Similarly, in 2019, luxury handbag designer Edie Parker fused lifestyle and cannabis brand with the launch of Flower by Edie Parker. “Our core mission is to normalize social cannabis consumption,” says Niki Sawyer, director of brand marketing for Edie Parker. “Unlike traditional fashion, where exclusivity can be key, we believe in a distribution model that mirrors the alcohol industry…being available in a variety of retail environments fosters a robust customer funnel by meeting consumers where they are.”
Flower by Edie Parker has products in roughly 10% of dispensaries nationwide, a staggeringly high statistic for a single brand whose most recognizable products include “petal puffer” miniature vapes in flavors like Limoncello and Cherry Amaretto Sour as well as trompe l’oeil pipes in the shape of black and white cookies, banana splits, and Neopolitan ice cream.
The proposed cannabis crackdown will affect 95% of the current market.
Major retailers include Gotham, whose four New York locations are, according to founder Joanne Wilson, modeled not after traditional dispensaries but multi-brand retail and concept stores from around the world, like Paris’ (since-shuttered) Colette, and Printemps.
“One of the early ways we thought about Gotham was building the coolest concept retail store you’ve been in that happens to sell cannabis,” explains Rachel Berks, Gotham’s vice president of retail and merchandising. “We’ve been on this journey of finding interesting brands that aren’t represented by other retailers.” The store was the first American retailer to stock Oberflacht, a culty German candle line; Berks regularly attends Milan Design Week as well as Paris Fashion Week on Gotham’s behalf.
One of the biggest signs that the multi-concept approach to cannabis is paying off is the brand’s launch of Gotham Goods, a line of “elevated essentials” like candles, lotions, incense, and oil diffusers in six bespoke fragrances that include “On the Bowery” which hits topnotes of Tunisian rosemary, geraniol, and wild grass, and “Because of the Night”, featuring notes of olibanum, sun-tanned leather, and smoke.
Farnsworth calls it an “eat with your eyes first” approach to selling cannabis; Berks calls it good business. In reality, the answer is somewhere in between.
“The [cannabis] landscape is shifting, and we’ve made an impact with consumers and retailers,” Berks says. “It’s been interesting to see proof of that shift from going on buying trips oversees—there’s now a lot of recognition of who we are, especially in the last two years.”