Lauren discusses creating elevated cannabis retail cannabis experiences with in-store art exhibits and opening a consumption lounge in Los Angeles just before 420. 

Podcast: Lauren Fontein, Founder & Chief Compliance Officer, The Artist Tree | Fyllo

Lauren, it's so great to have you on the show. Thanks for coming on.

Tell us more about The Artist Tree and its mission?

So, co-founders and I have all been in the cannabis industry for a long time. I got into it in 2009 and some of my partners started opening dispensaries in 2006. They were in the medical dispensary world and I'm also an attorney so I was doing a lot of licensing work for dispensaries and I had a manufacturing edibles business back in the day so in 2018 we all joined forces to form The Artist Tree. 

Our idea with The Artist Tree was to come up with something that was really innovative and unique and was an elevated experience within the retail space because in LA the cannabis retail space is pretty saturated and so there are hundreds of stores.

So you know it's not like some of the other markets where we were going to be new and different just by virtue of being a dispensary and so we wanted to create this new brand and specifically to highlight local artists and we thought that there was this great natural synergy between art and cannabis because cannabis has been a source of inspiration for artists throughout history and because people use cannabis as a way to enhance their own perception of the arts. 

The Artist Tree was formed for the purpose of applying for a consumption lounge license. The city of West Hollywood was licensing consumption lounges which is something that no other Southern California city was doing at the time and they wanted a business model that was unique and really tailored to the values of the city of West Hollywood which is a very creative place.

So with all of that in mind, we came up with this brand where we would have artwork on our walls and design our stores to look like art galleries, and then most importantly, we allow artists to display in the space and we give them 100% of the sale proceeds. So we function as this venue for artists and we get a lot of exposure for them through our customers and we also help them to sell a lot of their artwork.

That's so awesome, I love it. It's something I haven't seen before and it's fascinating. You're also helping so many people while at the same time having all this beauty in your dispensaries. 

Yeah I mean one of the great things about it has been that the stores are really dynamic and eye-catching because we have artwork on the wall and we switch it out about every three months with new exhibits and so it really just adds to the customer experience when they come into this space because they're surrounded by artwork. You know it's bright, colorful and beautiful and it really adds to their enjoyment when they're shopping.

I did read about the fact that you change out a lot of the artists and you bring a lot of attention to social justice issues. Have there been any artists or exhibits that you’ve been the most excited about or proud of?

Yeah, so one that comes to mind just off the top of my head is when we did the exhibit with Gabe Gault who is a black LA-based artist that did a lot of portrait work. When the George Floyd protests were happening in the Spring of 2020, Gabe took over our entire West Hollywood space with his art and it was all prominent minority historical figures. And it was really powerful because he actually has these very large size pieces so they were you know, very much statement pieces but they were also reflecting this really diverse set of important figures of today and the past. So that was a really breathtaking exhibit and I think you know a real statement for the store and it also helped us raise funds. We did a charity fundraising effort through that as well, so we were able to donate funds to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Last spring we did a really interesting exhibit with some Asian American artists around the time when there was a lot of attention being given to some racially motivated violence against Asian Americans in the US and so we wanted to honor the artists in our community that were part of that demographic and so that was really powerful. 

I really do love the mission and what you guys are doing. Can you talk to us about opening your cannabis consumption lounge in LA just before 420 this year?

It was kind of crazy to open it right before 420 and you know that wasn't necessarily our original plan to make it so close to 420 because that holiday is kind of its own beast and always just a crazy day for retail stores.

But so it went that we launched it right before 420 which meant that we had a big party at the lounge and it actually was really exciting and a super fun day and we had a lot of performers come in the space with a lot of brand activations and it was really cool to see people's reactions to the lounge. 

My main goal with the lounge is to make it a community destination. So not just a one-off place where it's gimmicky or kind of like a touristy spot where you come and smoke and eat and leave but a place where there's a lot going on and a place that promotes local artists. 

So for 420, the show that we put on actually had different seatings and we had a drag brunch in the morning and then we had a variety show throughout the day with musicians and a magician and other types of performers, and then just last week we've been starting weekly Thursday night comedy shows in the space and then we're also starting to host wellness classes. 

The lounge actually has two floors and one floor is kind of the main lounge area where it looks like a restaurant-style place and there's table service and then the third floor is our studio space and so that is a flexible area where we can host classes. We just started yoga and sound bath events and during the 420 party we had artists up there doing live painting and we'll also have painting classes and other types of events on that third floor. So we're trying to do a lot, but things that are thoughtful and that make sense in conjunction with the culture of cannabis consumption.

Do you offer food in the consumption lounge?

Yeah, so we have food in conjunction with kitchen 24 which is a very close restaurant to us so we don't have an on-site kitchen as there are rules around having to separate any non-cannabis sales from cannabis product sales, so that means if you're a licensed cannabis business you cannot actually sell things like food or beverages unless they're edibles and so you have to kind of do these workarounds. For us, the best option was to have a partner restaurant but, they're very close which means they have essentially expedited delivery to the space so you can order food and it gets to us within 20 to 25 minutes and while you wait, you know you can consume your cannabis products and hang out. So it's been working really well for us as a partnership. 

How do you keep up with the ever-changing complex regulations in cannabis?

It's hard. I'm an attorney so I do a lot of our licensing work. That's the not-fun part of my job. The fun part is the arts programming. Laws are constantly changing and every city has its own set of laws. So the requirements in West Hollywood might be different and are different from what we have to do in our Oxnard store that's coming up or in the Fresno store or even in our Los Angeles stores. And so you know someone has to be constantly monitoring any updates to the regulations, combing through all of the requirements to make sure we're meeting them whether it's little things like having the right signs up in the store or you know the types of products we can sell and any packaging rules we have to follow. So I do that in conjunction with some of the other people on my team.

When we're applying for new licenses – that's another whole beast because we have to become experts in the rules and regulations of different municipalities. So there's just a lot there to make sure that we're fully compliant but we are really serious about that so we do spend a lot of time and resources on the legal aspect of the business. I used to an attorney at a law firm before this. So I mean this is much isn't much better. So I'm glad to at least be doing this type of law and not something else.

I mean you guys have been doing this for a long time so I'm sure you've seen just an entire world around you shift over the last decade?

Yes, definitely so much has changed and what seems like not such a long time span. So you know when I first got into it, it was very much a mom-and-pop style industry where there were all of these different dispensaries. There weren't chains or brands. People owned their spots and they had you know, unbranded flower and big jars and you could just pick a strain and buy it.

Now you know you go into a shop and it looks like this high-end retail place where you have beautiful packaging and everything is precisely dosed and you know the flower is prepacked and it's a completely different experience, which has opened up the market to you know a much broader consumer base because the stores are places where you can come in and feel welcome and feel comfortable. Even if you're not someone that's been a cannabis consumer for a long time whereas before I think that a lot of people were intimidated to go into a dispensary because they weren't necessarily the most welcoming places or the most beautiful places and people didn't know how to get a medical recommendation. But now it's just this other aspect of mainstream culture – at least here in California. 

Lauren, really appreciate you coming on the show.

Thanks, yeah, it's good to be here I mean it's fun to see things change and evolve and I feel lucky to be part of that whole process. The exciting part about this industry is that nothing ever stays the same and so there's always something new and exciting happening.

Awesome. Well, we'll keep an eye on you and all the incredible things happening at The Artist Tree. Thanks so much. 