The BEYOND/HELLO team was able to celebrate the debut day selling adult use in Normal, Ill. On Monday, expanded the state’s growing market to a sought-after region that is two hours to the south of Chicago. The dispensary is part Jushi Holding’s continuing growth in the new markets for cannabis. And is due to a branding change after Jushi’s acquisition of The Green Solution in Illinois earlier in the year. Blythe A. Huestis is vice president of retail Jushi Holdings, says that the opening week of sales for adult. Use, an indication of a spirit team that’s willing to change on a dime. Make sure that customers are left satisfy. On Monday began, the BEYOND/HELLO team worked hard to transform the design of the store. Communicate the message that the dispensary is planning to stay in touch to each customer beyond “hello.”
“It’s taken a lot of dedication, hard work and time, but fortunately we’ve got an awesome team,” she adds. As for more major renovations scheduled for the in the near future, at first, branding focus was on signs. Paint jobs the display layouts, and the new uniforms for the Normal shop. The plan is to connect the Illinois properties with the Jushi’s initial BEYOND/HELLO, located in Bristol, Pa. The store that was able to open two years prior to the Normal store. (The company plans to open two additional dispensary stores in Illinois prior to the closing date.) It’s certainly an extremely difficult time to remodel and change the name. The coronavirus epidemic has totally changed the landscape of retail and thrown businesses into unanticipated guidelines that do not allow for any intimate interaction with others, such as curious customers during the initial day of sales for adults.
BEYOND/HELLO has encouraged online and over-the-phone ordering. But the public health mandates that emerged in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic have given the company. A chance to really hone those platforms and promote them widely to customers. Especially to those who may be new to cannabis in the first place. It’s been beneficial. Huestis claims that phone calls allow staff’s budtenders to be in contact with customers, answering frequently-complex questions about particular products and clearly communicating ideas such as dosages, cannabinoid content the profiles of terpenes and more.
“We’re all talking about how fortunate we are to have been condition to be super nimble in this industry,” she states.
In the shop, customers can are able to work with budtenders one-on-one in glass-fronted windows. The idea is to keep the social norms of distancing and ensure that there is no disconnect between the staff and the customer. Cannabis legalization is a novel concept, especially in markets that are newer, such as central Illinois, and is a subject of its own range of concerns. The relationship between the budtender and the customer who is curious is among the main pillars of a successful cannabis retail environment. Huestis states that BEYOND/HELLO has implemented the steps necessary to ensure that the conversation continues over the phone as well as in-person (with an elegant glass barrier between the two).
“While you do miss that initial interaction [when talking over the phone], our staff is really well-trained, and they care so much about this industry and are so passionate about the product that they’ve been able to convey that across the phone,” Huestis states.
In between Normal with its northern neighbor Bloomington, Ill. This region has over 100,000 people, and an enormous student students in Illinois State University and Illinois Wesleyan University. The Normal-Bloomington market has a loyal customer clientele. Huestis says, leading the company to believe it can be a good entry point for adult-sales. With the absence of the BEYOND/HELLO store, adults in the area have been taking for more than 30 minutes. Into dispensaries that are located that are located in Peoria and Champaign.
“Part of what we all try to do in this industry is make sure that we don’t have any areas that are under serve,” she says.