My two cents on the state of dispensaries and weed -I'm a big fan of The Joint. But first off, no one person or thing is perfect. In fact I have issues with all dispensaries. But I have the least problems at The Joint. This is coming from someone who spends at least 10 hr a week hunting for weed and I have been to almost all Denver area dispensaries. Just as in life, if you don't like something you can always seek to find a better way or different place of business. We've sort of forgotten that in 2020 - there is always another way, another company, another person that can replace those you have issues with.Honestly the weed world and world of dispensaries is rapidly changing and evolving. We are all sort of BETA testers permanently. Some of what is changing is our understanding of the science of weed: we are getting away from THC count, from sativa/indica to a much better understanding of what it is in weed that affects us. To that point we are all highly individualized beings and what works for one may not you, or what someone finds couch locking, may be uplifting to another.As this science begins to be better understood, so is your budtenders understanding. Of course there are still 'models' out there that push stuff based on THC count or price point. While I don't think those models are honest given the better understanding we know have, that does get me to my next point: dispensaries are capitalistic. Some have a business model based on just selling like a used car lot. While others not only want to sell but also do it based on our now better understanding of the weed plant. Regardless one had to expect, as with any business in a capitalistic society, that there is a bottom line and when you really really get to the foundation of said business it is to make money. Why one store charges X for the same thing another stores charges less for is really frustrating. But as do gas stations and groceries stores, this isn't new. There is no 'Tylenol' for everyone. The weed industry is still the wild west and much is also driven by tax, fear of the feds and over regulation. This makes it very hard for a business to really settle into itself. It is also being 'corporatized', including The Joint. But I don't automatically mean that in a negative way, rather things are rapidly changing and corporations tend to operate differently than small businesses. We can argue the positive and negative of that issue another day.We also have forgotten 'you gotta put the work/time in' to get the rewards. Users should do more research, visit more dispensaries or do what i do and have about 6 (of the 100+ i have visited her in denver) in your rotation. This keeps your strain options varied and your tenders will rotate as well. Also I have spent the time to get to know the tenders at The Joint, showed interest in their lives and their weed smoking and in turn they engage in my interests and what strains I prefer. Think about how better your day to day interactions are at businesses/people that you have a relationship with are? And no, not every tender at The Joint has the same knowledge, the same rapport with me, but please tell me where in your life everything is perfect and exactly as you demand!! The people at The Joint I do feel make a concerted effort to be the best they can be. Again, one tender may care less about the science and will smoke anything all the time, while another is much more sensitive and nuanced. I fall on the nuanced side myself.Don't even get me started on the hype machine, instagram accounts and VIP lists for super boujee brands that none of the masses get to try. If your stuff is that good and 'works' you don't need to create hype to generate massive lines to get an 1/8 or instagram followings. And just because you scale up your grow, that does not mean your product quality will drop. A terrible misnomer in the business. You also don't need to scale up in one giant mega facility. You can have smaller, more quality control grows that mimic the highly focused grows that are currently in operation.
Denver, Colorado
