Situated right next to the turnpike in West Milford in New Jersey, Elevated Herb serves up healing and recreation to the community. A dream realized by old college buddies who wanted to build something of value in the Cannabis industry, the dispensary takes a researched, enlightened approach to retail.
The Vibe
The Elevated team converted an old bait and tackle and electrical store using wood accents, some of which were sourced from Amish country, to achieve a sleek, welcoming design with an organic, earthy atmosphere.
The resulting space complements the shop’s philosophy, which puts wellness and plant medicine above all.
The Selection
Elevated Herb aims to keep a large variety of well-priced, high-quality products on the shelf, according to general manager Roger Martin. In more than a year of being open, they doubled the amount of stock-keeping units they carry. Their goal is to have the best selection in the state.
“Flower is what we hone in on and what more than half of our customers are buying,” Roger said. “So our flower selection is definitely top tier.”
They carry a wide variety of brands, with plenty of fire flavors from Rythm, Pete’s Farmstand, Clade 9, Verano, Garden Greens, Parks Grove and more.
Aside from a stellar flower selection, Roger and the team focus on ensuring they have the best products to suit the needs of their customer base.
“I would say about half of the people are looking just recreationally,” Roger said. “I say one of two people will come in and just say, ‘Hey, I could use help sleeping, or I’m looking for a CBN product.’”
The People
In order to help customers wade through their selection, Elevated Herb puts knowledge and service first. Each budtender is trained on their selection through a sampling process.
“How do you know which flower is good? You have to try it,” Roger said. “You have to know about it. You can’t just push a product that you haven’t tried before. It’s like in a restaurant, all the waiters ideally get to sample things, and then they’re able to then give an honest review of it. When a customer says, ‘Is the linguini good?’ If you just say, ‘Yeah, it’s good,’ but you’ve never tried it, you’re talking out of your ass. But if you’ve tried it and you can put your word behind that, and we have people that their word is good and that goes back to the human factor of everything, then I think you create a more rounded experience, and you have a lot more happy customers that way.”
This knowledge base allows for a high level of informed service, which is the bedrock of budtending. It also allows Roger to utilize staff opinion in the selection process.
“In New Jersey, all the products are the same,” Roger said. “All the legal dispensaries can pull from the same product. So how do you expand beyond that? How do you differentiate yourself? I found that intimate product knowledge and passion are two things that stand out there. And how do we reach this intimate product knowledge? It comes from boots on the ground understanding. I like to try the product before I buy it, and I want my employees to try the product as well. We do a lot of discussions with each other online about products. We have a specific strain talk channel where we all are talking about strains that we’re trying and always trying new things and bringing new things to the table.”
The Roll-Up
All in all, Elevated Herb aims to fulfill the promise of its name by consistent education and adjustment to suit the needs of its customers, and to do so in a pleasant atmosphere.
“We have all walks of life here,” Roger said. “We have a very human philosophy. People are people, and to treat people like people, kindness goes a long way, especially in this industry.”
Staff Picks
Caity
Garden Greens Heirheads preroll
“Great balanced hybrid, balanced terps as well.”
Ryan
Garden Greens Dante’s Inferno Flower
“Sticky, looks good, good taste, smokes nice.”
Wyld CBD strawberry gummies
“These are hybrid-enhanced CBD:THC gummies, typically in a 20:1 CBD to THC ratio, formulated with real fruit and botanical terpenes like limonene, linalool, alpha-pinene and beta-pinene. Great for anxiety and calming.”
Ashlee
Essence Forbidden Z shatter
“Old-school shatter nostalgia, high in linalool —which you don’t find every day.”
Nico
Ogeez Pegs Rick Simpson Oil
“Relaxing but not ZONKED!”
Ramy
Sun Extracts 4ZO resin disposable vape
“Best entourage effect. Nice 420 blend of Garden Greens strains we all know and love. Super terpy.”
Happy Farmer Gunpowder Milkshake Flower
“Great balanced hybrid; good myrcene and other balanced terps. Price is right.”
Dan
Garden Greens Super Lemon Haze preroll
“Phenomenal sativa flavors; limonene gives me a good feeling and good energy.”
Ishmael
Magical Garden Botanicals Menage Ejay
“Knocks you out, best heavy-hitting indica-if you really want to relax and wind down.”
Mike
Bless Your Cottons Guava Cooler Hash Rosin
“Potent, flavorful, and uplifting. Helps with chilling out and feeling good.”
Roger
Black Label RSO Syringe”Best medicinal bang for your buck. Can control dosing, extremely versatile – reaches a wide array of ailments and can be eaten/applied in a number of ways. With RSO there is a little something for everyone.”
