
Superette opened its first cannabis store in Ottawa on April 1, 2019 and brought a new atmosphere to cannabis stores. The store has the feel of a bodega and retro diner complete with counter and booths.
Mimi Lam, CEO of Superette, explains, “We want to encourage different areas of interaction with our store elements. You’ll find an area to sit and chat with our budtenders, browse through some of our favourite magazines and local community board of events, and enjoy some kind of nostalgic playful element (in Ottawa, it’s our pong game).”
This is definitely an atmosphere where the cannabis curious will be comfortable shopping. Lam says, “The cannabis customer experience at Superette is designed to be a self-discovery.”
More experienced customers enjoy the store’s features too. Customers who order online through the new Click & Collect service launching this spring will have an express counter where they can pick up their orders.
Design Inspiration
Future stores won’t necessarily look like their Ottawa flagship location at 1306 Wellington St W that has diner features. They will be “taking physical design inspiration from familiar retail environments, such as a bodega (corner store), and your local grocery market notes Lam, and they will all possess the fun aspects of those nostalgic environments.
Expansion plans
Superette plans to open ten retail locations in the next 18 months including three locations in Ontario:
- 1073 Yonge St. in Toronto (scheduled to open early spring 2020)
- 49 Spadina Ave. in Toronto (scheduled to open late spring 2020)
- 852 Bank St. in Ottawa (scheduled to open late spring 2020)
They will be focusing on the Ontario market for the next six months and then look at expanding into other North American markets. You can also expect to see Superette-branded cannabis products to be sold across Canada in the near future.
Looking towards the next year, Lauren Davie, VP of retail & sales, says, “This is an exciting time with so much possible for the retail cannabis market. Overall, we will see tougher competition when it comes to curating experience in stores, which is a good thing for customers. Retailers will most likely be more innovative and creative to stand out.”
We’ll look forward to seeing how Superette gets creative with the fun features that will be introduced into their new stores.