Gas Station Weed: Love it or Hate it?

For better or for worse, the cannabis industry is growing up, and Circle K along with GTI is making a push. No longer confined to back-alley deals and head shops, legal weed is now a mainstream industry with immense potential. One of the latest developments in the world of cannabis is Circle K’s decision to team up with GTI to sell weed at their gas stations. Some people in the industry feel that this normalizes cannabis, while others believe that it cheapens the value of the plant. What do you think?

The Case for Normalization

Cannabis has come a long way in recent years. Thanks to legalization efforts, increased public acceptance, and a burgeoning industry, weed is slowly but surely shedding its negative stereotypes. For many people in the pro-normalization camp, Circle K’s decision to sell cannabis is just another step in the right direction. They argue that by selling weed at gas stations, cannabis will become more accessible and, thus, more normalized in society.

This is absolutely true. For the industry to mature, consumers must present preferences based on their personalities and what they want from a product rather than just buying whatever’s cheapest or most expensive without considering anything else, like quality. They will also begin to choose where they shop, how they shop, and define why they shop there. They will also start to form a formal opinion on the companies who make these items for them. This is when customer reviews start to mean something, and branding is the most critical element of the first interaction with a new product or company.

Example Time

Let’s take a look at blue jeans for an example of how this plays out for traditional shoppers and how it relates to marketing value.

Lower Tier Products

A simple example of this would be blue jeans. I can buy some cheap $10 jeans online, and they will serve their purpose. They will not be in any way a premium product. The stitching may fall apart, the metals used for the clasps may cause irritation, and the material may be just a cheap fabric that is coated with dye to make it look like denim. The pants will be the overall concept of blue jeans, right? Blue-ish, and pants that likely follow 2 pockets in the front along with an inner mini pocket and 2 pockets in the back. They serve the purpose and are styled as blue jeans, so, therefore, they are blue jeans, just cheaper.

Middle Tier Products

On the middle tier, we have the classic fit blue jean. Exactly what is expected of classic blue jeans, with the style, feel, comfort level, and durability. This option isn’t as cheap as the previously mentioned cheaper alternative example, but overall, the difference is that the middle tier is made not just for function but also for value. The value is that it’s a trusted product, without a lot of extras thrown in, and none of the mistakes of the cheaper alternative. It will last longer and can be trusted to serve the function.

Top Tier Premium Products

On the top tier, we have style, premium materials, a world-famous designer behind the name, and stitching patterns that expand on the idea of what style means for blue jeans. The function likely did not change. They are still pants. The function, along with top quality and an added bonus of showcase, becomes the added value on top of the standard idea: blue jean pants.

Relevant for marketing cannabis and the cannabis industry as a whole

The cannabis industry is now seeing this happening with Circle K’s decision to team up with GTI. While the average consumer may head on over and buy some, the traditional cannabis smoker likely won’t. The new-age cannabis smoker sees a product with a lot of hype and finds a convenient way to get it with the Circle K and GTI partnership. From a marketing standpoint, they are qualifying new buyers and opening a new avenue for cannabis.

The Case for Cheapening Cannabis

On the other side of the argument are those who feel that selling cannabis at gas stations cheapens the value of the plant and its purpose. They argue that weed should be treated like any other luxury item and sold in dispensaries or specialty stores—not convenience stores. They worry that if cannabis is too easily accessible, people will take it for granted and not appreciate its true value, further troubling the industry.

Traditional Shoppers shouldn’t be exposed to uninformed purchases

As a licensed holistic herbalist, along with a master certification for cannabis, I empathize with the sentiment. They’re right. This plant isn’t a gimmick and shouldn’t be treated as such. Its value is not known well enough for such a low-quality assumption to hit the traditional shopper’s market. Where will it be on the shelves next to the cigarettes and lottery?

Clarification on how the Circle K collaboration with GTI Actually looks

Actually, no, it won’t be next to the lottery machine or the cigarettes. It’s displayed as an attached dispensary inside the store with its own entrance, according to the preliminary models shown in various news outlets.

Let’s be real, the assumption will be that it’s a product in a cheap bag next to the smokes and lotto machine. It’s 2022, the industry is largely perceived as a cash grab, and Twitter is a thing. Only time can fix that assumption, and even then, it will never fully go away.

Advertisement

Medical Cannabis should be specialized, not commercialized weed

The cannabis plant is not something that should be touted as a “quick fix” for ailments, as research will demonstrate as the industry and usage of the plant mature. Practitioners in specialized environments should be the face of the medical cannabis industry. In order to achieve the desired results for relief, cannabis regimens must be combined with therapeutic practices. For some, cannabis is enough for treating pain, but cannabis should often be used in conjunction with other treatments like stretching, chiropractic visits, or physical activity to provide additional relief.

Some patients are able to perform therapy that, without cannabis, might be grueling or impossible entirely because the cannabis plant allows the body to function better. If medical use is the focus, it shouldn’t just be a “quick in and out” from the convenience store, some thought and care should be taken.

So what does this all mean for the weed industry?

It’s likely that the gas station weed will be viewed and described exactly in that way, gas station weed, or cheap weed. GTI does make a huge risk to their brand by making this move, a lot more of a brand hit than Circle K will take, at least from the educated cannabis consumer side of things. You could argue that GTI is “taking one for the team”. As far as marketing cannabis, this creates a huge value for brands that are in a focused dispensary.

The cannabis industry now has a definitive weed market to work off of

Dispensaries can now be viewed as “top tier”, whereas before they could only go off of what they said in their marketing efforts. Now traditional dispensaries are legitimately a better place to buy weed. Before, the only comparison was street weed vs dispensary weed. Dispensaries were only considered “better ways to buy weed” to people that didn’t care of the legality to begin with, unlicensed dealers were still considered a valid option, and in a lot of cases, they still were the better option.

Just because the dealer’s farm wasn’t licensed didn’t mean they didn’t craft some dank buds. The average consumer, however, will never consider buying from an unlicensed farm, so dispensaries were the only option, with no value competition. You got what you got.

The value of a weed dispensary is now in the forefront

Traditional shoppers now have traditional options, putting the value proposition back into dispensary locations. It is more likely that the average consumer won’t assume advocates mean go buy weed from an unlicensed operation when they say “don’t buy cheap weed” or “don’t buy gas station weed”. Now the traditional shopper will relate that to mean don’t buy weed at a gas station. Go to the “real” dispensary instead, giving it a higher perceived value.

Conclusion

There’s no easy answer when it comes to this question. Both sides have valid arguments, and it’s ultimately up to each individual to decide where they stand on the issue. No matter what your opinion is, there’s no denying that Circle K’s decision to sell cannabis at their gas stations is a major development in the world of weed. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the coming years and what effect it has on the cannabis industry as a whole, but from the analysis of the industry, I think it is leaning towards normalizing the market, personally.