Rooted in the Culture of Cannabis

The essence of Culture Cannabis Club started long before legalization in California, rooted in compassion for patients, caregivers, and cultivators during times when cannabis was restricted to medical users. Jumping into the recreational market is always a challenge, but Devon Julian, CEO of Culture Cannabis Club, was always confident that his team’s distinct approach to customer service and cannabis education through technology would quickly differentiate them from other California operators.

The Culture Cannabis Club Experience

Dedicated to revolutionizing the way consumers shop for cannabis products, Culture Cannabis Club helps new entrants and cannabis connoisseurs alike find their ideal product types and brands.

“We want to make sure that there are options for every type of customer coming through the door. We pride ourselves on having approachable options for the new customers just starting their cannabis journey. Through the use of the touch screens and our expert cannabis consultants we guide them to these options to ensure a great experience.”

Recognizing the overwhelming variety and complexity of the market, the club has developed innovative tools and resources to help consumers make informed choices and easily learn about the products and brands available. By empowering employees with training and technology, consumers can navigate the evolving cannabis landscape easily.

A History of Cannabis Activism

In 2006, now-CEO Devon Julian was working with Prop 215 caregivers and cultivators in San Diego. A bit of a greenthumb himself and appreciating the plant’s potential to improve quality of life in patients and recreational users alike, Devon honed his skills in cultivation and assisted legacy cultivators, consulting and helping where he could. This experience gave him the insight he would eventually carry into the recreational market.

In 2018, when Prop 64 was enacted, Devon and his partners developed their cannabis brand to offer more than they could under medical cannabis legislation in California. The goal was education and community – a comfortable environment for all walks of life to come and comfortably educate themselves on the various product types, brands, and their uses–easily and at their leisure. Focused on leveraging touchscreen technology in all of their locations to support cannabis users in a new industry, Culture Cannabis Club makes access to product and brand information easy for consumers to learn and explore on their own or with the help of in-store cannabis consultants.

From Legacy, to Medical, to Legal

Making the switch from legacy to legal is always a challenge. Devon recalls issues like safety requirements, regulations, and licensing costs that many entrepreneurs who want to join the industry today still face. Quality was also a concern at the start; as companies focused on their bottom line, especially when the market took a hit and they had to regain their losses, quantity was chosen over quality. Fortunately, there has been a gradual increase in product quality as more brands enter the market, and it has become easier to identify premium cannabis. The illegal market still thrives, but it faces more stiff competition from better legal products on the shelves.

Taking the step from medical to recreational is also complicated, and remains so for today's operators. Devon continues to do his part in pushing legalization forward within the State and beyond. “We’re still figuring it out,” Devon says, pointing to the fact that California has left it up to local municipalities to develop and institute a legalization framework. To this point, about 40% of the state’s municipalities have access to regulated cannabis, so there is still a long way to go.

The market needs to grow so there is more revenue to give back to communities affected by the war on drugs; Culture Cannabis Club prioritizes supporting and partnering with social equity brands and hopes to see them in more stores around the state and countrywide. “Along with Culture Cannabis Club’s success, I try and also make sure to contribute to the industry, to legalization in the US.”

The club will be gaining new membership soon, with new Culture Cannabis Club locations opening in California in the next 6 months, including their latest in Stanton. The club eagerly anticipates the opening of stores in Ohio and Mississippi as well, with hopes of reaching other markets including New Jersey in the future. The plan is to expand carefully and strategically to reach underserved markets.

The Culture of Cannabis Consumption

Culture Cannabis Club’s emphasis on in-house technology is revolutionizing the way consumers shop for cannabis products, helping buyers make informed decisions when purchasing cannabis. The club places great emphasis on customer experience and accessible information.

“We really want it to be a place where you’re comfortable,” Devon says, highlighting the uniqueness of shopping at a Culture Cannabis Club location. Avoiding both the sterile feel of a medical dispensary and the more stereotypical elements of your average cannabis dispensary, Culture Cannabis Club’s locations are spacious and welcoming, inviting visitors to explore and discuss cannabis with qualified staff at their own pace and leisure. You’ll find shelves stocked with a wide selection of store staples and the newest drops, and at least 8 large 20-inch touch screens to easily and comfortably survey the selection and find detailed information on your own. Grab a product, bring it to the screen, and learn all you need to know with a touch of your finger. There’s always a consultant with an iPad, well-trained in cannabis brands and product categories, ready to help you find what you’re seeking, making the shopping experience a breeze for regular users and newcomers alike. They don’t work on commission, so you’ll never feel pressured. As Devon says, “go and explore–we’ll help you.”

If you already know what you want, place an order online to your nearest location and it will be ready for pick-up when you get there at a devoted online-pickup window–no waiting.

Culture Cannabis Club’s Product Selection

Culture Cannabis Club prides itself in offering an array of both high quality and high value brands to suit a wide variety of tastes and requirements and ensuring that it will order and carry any product a customer wants. Based on local buying trends, different shops may offer more or less of a particular product, but consumers can find the same popular products in all Culture Cannabis Club stores.

Dried flower and vapes continue to fight for the top spots in terms of popularity, but extracts are gradually gaining ground. The team at Culture Cannabis Club has noticed another trend as well, and will soon be installing more glass-door refrigerators in their stores to accommodate the new surge in popularity of cannabis beverages–products that have caught the attention in particular of the curious user seeking a more familiar mode of consumption, like drinking, without the alcohol effects.

There are some brands that just “have to be on the shelf,” but Culture Cannabis Club is always looking to highlight new regional, locally-produced brands as well as diverse and female-owned brands when possible. The Club is proud to be on the forefront of bringing fun and innovative legacy brands to the legal market as well, including Exotic Carts, an interesting, ready-to-use vape, and Funny Gummies, a gourmet gummy that appeals to new entrants in the market.

Looking to the near future, the Club will be celebrating the Grand Opening in Stanton on June 24th, and will be opening 6 more stores in the summer across the state. Looking a bit further ahead, Devon awaits the expansion of legalization nationally and abroad– “we want to bring the Culture experience around the world.”