Innovation

Just like any other business, Garden Remedies was confronted with the major problem of how they could mitigate waste. Garden Remedies noticed that they had leftover products from growing flower, such as ‘shake’ and ‘small buds’, that could be upcycled to help benefit both the business and customers. Garden Remedies wanted to find a way to provide a product for cost conscious consumers and found this line to be the perfect solution. By selling ‘undesirable’ products at lower prices than usual, Garden Remedies has been able to make cannabis more accessible.

It truly took a village to ensure that this line came into fruition. The executives, product managers, and lab personnel helped to execute this line. They had been discussing a plan to make this line since the beginning of the pandemic and concocted plans, packaging, price points and more to ensure they had a successful line as a part of the brand. At Garden Remedies, the mission is to deliver products that show the commitment and innovation that went into making them. This product line is one of many examples where innovation was brought about to make change and provide for a crowd that needed it most.

Inspiration

The idea came about due to customer feedback and overall personnel ideas. Many people complain about how expensive it is to dabble in recreational dispensary-grade cannabis. Staff members also felt the same way, inspiring them to make cannabis more accessible.

The motivation behind the innovation was the pandemic and lack of accessibility in the cannabis industry. The intention was to craft a line that was more affordable for customers who still want to use cannabis for its many benefits. Since the beginning of the pandemic, many have fallen victim to economic hardship. Garden Remedies witnessed their customers experiencing such financial problems and wanted to bring about change to ensure that customers could still enjoy their products while remaining frugal. They also wanted to limit waste as much as possible. They noticed that they had leftover product after the cultivation team picked the flower. The majority of the time, the leftover flower or less attractive flower would then be thrown out. By bringing together the two ideas of saving product and accessibility, the “Seconds” line was born.

Overall impact

Through the use of data analytics and proper market research, Garden Remedies has been able to observe the excitement and support for this line. Through this line, Garden Remedies was able to spark a wider fanbase around their products. People love the frugality of the line. After releasing the line, Garden Remedies ensured that they had some sort of follow up where they could receive input on this new and inclusive product selection. After investigating, they noticed how successful this line was and how much their customers appreciated it. Ms. Jennette mentioned how many of the 'budtenders' or workers reported back exclaiming how excited people were about the line and how much they enjoy the products. As cannabis use becomes more normalized in society, Garden Remedies is ensuring that the prices reflect this. This way, Garden Remedies can better finetune their product offerings and provide more for their customers.

Business benefit

Shilah Jennette, Communications Manager at Garden Remedies, offered her insight into how beneficial this line has been for both the business and the customer, describing it as a ‘give and take’ situation. Garden Remedies has been able to take excess product and sell it to customers at cheaper prices than what is usually offered. In turn, Garden Remedies is able to use customer insights to inform marketing decisions and test products that they usually would not sell. With this, they are able to better cater to the customer and their likings. The “Seconds” line has also opened up a new stream of revenue for Garden Remedies.

Social and environmental benefit

The innovation has had a positive impact on society. In dealing with a product that has taken on a negative reputation due to events such as the War on Drugs, the cannabis industry is being restructured as more benefits from cannabis use are being discovered. Medical research has confirmed that the use of cannabis has aided people in remedying symptoms commonly associated with certain illnesses such as cancer and glaucoma. Garden Remedies believes that cannabis should be accessible to everyone, both medically and recreationally, so everyone can share the benefits of what is believed to be a ‘super plant’. As mentioned previously, Garden Remedies has been able to upcycle and ‘repurpose’ products given this new ‘Seconds’ line. In the cannabis industry, excess product from flower is often thrown out, which creates waste. There is nothing particularly bad about this excess product, but people tend to prefer whole flower for aesthetic reasons. Whole flower also tends to have a higher THC content, the chemical in cannabis that provides a euphoric feeling, which is why consumers tend to gravitate towards it. The cannabis industry and ones like it have been known to use up necessary resources for cultivation, such as water, plastic, and product. Garden Remedies has been a pioneer in recycling and making use of this extra product for the customer. This helps to give back to the planet and limit product waste.

Interview

Shilah Jennette, Communications Manager