Lessons from Cannabis Stores in Toronto
I was recently on a walk with my nine-year-old son and noticed that our neighbourhood in Toronto is budding with pot shops (Pun very much intended). They are popping up like crazy! There are no less than ten of them within a fifteen minute walking radius of where we live.
Even my son commented on the abundance of them!
What are these shops selling?
Each of these shops is selling the same thing. The pot is the commodity (the “what”) and they all have the same(ish) products available.
So what is it that would make a consumer choose one over the other?
Something I noticed about three of the shops in my neighbourhood is that they have very strong, and unique branding. They are all very apparently different from one another.
There is Tokyo Smoke, situated on a cozy corner, which comes off as the Apple Store of pot shops. They emit a sleek, cool vibe with their branding, even down to the look and feel of the exterior.
Then, a little further down the street we have Value Budd, which you can probably guess looks and feels like the Dollarama of pot shops. Their branding suggests they offer cheaper products at a lower price point and deliver on convenience and accessibility.
A hop, skip, and a jump away is Civilian. Civilian is like the Chanel of pot shops. You would imagine the customer that walks in here to be one concerned with high fashion and luxury. They are willing to pay more for high-end products and a quality experience. Civilian sets itself apart as an exclusive boutique, a gorgeous exterior, and a look that denotes exclusivity.
It is the branding of each of these pot shops that will help people choose which is the right fit for them. It isn’t about the “what” that they are selling, because they are all selling the same thing.
Each of these cannabis stores know that they will attract a completely different clientele, and they are focused on attracting the right ones for their business.
That is how they stand out in their industry. Not with the WHAT that they are selling, but HOW they are selling it.
Is Your Business Standing Out?
Take a look at your own industry and your competition. What is your commodity item? What is your ‘weed’? There are plenty of people selling the same product or service as you, so it’s important to focus on that HOW, rather than the WHAT.
The image your brand projects helps you to attract the right clients for you and your unique business.
How are others in your industry positioning themselves? How are they showing the value in working with them over someone else? What is the status associated with the other brands you see?
Take some time to sit with these questions and really dig into what makes you different and stand out.
There is no wrong answer! Whether you want to be known as the Tokyo Smoke, Value Budd, or Civilian of your industry, there are clients and customers out there who want to work with you and buy from you.
It’s all about positioning yourself in a way that draws those exact people to you through your branding, messaging, and the content you are putting out there.