Ask a Stoner: Dispensary Connoisseur Memberships?

Westword

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Dear Stoner: Why don't more dispensaries do memberships, like breweries or wineries? Things like exclusive strains of the month and early releases.
Davidson

Dear Davidson: Have a seat, baby Yoda, for a history lesson. This concept you ask about once existed, as caregiver benefits for medical marijuana patients. Before recreational weed took over, medical dispensaries ran the land, and the number of plants they could grow to supply their inventories depended on how many patients designated these dispensaries as their medical caregivers. As you can imagine, this created quite a competitive environment, and dispensaries offered a wide range of discounts, free pot and other perks to attain higher plant counts.

click to enlarge

Scott Lentz

But dispensaries largely eliminated caregiver benefits this year after changes to medical marijuana supply regulations eliminated the tie between patients and plant count, and I wouldn't expect recreational pot shops to fill that void. With rare exceptions, most retail dispensaries today are in a race to the bottom, using daily or flash deals, coupons and holiday sales to attract customers. There are some dispensaries that do care more about quality, but we haven't come across any saving exclusive strains or providing early releases for their favorite customers. Perhaps that loyal-connoisseur demand just isn't strong enough yet.

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