Cannabis is inching closer to federal legalization, but the experience of shopping for plant-based wellness and recreational products still feels more complicated than it should. Even people who’ve been buying for years tell me they feel overwhelmed by the menus, terminology, and pressure to “pick the right thing.”
At the same time, the industry is racing toward scale: more stores, more SKUs, more daily deals. Growth matters, of course, but it doesn’t mean much if customers feel lost the moment they walk in the door.
The retail brands that end up leading on a national stage won’t be the biggest or the flashiest. They’ll be the ones that slow down long enough to actually listen — the ones who pay attention to the human beings making the purchases, meeting consumers where they are in their journey, and making the experience feel simple, welcoming, and honest.
For me, that always starts with empathy and designing the entire customer journey so it feels comfortable and easy.
Empathy, the foundation of a successful cannabis retail experience
People don’t walk into a dispensary empty-handed. They carry their stories with them: the pain they’re trying to manage, the sleep they’re hoping to find, the stress they’re trying to shake, the curiosity they’ve finally given themselves permission to explore. Some are still battling the stigma they grew up with. If you’re not tuned in to the human being standing in front of you, you miss what they’re really seeking.
In cannabis, understanding matters more than people admit. Empathy isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s the foundation for creating great experiences. When you take the time to understand the human being inside the shopper, everything else starts to align. Your messaging becomes clearer, your product recommendations get better, and your brand starts to feel like something people can trust.
Bridging the gap between internal culture and consumer storytelling
During my career, I’ve learned people can sense forced authenticity from a mile away. You can have the best-looking campaigns in the world, but if your internal culture doesn’t match the story you tell, people instantly feel the disconnect.
Authenticity isn’t created in a design file. It’s created in how teams talk to each other, how leaders listen, and whether people feel safe showing up as themselves at work. When your team feels grounded and supported, their interactions with customers naturally become more honest, relatable, and genuine.
Cannabis customers respond to that. People like buying from other people who feel real.
The myth of the ‘one-size-fits-all’ retail strategy
One of the big myths in this industry is that a single national brand experience can work everywhere. Anyone who has operated in more than one state knows just how untrue that is.
Los Angeles shoppers aren’t Baltimore shoppers. Ohio’s market doesn’t behave like Arizona’s. A new medical market will never mirror a mature recreational space.
Comfort levels, community norms, and consumer expectations vary dramatically from state to state, and that can be your biggest strength if you’re willing to pay attention.
State-by-state compliance, as frustrating as it can be, actually forces operators to listen to each state’s unique market. It prevents assuming what works in one place automatically will work everywhere else. It makes retailers slow down and understand the people they’re trying to serve.
The approach to any new market should start with the basics. Who lives there? How do they feel about cannabis? What confuses them? What excites them? What’s getting in their way?
Once operators understand that, they’re not guessing anymore; they’re actually building for the people who live in the area and will buy their products.
How does reducing ‘cognitive friction’ increase customer confidence and sales?
Simplicity in retail is the strategic reduction of cognitive friction to empower customers’ decision-making process. Reducing cognitive friction — the mental effort required to navigate a menu or product list — lowers a shopper’s anxiety. When a retail experience is simplified through clear terminology and approachable design, customers feel more capable of making a purchase, leading to higher conversion rates and long-term brand trust.
In other words, empathy helps you understand someone. Simplicity helps you support them where they are in their journey.
Cannabis shopping can feel complicated even for people who know the plant well. Strain names sound like an inside joke. Choices are overwhelming in every category. Product descriptions resemble a science class.
Most customers aren’t looking for a dissertation. They want clarity, confidence, and a sense that they’re making the right choice for their unique needs.
Simplifying the experience isn’t about dumbing down anything. It’s about removing friction.
Clear explanations, approachable menus, and effects-forward frameworks make cannabis feel accessible instead of overwhelming.
People relax when concepts and product applications are simplified and broken down for them. Their growing confidence becomes visible: Their shoulders drop, and they feel comfortable asking questions.
The industry as a whole benefits when we stop trying to prove how smart we are and focus instead on helping people feel capable. Simplicity is empathy in action.
Budtenders are the most critical part of your brand’s marketing strategy
If there’s one thing I wish every national operator would prioritize, it’s this: Budtenders matter more than any marketing strategy.
Budtenders are the front line, translating the entire experience for customers across the spectrum. They build trust with customers who are anxious, overwhelmed, or brand new. Budtenders turn complication and confusion into a comfortable decision.
Everything comes down to what happens at the sales counter. Beautiful branding, polished campaigns, and brilliant back-end dashboards are undeniably important. But if the personal interaction feels rushed, rigid, or transactional, customers won’t return.
The most valuable thing a brand can do is empower its team. Give team members tools. Give them trust. Give them space to be themselves so customers feel safe doing the same.
When your team feels human, your brand feels human — and that’s what connects with audiences.
The strategic retail playbook for a post-legalization cannabis market
Rescheduling — and, eventually, federal legalization — will change the cannabis industry, but not in the way everyone expects. Some multistate operators will try to standardize everything, because standardization makes for cleaner spreadsheets. But cannabis isn’t an industry that thrives under sameness. Because of the industry’s history and the nature of the plant, cannabis retail is personal, emotional, and deeply tied to how people live their lives.
Going forward, make these practices part of your standard operating procedures and watch how consumers respond:
- Listen more than you assume.
- Simplify wherever people feel overwhelmed.
- Support the teams who actually talk to customers.
- Respect the differences between communities.
- Never forget why people come to cannabis in the first place.
If we want the industry to grow responsibly and sustainably, we have to meet people where they are. One person, one neighborhood, one market at a time.
Deep Dive: Empathy in Retail
Is empathy really a business strategy, or is it just good manners?
How do you scale a “local” feel without losing operational efficiency?
Is “simplicity” just “dumbing it down” for a complex product?
What is the most common mistake leadership makes regarding front-line staff?
How do you measure the ROI of human-centric retail?
Aaron Dubois is vice president of marketing at Story Cannabis, bringing more than twenty-eight years of elite brand-building experience to the industry. A veteran of iconic agencies including TBWA\Chiat\Day and The Branding Farm, he has spent his career shaping the identities of global powerhouses like Panasonic, Samsung, Procter & Gamble, and Warner Bros. Today, he leverages that pedigree to bridge the gap between complex retail operations and authentic consumer storytelling, advocating for a design-led approach rooted in simplicity and empathy.
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