. I’m the first person to tell you that I didn’t open my dispensary by myself. It’s not a one-man job. It’s also something I hadn’t done before. That’s why I partnered with experts with deep experience opening cannabis dispensaries.
The Temeka Group helped me avoid costly mistakes when it came to choosing my retail location and designing the build out. Castetter Cannabis Group made sure I correctly filled out all regulatory forms and requirements. And Marino PR taught me how to speak publicly and told the world about our opening. You don’t have to turn to the experts I leaned on, but make sure you’re having conversations with and getting advice from people who have done this before. There are also a ton of free resources available, like the Dispensary Showroom Tour.
A well-trained staff is key. I was blessed to find so many employees who are passionate about cannabis. But because the industry is still so new, many of them don’t have direct experience working at a dispensary. Significant staff training might seem like a big investment, but trust me, it pays off in the long run.
Make sure your staff, not just the budtenders, can answer basic questions about cannabis and consumption and are up to date on the latest products, including where they’re grown, the dosage, and what makes them unique. Many growers and processers, like ayrloom, and technology providers, like Dutchie, will send representatives to train your staff in person.
Don’t forget customer service. If you’re opening in the next couple of months, you’ll have an immediate advantage because few adult-use dispensaries have opened yet. But eventually, there will be hundreds of legal dispensaries where consumers can purchase cannabis. Use your leg up to provide excellent customer service, highlight what makes your dispensary unique, and build brand loyalty. For example, investing in an ADA compliant service counter helps to communicate that at The Greenery Spot, we are dedicated to accessibility and here to provide stellar service to everyone.
This is a marathon, not a sprint. Like me, I’m sure you’re excited and are trying to open as quickly as possible. But remember that you’re building a business to last decades. Give yourself enough time to complete every task to the highest standards possible and give yourself more time than you think you’ll actually need. For example, building more runway to do inventory would have prevented some fire drills and late nights in the days leading up to us opening our doors.
The paint on The Greenery Spot is still fresh and I’m learning more every day, but these resources and experiences helped me succeed and these the things I’ve learned might help you avoid the same mistakes I made as you work towards opening a dispensary of your own.