10 Tips for Designing an Outstanding Dispensary
Tip #1: Gather your Dream Team
Start with a team experienced in dispensary design – architects, interior designers, and visual merchandisers. This will help save time and effort during the design process and avoid compliance mistakes during build-out.
Tip #2: Plan for Digital Technology
Oversized video screens are impactful in a dispensary but feeding it meaningful content 365 days a year takes a lot of effort. Make sure you have a long-term plan for content if you want to have digital interfaces in your dispensary.
Tip #3: Include Spaces to Queue & Gather
Think about where people will wait and queue during peak hours (after work) or peak days of the year (4/20). You don’t want people waiting outside, so plan for ample space in your lobby and in front of your POS station.
Tip #4: Build your Schedule
Build a schedule to give all teams the appropriate amount of time to do their work, and also to get long lead time items built – like custom furniture. Failing to plan far enough in advance will restrict your design choices and may affect the quality of your construction.
Tip #5: Creating an Instagram moment
Give them something to post about! It can be something playful, neighborhood-centric, and meaningful to your brand – like a clever slogan or artwork. Think about changing this periodically to keep it exciting.
Tip #6: Optimize Workflow
Operational and staff efficiencies are critical to your business. When designing your floor plan, consider how products will flow through your space and how staff will need to move around the space. It’s great to provide a comfortable and serene break room for staff to time out and recharge.
Tip #7: Emphasize on the customer experience
People can buy almost anything online nowadays, including cannabis. Give them a reason to want to come into your dispensary– like appealing to their other senses (smell, taste, feel, and hear) or educational moments on new products with local farmers/pop-ups.
Tip #8: Prioritize Budget
Prepare a budget upfront, and don’t be shy about sharing it with your design team. This will help everyone stay on target and avoid delays and re-selection of materials, fixtures, and furniture later on. It is also good to have a list of must-haves within your space (like refrigeration or special security features) as this will drive budgets.
Tip #9: Be Flexible
It’s a great idea to design your dispensary with the capability to evolve with ever-changing products and regulations. Think about modular fixtures, flexible displays, adjustable lighting, and power outlets dispersed throughout.
Tip #10: Design for Scalability
Once you’re up and running, it’s natural to begin thinking about expanding your business. Make a wish list of things you would do differently, things you hate and things you love. When you’re ready to open a new location, these lists will be a great starting point.