Consumption Lounge Questions

Hempire Building Compliance
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I’d like to learn more about the laws around cannabis lounges in areas where they are permitted.

Ive read that in some places where indoor smoking regulations are very strict, the lounges are restricted to just vaping, beverages, and edibles.

What about booze? Are there any states/cities where booze is allowed to be sold at lounges, or is that strictly forbidden?

And finally, as seasoned stoners do you have any interest in going to lounges yourself? Or do they cater more to the casual/curious users, and people traveling who don’t want to smoke in their hotels? If your area does have lounges are they successful, and what are their most successful SKUs?

The reason I ask is I came up with an idea for a product that would cater towards lounges as a primary customer, but if lounges have little potential to take off, I don’t want to spend too much energy further designing it.

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Which jurisdictions allow them?

We’ve had one in Oregon that has survived for years, but is clearly prohibited by the regs

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We make our own consumption lounge every time the Good Life Gang gets together. What’s the product?

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Good times though

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Well then

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The product line would be for dry herb vaping and dabbing, modeled after commercial grade coffee making equipment. Easy to clean, quick and easy to operate, durable, and built to be safe for the end user, and built to integrate cleanly into a bar or table setup. Right now all the gear in this space is designed for personal use.

But my knowledge of the actual customer base is essentially zero, hence this thread. Cnsumption lounges are relatively nonexistent most places I’ve lived, and I’m hesitant to put any effort into this project if there isn’t potential for their growth.

I imagine carts will still dominate, but I like the idea of something that let’s you sample a wide range of strains, which isn’t as easy with carts since the serving size is larger. Dabs and dry herb vaping is good in this regard.

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Make sure you got a bangin snacks menu :sunglasses:

Maybe be known for your restaurant first, which also has a weed smoking section. That way you’re diversified, and you can get some extra revenue from takeout/door dash etc.

Not sure on regs, but that was always a dream of mine :grin:

It should be as simple as a call to your local state cannabis authority and then city building/development permit office.

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The regulations vary wildly from state to state, county to county, and even muncipality to muncipality. First thing would be to decide on a location and then actually spend some time researching existing regulations governing that location.

If you don’t have the time or inclination to do your own research then you should dig into your wallet and hire either a consultant or a local attorney well versed in cannabis regulations in that jurisdiction.

If you pick a location and discover that consumption lounges are not allowed or have simply not been regulated for yet I can tell you from personal experience it is far easier to find a location that already has existing regulations than to try and cut through the voluminous mountain of red tape and local bureaucracy to inact new regs

Good luck

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I think I need to clarify something: I am not trying to open a lounge.

I have a product idea for which lounges would be the primary customer.

I’m looking to hear about people’s opinions on lounges, what type of products they serve in your area, and if people think they have potential to grow in the future, or if things will stay as they are today.

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Ah gotcha.

It’s an uphill battle one a couple fronts.

I think consumption lounges will be the last thing to be regulated in many states. As even legal states haven’t legislated them oftentimes. And with anti-smoking legislation for bars, it might be something that’s never allowed.

There’s isn’t a culture in the same way as bars. As a community gathering place. So there needs to be a paradigm shift in how people want to consume. Most people just go have a few puffs, and get back to whatever they were doing.

There’s also the fact that weed is still “counter culture” and it might be a hard sell to try and make something with more curb appeal; but I suppose gentrification is an unstoppable force, even in pot shops.

What kinda product you talking about? Is it something specific to cannabis lounges only? Not something good for home use?

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NWCC shut down because of finances, not because of regulations

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Restaurants are a fantastic way to lose money.

I was in the restaurant industry for over a decade, and I always just laughed until I couldn’t breathe whenever someone asked me why I didn’t open my own restaurant.

However, one of these and some good recipes and a liquor license and a smoking/vaping section… Maybe.

@tweedledew is right here. The regs are generally against public consumption. So is the culture to an extent.

There’s going to be a massive uphill battle for any potential lounge operators that read this thread and go “hey wait I’m gonna open a real business where we can all go and smoke our weed, man.”

Unless your idea/product is 100x cheaper or better than “put a water pipe and ispire bowl on every table” or some other non-combustable option, I think you might have an idea that perhaps is best shelved and dusted off in a few years after regs open up and the culture shifts more.

It may be a fantastic product, but if there are close to zero actual customers (commercial lounges) for said product, you’re gonna have a bad time.

If it’s useful but expensive, perhaps it could be a luxury/premium/novelty product instead? There are a lot of people with a LOT money who like weed. Perhaps selling to them might be a viable route.

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A cheaper iteration could be made for general consumers, I’ve actually put together that design already. Problem is it would be a very niche customer who would want one, the mass appeal is limited.

The main thing that this would do is separate the user from any potential burn hazard. The loading and unloading would be automated, and all the user would have to do is inhale, or press a button to reload. There would be no parts that users could steal, or easily damage.

I guess the real question I have is “do you think lounges will ever become ‘a thing’ in the US?” If it’s five years out then now might be a good time to start development on a small scale, but if it’s ten+ maybe not.

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Flight lounge took over the Oregon city khalifa lounge a while back. Slabtown boro was doing quite a few events not too long ago as well

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I don’t see lounges being a thing in the US for most day to day smokers. Possibly a thing for weed tourists though, but that’s only going to happen in real hip cities which already have tourist appeal. So pretty niche really… Think Boston, Miami, Boulder, Seattle, Portland.

Now if they will ever actually make that legal… I don’t see it happening anytime soon and for sure not with serving alcohol. But doesn’t Vegas have some canna lounges?

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I opened the first licensed consumption facility in Michigan that allowed indoor consumption and food/beverages.

There were some fancy hoops to jump through to allow smoking inside, but the statutes allowed for it, so we just had to meet the air changes per hour and filtration requirements, plus fire walls and such.

For the food and beverage - we can do basically anything prepacked and heated up, but there is no actual “kitchen” just a bar and pit sink. So think, coffee bar, not restaurant. Although catering things in is also totally approved, which is nice.

There is a no go for alcohol licensing - since those two groups don’t mingle well in Michigan yet. But - you could have a caterer that also had a temporary alcohol license, probably. But you’d have to get that license approved, which I haven’t done.

Lots of casual people and tourists in the first few months. Plus some Northern Michigan (not quite UP) regulars. Enjoyable events, parties, puff and paints, karaoke, etc. Its right next door to an associated dispensary - so easy for people to buy things or order things online for delivery and get them delivered to their table.

I did not personally enjoy the experience - mostly because I use a volcano, and I don’t lug it around with me to lounges, and there wasn’t one available in the lounge, although I think renting hookas, etc. might be cool. But honestly most people are just smoking bowls or doing dabs, so it didn’t seem necessary.

Most of the customers I have talked to were interested in having somewhere legal to smoke - that wasn’t their hotel room (the Northern Michigan hotels are real dicks about cannabis) or wasn’t their parents/roommates/rental space where you have to smoke outside or whatever.

Some of the customers (aka the regulars) come up because they want to smoke together instead of having beers together or whatever. I feel like its about 50/50 but I’ve also stepped away from the business and haven’t been up since winter started.

Solid release parties and the like have happened up there, where people are getting hella free weed from adults that hand it out. Those have been pretty cool and nicely attended.

All in all - I don’t know how I feel about it. It has a great feel, but I don’t feel inclined to drive my ass up there (its a 3 hour drive…) to experience it. But if people were local or passing through, I don’t see why not. :slight_smile:

I’d open another in Detroit or something - I think that would be awesome and well attended. Especially since there are so many local private clubs, maybe there would be people who would like to come out to a public club. :slight_smile:

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