Diana talks to Ashleen and Rileigh Agulair about how their Chronic Gals podcast shaped the creation of Take Root Training.
Ashleen and Rileigh Agulair of Take Root Training join Diana to talk about what's missing in a typical dispensary setting, and how customers are missing out. They explain how their program and companion materials can help current and future budtenders have a better understanding of the industry. From offering a Budtender buzzline to creating an accessible almanac, the Agulair sisters are intent on making the retail experience better for everyone involved.
0:16 - Welcome to Your Highness Podcast
1:20 - Fave Pot
7:06 - Fave Not Pot
14:20 - Main Segment
39:00 - How can we find you and support you
Important links:
Budtender Buzzline: 360-326-2893
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00:16 - Diana (Host)
Welcome to your Highness podcast. I'm your host, Diana Crash, and today I am joined by Ashleen and Riley Aguilar. How are you doing today?
00:27 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
We're doing good. Hi, how are you doing here?
00:30 - Diana (Host)
Okay, good, I'm excited you're here as well. I've been wanting to talk to the two of you for a long time now and if you're a regular listener in any kind of a way, you know that usually this part is done with my co-host. But because the two of you are both media members and you have a lot going on right now, we're going to take this journey together and we're going to do our Fave Not Pot. Then we'll talk about a lot of other things, but I think we'll be covering the gamut today. We're going to start this episode, as we do every episode, with our recurring segment Fave Pot, fave Not Pot. We each talk about our current cannabis related and non-cannabis related item that we're just really feeling right now. I'm going to start.
01:22
Mine is actually a transdermal cream by Treatables and it's 1,000 milligrams of CBD per tube. Humans can use this as well. By the way. It's for dogs and cats, but I think anyone can really use it. It has five in one. It's a five in one support. The really cool thing about this is, if you put a little dab inside the ear of your dog, it goes right into the bloodstream and it's an instant effect, which really helps, because my dog is really annoying with his scratching. He scratches a lot but it's like a nervous thing. It's not really a skin issue. This has been a lifesaver. This is the only thing that's ever made him completely stop itching. I think that it really does affect the anxiety and whatever else he has going on. Big fan and they also donated a bunch of samples to our event the other night. We're really grateful for that. Big fan of Treatables always has been, Always have been. The founder Julianne was one of my very first guests seven years ago. Definitely check out Treatables. Who would like to start with their fave pot.
02:43 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I can start Go ahead. Actually, I actually have some on the table right now. Fave pot right now have been these from the soil 0.75 gram joints, pre-rolls. They come in a two pack. It's 1.5 grams total, but 0.75 grams, I've decided, is the perfect shareable size joint. One gram well, 0.75 grams for two people, because I usually smoke with my partner Warren, but one gram is good for more than two people. 0.75, perfect for two people. 0.5, not enough, yeah, so I've been really into the end. I think these are the only 0.75 joints on the market right now In Washington, in Washington. So I'm digging these from the soil. Damn tasty pre-rolls.
03:39 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
It is nice that you get an extra half gram joint in the whole tube and it's only like a dollar more than your one gram tube. Oh, really, I agree those are good.
03:49 - Diana (Host)
I probably wouldn't share that, but that's just because my husband doesn't smoke flour like that, it would be a nice one to come back to. I guess Finish half of it later.
04:00 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I mean it's really good at like. 0.75 is pretty good on your own, it's not as daunting as a one gram. I'm happy to smoke a one gram on my own.
04:11 - Diana (Host)
Don't twist my I won't.
04:11 - Speaker 3 (Host)
it's not an issue 0.75, doesn't feel like I'm like so high that I can't function and like yeah, it's a good size.
04:21 - Diana (Host)
I've decided.
04:22 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I realize that after smoking I was like nice size.
04:25 - Diana (Host)
I like it. Yeah, awesome. And what about you, ashlene?
04:29 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Okay, I'm going to give you a five pot right now. I was going to pick from the same pot company that you know is a strain that they have called blue cookies, and it's a blue dream and cookies cross, which are both so like, so, such amazing strains, two of my favorites on their own, so lovely, and then together you get that like dreamy haze of the blue dream about that uppity, fun, energetic of cookies, like happy mood. So Right now I'm really enjoying this blue cookies. I'm soil from the soil, nice.
05:03 - Diana (Host)
Are they only in Washington?
05:05 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
They are only in Washington. I have been to their farm in Ilma Washington. They had like, actually they have a really beautiful Property. I'm just gonna shout it out really quick. Yeah, and I don't know, it's been probably I don't know six years since I've been there, so I don't know how what's changed. But when I visited, you drive up their drive and there's a lake to your right and Like fields to your left and it's just so picturesque and you keep going and they take you over to where their Outdoor fields are and you see these trees that are literally Like eight feet tall, just huge. Because I think we went in September. We always, when I was working at a dispensary, we liked to try to visit the farm, the outdoor farms, towards the end of the growing season, just to you know, check on progress. So we would see these huge plants. And Then you would keep going and there were like there was like a row of four shipping containers Inside where their indoor grows. So you got to see kind of everything in the trim rooms and everything.
06:04
So it was just like never deer crossing the property like a little family at ducks on the lake, and so, yeah, I highly recommend from the soil products here in Washington nice, that sounds wonderful.
06:18 - Diana (Host)
I can't wait to to actually visit a real grow.
06:22 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
I still haven't done that magical every time.
06:26 - Diana (Host)
It sounds like it. I want to live there, just based on that description.
06:32 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Not every grow is like that.
06:33 - Diana (Host)
I will totally yeah they are not all like that, but they're far the good ones are beautiful and that's like an outdoor indoor, or is it all?
06:41 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah, I think they, I think they had multiple licenses under the one brand. So they had their couple of outdoor, far Outdoor fields and then they had some indoor grow happening in those shipping containers as well. So they had both.
06:55 - Diana (Host)
Awesome, all right. Well, maybe if I ever make it out there I can come and visit. So my fave not pot is actually. So my fave not pot is actually a podcast, but I found out about it because the co-host or the host of it is the author of one of my favorite books called word slut, and she is a linguist. Like she goes into the language of things and how that influences Groups and people's and cults.
07:34
So her podcast is called her podcast is called sounds like a cult and and she basically goes in. It's hosted by Amanda Montell and this I. Her latest book is called cult ish the language of fanaticism, and that's what got her into this podcast and she goes into like the cult of the real housewives, the cult of Amazon, the cult of the CIA, like, and pretty much anything you can think of that has. Like that people are like oh, it's a cult. And then she, you know, bring someone in from that and then interviews them and then at the end she says like is this like I get the fuck out, you know, be careful. Or like a you're cool, just live your life, kind of a thing, because some of the cults are, you know, harmless. Ish, not Amazon, I found out, like I mean, obviously I knew, but, like you know, she brings up different parts that you don't think about so much and it's just really interesting and I learned something every episode. So I highly recommend it.
08:40
Again it's called sounds like a cult, and you can get that any on any of the platforms.
08:44 - Speaker 3 (Host)
So I'm gonna check that out. Yeah, so I'm like so into cults?
08:50 - Diana (Host)
So am I, and I'm always like, oh, I'm out of the cults, now I'm not in a cult. And then I'm started listening to this and I'm like I am, I'm in all, all the cults, I'm in so many cults. The cannabis industry is a cult really, I mean.
09:07 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I was thinking about that the other day. It's like man, I am in deep, yeah, not looking to get out.
09:13 - Diana (Host)
Right, yeah, I know it's too late now. We've gone too far.
09:18 - Speaker 3 (Host)
The juice has been drank.
09:22 - Diana (Host)
Yeah, we're making the juice for other people now, like I don't even realize it, so anyway.
09:27 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
So what's your?
09:27 - Diana (Host)
fave, not pot. Who wants to start?
09:31 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I can start. My fave not pot is a Netflix TV show that my boyfriend and I watched recently called the brothers son SUN. It's a A. It's about the Taiwanese mafia and it has the chick from Crouching Tiger, hidden Dragon, in it. She's like the mom and then it's about her two sons. It's so good. It's so good. The action is good, the writing is really good, the cinematography is really good. Just like everything about it is just really really good. So that's my fave. I like can't. We watched it like weeks ago.
10:14
And I like can't stop thinking about it.
10:17 - Diana (Host)
It's so good, so something good that came out in Netflix.
10:24 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah, right Another cold bear.
10:26 - Diana (Host)
And what about you, Ashlene?
10:28 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Okay, my fave not pot is my beverage that I'm drinking right now. I have been trying to find ways to get more herbal tea into my life, but I hate the taste of tea. I recognize the amazingness of plant medicine and was just trying to like brainstorm more ways to get tea in my life and one day I was like, well, why don't I just mix it in with hot chocolate mix, and I mean it's like water. I can put some cream in there and like make it creamy, and then I'm getting you know my plants and I'm getting it. It tastes nice. So I've been working on developing like my little herbal hot chocolate recipe for the past few months. It has nettle leaf, mullin and dandelion root and cinnamon.
11:11 - Diana (Host)
That's a fantastic combination.
11:14 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
It's so nice because the nettle is great. It has like lots of vitamin C. It's good for just balancing your body and immune boosting. Mullen is great for your lungs and, as somebody who smokes, prime pretty much only flower, like my lungs could use them love. And then the dandelion root is really great for detoxing and liver so, and cinnamon warms your blood and helps your digestion. So it's all just like really good things that are healthy and nourishing for my body, that are easy and cheap to get into my system and then doing it in this method with the hot chocolate. It's just like taste. You know it tastes good.
11:47 - Diana (Host)
I'm going to try that. Yeah, that sounds great.
11:51 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I can attest to how good it is. I drank it this morning Like I'm totally on the train.
11:55 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah.
11:56 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Yeah, no new colt for sure.
11:58 - Diana (Host)
This like nettle dandelion hot chocolate thing is so good I'm obsessed with dandelion, but also I've been seeing people smoke mullin, like putting it in their blend of herbs to smoke, so I'm really interested in that too. So, yeah, that's that sounds really cool. All right, I'm going to try that.
12:17 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Really an old herbal remedy for like dealing with asthma. Is they literally like blow mullin smoke into people's you know airways as they're having an asthma attack? Wow, it's powerful, bro, it is.
12:29 - Diana (Host)
It's so good. Yeah, I mean, it really is. I have an herbal tea with that in there that's supposed to be for, like allergies and asthma, and then I have it separately for witchy stuff, but like the tea has to be prepared like just right, you know. But it works really well and, yeah, I'm excited to try it because the taste you know, even though I'm obsessed with dandelion and nettle and all the things you just said, they don't taste the greatest when it comes to tea. So that's a really good idea. I've actually thought about that.
13:00 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
I was like chocolate with a little mouthful yeah.
13:03 - Diana (Host)
Because I thought about adding like creamer, like a flavored creamer, but I'm like, can you just add that to tea?
13:08 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
So that's what they do in England.
13:11 - Speaker 3 (Host)
They do.
13:11 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
They cream, their tea Cream and sugar, just like coffee.
13:14 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Oh yeah, they do, don't they Like a London fog, right Right, tea and milk.
13:20 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
So we're reclaiming it, yeah, yeah.
13:23 - Diana (Host)
That's true, All right. Well, I'm going to try that later. Ever feel like life stress gets to be too much? Welcome to Mitra Gaia, your natural wellness partner. We are the number one rated provider of Kreatom, a 100% natural plant based solution used in Asia for centuries to help increase focus, energy and relaxation. Want to know more? Use the code YHPOD to get 10% off. Your first order today that's MitraGaiacom and code YHPOD for 10% off.
14:19 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
All right.
14:21 - Diana (Host)
So switching gears a little bit, let's start with your podcast, chronic Gals. How has your experienced with? Well, first of all, let's talk about the podcast and how you got into being podcasters, and then also, how has that experienced shaped what you're doing now?
14:40 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah Well, we started about the same time. You started your podcast. Like I think that we've been kind of in the periphery of each other's circles since we both started and it really just came because I started working in the cannabis industry as a budtender. We both we smoked together all the time and just loved having really deep, interesting conversations. And at some point we looked at each other and we're like other people need to be part of these stoner high combos.
15:06 - Speaker 3 (Host)
These are good ideas. These are good ideas, we're going to hear these ideas.
15:10 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
So we're like, well, let's just put a microphone on it and we started podcasting and we, from me working in the dispensary, I had a really great access to a wide variety of products and strains and people that we could talk to. So we built a community that way and started, you know, just talking about weed and learning and and just I don't know getting out there.
15:34 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Yeah, we, I don't know. There's like I got super passionate about weed once I learned that it could like change the whole world.
15:43 - Diana (Host)
And I was telling it lightly, yeah, no, serious, but it really.
15:47 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I remember in like High school I did a project on weed or on hemp or something and learned that an acre of hemp can make more Paper than like a hundred acres of trees. I don't think those numbers are accurate right now, but it was like a little bit of hemp versus a lot of it of trees, plus it takes like a man now what two weeks or something in comparison to, like, 20 years.
16:12 - Diana (Host)
I know, I know we're not using exact numbers, but it's pretty similar to that. It grows a lot faster.
16:19 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Exactly and the way that it can Change the like soil components and like eat Radiation. So like there have been things on the peripheral about Hemp and cannabis that have been like so interesting to me and then we started smoking it and then that was like, oh my gosh, there's like so many different things you know that go into it. And then she got the job we started learning about or we just started smoking so much more and Different varieties of stuff and like the passion is really really grew and like this plant really can save the world and it's just a shame that we have to fight up against like everything to tell people that it can change the world so literally fight against everything and to get any sort of message out, yeah, so we were just like we need to tell, talk to people about, yeah, we and a little bit of Evangelize, but also like if you don't want to do it, that's totally fine too, you know so, but but how can you argue?
17:20 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Sorry. I just don't understand how people can argue with the, the Timing and the math and the numbers of it all. As far as simple things as Replacing our paper yeah, you know, making hemp based paper instead of tree based paper. Our trees are dying, our forests are our God and we're trying to regrow these things.
17:39 - Speaker 3 (Host)
It's just like a dust to me and I don't understand why people are also, like our founding fathers, had hemp Farms and the Constitution was written on hemp and yet everybody and their uncle will say so, oh, that's right, I turned this down.
17:54 - Diana (Host)
They'll say things like oh, you just want to get high, like I mean just at the events that I do people, that they I'm trying to have that Conversation and they're like where's the weed, you know?
18:04 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
and I'm like none of this is.
18:08 - Diana (Host)
Yeah, they're like. They're like oh, your pot event or whatever, and it's like no, it's, there's so much more to it and I get it. I was one of those people who would smoke with my friends and then they would go on and on about George Washington and all this stuff and I would be like okay, sure, you know, um, but I changed my mind about it and everyone else can as well.
18:35
I think it's like daunting. I to some people just like where do you start? You know that, that became clear to me the other night like people who just have no idea and think that, like, everything that you're talking about is weed and yes, I know of the plant is you?
18:52
know the guys, hemp and CBD is not just weed, but like, that is the response and you're like where do I even start? You know which is what you're doing. You're starting, you have a place to start, so let's talk about that. Let's talk about what take root is and how that can help. Bud tender is working in an environment that's like a big box store. I mean, we talked about this off the air the other day, but A lot of places where I am, the dispensaries I'm talking about the dispensaries. They are run, like you know, target or Walmart or one of these stores, and so, even if the bud tender has the knowledge and they're really well trained, they don't have the time to really spend with each customer, right? So If they're working for a company that values profit over people, how can they implement that your training in their day to day?
19:53 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Okay, let's start just by talking about what take root is, and then let's.
19:56 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I know I skipped way ahead, didn't I?
20:00 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
We were just talking about it before we started recording and it's like the experience. You're in Massachusetts, right? Maryland, maryland, maryland.
20:06 - Diana (Host)
Maryland.
20:07 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Maryland. The experience in Maryland is so different than our experience here in Washington, so we've actually like we want to talk to you about it too. Yeah, so one of the really amazing things that came from all of these conversations and this community and network that we built as the chronic alz was we realized that there was a great lack of bud tender training it. We started hosting these rooms on Clubhouse, which is that social app or it's just like audio only is where we were inviting? Yeah, I don't.
20:40 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I don't use it anymore. I did, I hopped in once like a month ago. I was like I don't know what I'm time.
20:45 - Diana (Host)
Is such a weird thing, right, it's like right, right house, what is that? Oh, that was just so.
20:54 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
But over and over. So we were hosting rooms in Clubhouse having people from Washington come in and over and over. People kept bringing up this lack of this like poor customer experience when they were dealing with bud tenders, which is crazy, because in such a stigmatized industry Especially for, like, new customers coming in If you have a bad time with your bud tender, you're not coming back and you're not going to try it again and it's just, you're just gonna write it off and you're going to, you know, lose out on so many potential benefits. So we decided to take our skills and our experience and take a big fucking leap of faith and Create this thing called take root training, where we put everything that I learned about bud tending, that Riley has learned about customer service and our partner, melissa, who used to work in corporate training, put it all together into a training guide for bud tenders that helps to establish foundational information but all bunda, all bud tenders, should know in order to effectively help a customer. So that's what we did.
22:01 - Speaker 3 (Host)
And the training isn't. I mean like it goes over, like cannabis science, the history of cannabis and then it breaks down into each product type, and so all of this information is stuff that bud tenders should know before hitting the floor. So in a big box store even that target if I can't find the shampoo, I'm gonna go find somebody that works there and ask them Okay, where's the shampoo you know? So I would imagine at a dispensary and a big box dispensary there would be a bud tender somewhere where somebody could ask them like oh, I have this issue, what would you suggest unless you're just Okay, so alright, I already thought of something, something different, oh, and we talked about this before.
22:49 - Diana (Host)
So you're in Washington, where you can go into the store and look at the products before you buy. That you can't do that here, so you can do it online.
22:59 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
That's like a legal restriction is they're not allowed to show the product before it's been bought, correct, yes, and so you can.
23:03 - Diana (Host)
I mean you can go online and like do your research beforehand. But we all know, and especially since you've worked into dispenser, you know People don't just come in and go. Well, I saw online all the time. You know you're gonna get like eight out of ten people who are Just coming in. They're going. I have this problem, what can I get for it? But then the bud tender is Pressured to get them in and out. So they might say well, I mean, I don't know the highest THC thing, or you know this thing because it's on special, even though they know. You know there's a lot more to it and we need to have a whole bunch of people that are there's a lot more to it and we need to have a whole conversation.
23:42 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Mm-hmm. Okay. Well, I feel like, immediately, that just underlines the need for more training, because if they only have 30 seconds when they're passing money back and forth to answer somebody's question, then they should be trained well, trained enough that they can answer anybody's question within 30 seconds, within two to three sentences, okay so in.
24:12 - Speaker 3 (Host)
I would imagine that a big box company would have enough wherewithal to like sit bud tenders down before they even hit the floor to explain what they're going to be selling, even if the chance of like explaining what a terpiness isn't there. They should have a full understanding of the product that they're selling, like a sales person, like a floor sales person would have the full understanding of all of the floor textiles that he is selling. You know like it's a huge money miss for the dispensaries 100% Not provide training, because then their customer who is not getting fulfilled is going to the plug behind circle K and still spending weed in the illicit market.
25:02 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Or even if they're not talking to the customer about terpenes, they still need to understand that a tincture with linalool is going to affect somebody differently than a tincture with limonene, and I don't know are those kinds of products available for you guys at this point?
25:17 - Diana (Host)
Like yeah, but so I'm just thinking about, like the other night, I'm talking to people who don't even don't use cannabis at all and they don't know what an entourage effect is and I felt very intimidated trying to explain it in like a very basic way because, I know how to and like an article and when I'm talking to people who already kind of have an idea, but I'm talking to people that don't even know.
25:45
So if somebody comes in and they only have 30 seconds, then should the bud tender be like okay, well, this strain has linalool limonene or linalool, I don't know. I'm not saying it right, sorry. Say like this is high in mercy. Go home and look that up. I mean, would you say that? That would be like a better way to handle it than just like this is better for you, this is better for you, you know, because people don't know, I would.
26:12 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah, the people who are coming in with questions are willing to do the homework. If you're not able to like, if you're, if you say here, here are these keywords limonene, you know, mercy, whatever the words are, ask them to do some research. I think the people who have questions are willing to do the work.
26:30 - Diana (Host)
So speaking of that, let's talk about. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off.
26:35 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
I was just going to say that there's always going to be the customer who just wants to get high yeah, and they're not going to be. They're not going to care about going home and learning about THCV. You know they don't care. But the person who is actually interested in having an appetite suppressant and you mentioned to them THCV as a cannabinoid that helps suppress appetite they will go home and learn more about THCV and research strains that are high in THCV. Also, up to the patient or the customer.
27:03 - Diana (Host)
Right, they have to be informed as well. So to that point, can you talk about what the take root almanac is?
27:12 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Yeah, absolutely so. The take root almanac is actually our product for cannabis brands who want to educate but tenders. So one thing that we noticed is that a lot of brands don't do very well at producing product knowledge sheets or product knowledge material for but tenders to learn from. There might be a little bit of information on the package, if it's, you know, something like a tincture that's in a package or a concentrate that has some sort of placard on it, but there's not a lot of.
27:44
This is exactly what's in this strain and what it can affect. You know it's not that granular, but that would be such a huge benefit for bud tenders to have that quick reference to go back and say, okay, this strain would be great for this customer, this strain would be great for this kind of customer. So the take root almanac provides that place for brands to put that information where bud tenders can go and find it easily. When a brand releases a new product, they can put all the information on there and send out a push notification to their whole network so that everybody knows about their new product. And when you're informing the bud tenders, the bud tenders can better inform the public. And when they're informing the public. They're selling your product, so the almanac solves that problem.
28:34 - Diana (Host)
Did you want to add anything to that, riley? Nope, she got it. So that is very valuable information and I'm hoping that that can be something that we all have access to soon as in like just the customers to. I mean, do you have any plans for that part? Do you have a plan for that to be available to the consumer as well?
28:59 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
We have talked about it In addition to our cannabis education course for bartenders, which I guess is technically available to the public, anybody who wants to be a bartender. It would just be like the up to the brand not to put any internal information that they don't want the public to know. I mean, I don't know, I can't think of what that would be off the top of my head, but there may be information between the retail or the brand and the retailer that you may be inappropriate for the customer to know. So it would be the only thing that the consideration like mold numbs joking.
29:34 - Diana (Host)
We actually have mold on our products. Don't let anybody know that. So you already touched on this a bit, but can we go into it a little bit deeper? What is the retail experience like in Washington, and how did that shape? What the take fruit training?
29:52 - Speaker 3 (Host)
So you park your car, you get out, you go up up to a door. Usually the person checking your ID lets you in or you can some of the stores you can just walk in. I always feel weird just walking into a dispensary without getting my ID check. But you get your ID checked, they let you into, like the retail space Most stores have like all the their walls filled with product or in like a glass case. You walk up to a bartender that is waiting nicely for you and they can help you like answer any questions.
30:30
Usually it's a one on one type of situation where they pull the product and kind of I mean some places show it to you, some places just like you pick out of a menu and then you buy it, but it's like really one on one. I think the places where I've experienced not one on one stuff was like definitely Illinois and Connecticut, where you just like walk into a store it was like a doctor's office and then you pick from a kiosk. Like that experience was is so different than what we have in Washington and in Oregon and in California. Like in Oregon it's even Lucy or Goosey or like you, they have jars and you can smell the jar, and then they weigh it out right there in your face.
31:15 - Diana (Host)
Wow.
31:16 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Like the nudge that you want or whatever.
31:19 - Diana (Host)
So that sounds amazing.
31:20 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Washington. Everything is individually packaged. You can't touch it until you get out of the store and open it.
31:28 - Diana (Host)
The product, Do you see a big need for, but tender training in Washington? I mean, is that more? Is it? I don't know how to say it correctly exactly, but are there more like privately owned smaller businesses who could really benefit from the training, as opposed to the bigger corporations that may or may not think that it's worth the expensive time?
31:51 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Yeah, per our legislation we're not allowed to have outside money come into our dispensaries or any of our markets. So all of yeah, most of the stores here are like mom and pop or like small chains that are owned by people in Washington. So I mean we definitely like our experiences in Washington dispensaries, definitely informed, our training. But and because we are, we just get we left these dispensaries not feeling like the bud tender knew more than we did and that is like as someone who doesn't know a lot about cannabis thinking about someone who doesn't know about cannabis. That just opens like doors for miss, education, misuse, like a lot of bad things.
32:44
So I it's just frustrating to me that a big box store would not highlight or want train, to train their bud tenders or to provide a personalized experience to their bud tenders. And I like I get time is money totally and I know that by tenders don't want to spend an hour with one customer who only spends $50 like I get all of that. But to spend 15 minutes with somebody who is willing to spend $300 on your dispensary, spending that extra 15 minutes explaining products to somebody is a difference between that person spending $50 and $300. Like someone who is just feels the pressure to get in and out of a dispensary is not going to like the product that they chose because they have no connection to it. And cannabis is a connection plant, like beyond the woo. You know the science of it, is a woo, woo plant and we need to be able to smell it and interact with it. And I, just like these big box stores, are really missing the missing, the point of it all.
33:56 - Diana (Host)
Well, also, I think I'm just thinking about all the retail jobs I've had over the years and I think that, just from the employee standpoint, if I'm not making commission, if you're not paying me a decent hourly wage, then I'm going to be a lot less inspired to spend time with everybody that comes in. And I think that's another issue that we have, because now people are just applying to dispensaries in the same way as they would target or you know whatever fill in the blank whatever retail job because it is churning completely retail.
34:31
I mean, at least here I completely agree with you. I'm anti capitalist, but I'm just saying it from what I'm seeing. You know it's the people are getting burnt out, and if they aren't being incentivized, then why should they right?
34:49 - Speaker 3 (Host)
No, I totally.
34:50 - Diana (Host)
I.
34:52 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Yes, 100%, but that's that's like. Where my frustration with the entire industry comes is that we were not ready for this. We were not ready to be. 50 different states with 50 different rules about one plant Like that makes no sense. So for all of these big businesses to come in and think that they know how to operate, when people have been doing this for years before they came in with their big money and what consumers are wanting these days is interaction is like a personalized experience, and if people keep promoting or like buying at big box stores and not asking for the time, like the consumers are responsible, here too, I want to say no, don't push me out the door. Let me have a conversation with you. Tell me about the shit that you're selling, tell me about what I'm consuming into my body, what are you smoking?
35:57 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Well, I want to know what you're smoking, because you're the it's supposed to be the expert Right.
36:00 - Diana (Host)
And then if people are going to the legacy market because you know, being really honest, back when I was doing that, the person I got it from would be like, well, this didn't work for you last time out, Let me get you this Now.
36:11
I have a little bit of an edge, because my husband works in the dispensary and he does help me with that. But if I didn't have that, probably wouldn't go into dispensary honestly, I mean maybe now I would. I don't know, but I can see the appeal because you have a little bit more one-on-one, you know You're able to ask questions without feeling pressured, of course that can turn into weirdness when they want to hang out with you and you don't want to do that. But you know you always have that, but Totally.
36:47 - Speaker 3 (Host)
But there was that one-on-one interaction. You kind of knew where you were getting your weed from, you know. I mean like if you knew the right plug. Right yeah, but like it's just like I going into stores in Connecticut. It was just like a such a disappointment coming from the West and just like what a missed opportunity because it's expensive. It's so expensive out there.
37:12 - Diana (Host)
It's a very expensive. Choose your own adventure and you don't know what you're choosing and you're like oh.
37:17 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Exactly If you said, this is Zindica sure.
37:20 - Diana (Host)
And then you come home and you're like nope, nope, nope.
37:24 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Is that foul? Yeah. And when your butt tender doesn't even know what he's passing on to you, then it's like why are we even doing this? What is even the point? This isn't what we're trying to do here, sorry.
37:34 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
No, I just. There's another layer here that's coming up like in the near future that people aren't even considering yet, and that's cannabis hospitality. When people are going to be able to go to a lounge that is designed for them to be comfortable and safe and have that slowness, why would they go to a dispensary? The dispensary now has to do more to stand out. I mean, people are always gonna go to the dispensary to get stuff to take home, but they're gonna have to compete now with these lounges. Where people are going to be, you'll be able to sit and enjoy a joint with your friends, and it's just becomes that atmosphere that cannabis grew in right Like that going to get your weed in the basement from your dude, you know.
38:21 - Diana (Host)
I mean, I think about Kava bars, not to be completely like, but that's what got me into Kratom, and it was because I'm sitting in the bar, I'm asking questions. It's a laid back situation. There's material for me to read at my own leisure. I don't have to feel like I'm being rushed out. So, but unfortunately, there's a lot of people that aren't in that market for consumption lounges, and those are the people that really need to have a bud tender who has your training materials on hand.
38:53 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Right, I agree, I agree. If you know any, send them our way.
38:59 - Diana (Host)
Yeah, so, and to that point, before we end this, why don't you tell us how people can support you and if you have anything specific that you'd like to promote?
39:09 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Yeah, we actually have a couple of projects going on right now.
39:13 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
our big new oh wait, if anybody wants to sign up for Root Knowledge if anybody wants to be a bud tender, or you are a bud tender or your dispensary that wants training, or a cannabis brand interested in the Almanac, all of that information is at takeroottrainingcom. So anything bud tender training related, visit us at takeroottrainingcom. In addition, we have these wonderful things happening.
39:38 - Speaker 3 (Host)
So the Chronic Owls is producing a new podcast called the Talking Potheds. It's gonna be the free resource for bud tenders to get educated about cannabis science, history of cannabis and all the product information. So we're gonna be talking to industry experts as well as bud tenders to get like a full perspective on what they really do need to know about selling weed. So that's gonna be released on 420, and we're super excited about that. And in addition to that, we created the bud tender buzz line. It's a voicemail inbox where you can call after your crazy dispensary shift to share your crazy dispensary stories.
40:22 - Diana (Host)
Oh, I have some people who are probably going to wanna call in to you, that's for sure. Okay, good.
40:27 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Okay, the number for the bud tender buzz line is 1360-326-2893. And we'll send it to you.
40:40 - Diana (Host)
Yeah, we'll put that in the show notes.
40:43 - Speaker 3 (Host)
So please call. We've gotten a couple voicemails already and they're so fun to listen to.
40:48 - Diana (Host)
It's so fun and we're really excited about? Do you disguise voices?
40:52 - Speaker 3 (Host)
Because yeah, we will, it's totally anonymous yeah, we will disguise all the voices. Yep, it'll be a segment on the Talking Potheds.
41:00 - Speaker 2 (Guest)
Nice, and we'll probably post them on some social media at some point as well.
41:04 - Diana (Host)
Oh, I'm excited. That is very cool. Well, I appreciate you joining me today. Thank you so much and please come back anytime. Until next time, stay high and beautiful. Bye, thank you for listening. Until next time, stay high and beautiful. This episode was produced by your Highness Media. Audio editing by JR Crash. Intro music by your Mom Likes my Music? Subscribe to our sub-stack your Highness Newsletter for the latest announcements and event updates.