Marijuana Business Magazine August 2019

August 2019 | mjbizdaily.com 69 W hen consumers hear the words “craft cannabis,” they might assume it’s unaffordable or overpriced. Ron Throgmartin, the chief executive officer of Diego Pellicer Worldwide, wants to bust that myth. When Diego Pellicer, a cannabis retailer with stores in Washington state and Colorado, was founded in 2013 in Seattle, its goal was to offer local consumers “craft or connoisseur cannabis,” Throgmartin said. But, he said, “our concept has a place in all communities because one of our fundamental beliefs is our stores and our experience is not exclusive to the wealthy.” Here, Throgmartin talks with Marijua- na Business Magazine about how craft cannabis purveyors can design stores and stock products that appeal to everyone. How do you define craft cannabis, and what does craft cannabis mean in the retail segment? I love this industry because we’re all in the process of defining these words. There are the obvious things: carefully manicured products trimmed by hand, using the best possible curing process and grown organically with no pesticides, and a real focus on potency, flavor and trichome appeal. All of those things are what create craft or connoisseur cannabis. As it relates to retail, you have to be very careful to not present yourself as too high-end or too premium because consumers might construe that as too expensive. That’s not what we are or what we define as craft. We work hard to deliver the very best product, whether it’s grown by us or by other cultivators. If a product meets the quality standards of craft cannabis, it’ll be in our craft cannabis lineup. We seek out the best quality product of all tiers of marijuana. We are not exclusively serving the craft or connoisseur consumer. Just because a customer’s budget is different from the craft cannabis consumer’s doesn’t mean they should not still expect the same customer experience and best available product. How is a craft cannabis environment conveyed in design? There’s something that ties our stores together. But we did not want to create one design and put that store in every market, because every market is differ- ent, and to think they’re not is a mistake. We want to design a store that is consistent with the community it’s in. We want it to feel personalized. Every store is going to deliver a premium, unparalleled customer service experience, and we’re going to try to deliver craft cannabis and the best available cannabis in all tiers. We want consumers to feel like the store is for them. We don’t want them to walk in the front door and think, “I don’t think I belong here.” Here’s an example: We’ll be opening a second store in Denver—two stores in the same city. And the new store will have a very different feel from our flagship store. There will be elements that tie the two together, but the new shop will be customized to fit the community it’s in. What qualities are important in products that come from third- party vendors? We only work with credible vendors— vendors who have good reputations, who are ethical, who have integrity. They have to be fully transparent about their processes and their products, and they have to pass our quality-control standards. The CEO of retailer Diego Pellicer Worldwide stresses the importance of offering premium product and customer service at every price point Ron Throgmartin is the chief executive officer of Diego Pellicer Worldwide. Courtesy Photo