August 2020 - 26

EMERGING MARKETS
enough success in carrying CBD products that he decided to
grow hemp himself.
" Early on throughout the first year of carrying their product
probably saw in the first couple of months a pretty good sales
increase and demand for the product, " Pahl says. " It's good to
know before you have your own product. You have a bit of a
test to know that it does sell and it sells year-round. "
Pahl currently grows hemp in two hoop houses, totaling
about 2,000 square feet, and outdoors on 50 acres. Initially
the plan was to wholesale the biomass to companies that
would extract and process CBD into their own label.
" It didn't turn out that way; the market kind of got flooded
over the last year or so, " he says. " Everyone kind of joined in
on the 'green rush' as they call it. "
Faced with a limited market to sell to, Pahl took it upon
himself to develop the company's own brand.
" We know exactly where it's [the hemp] coming from and
the local craze is still in effect. I figured I could find a niche
market and I have a storefront already - it was a perfect fit, "
he says.
Arbuckle Outdoors
Davis, Oklahoma
For health and fitness enthusiast Wendy Thompson, it was
a natural progression to carry CBD products in the familyowned
and operated garden center after having a positive
experience with it while trying to heal from a stress fracture.
" Our garden center was always half a garden center and
half something to do with fitness, health and nutrition, "
says Thompson, owner and marketing manager at Arbuckle
Outdoors in Davis, Oklahoma. " It was just an inevitable step
to carry the product that worked so well for me. "
Thompson started buying CBD-related products wholesale
and selling them at Arbuckle Outdoors in 2017. The garden
center carries products that allow consumers to use CBD
in various ways, such as externally - with lotions, salves,
balms and serums - and through consumable products -
like tinctures, oral sprays, capsules and gummies.
In 2019, Thompson participated in Oklahoma's hemp pilot
program to begin growing hemp and sell hemp flower for
processing or as smokable pre-rolls under Arbuckle's own
label, Arbuckle Organics.
Educating consumers on CBD can be a challenge, but it
can also help build trust with customers and be used as
a sales tool, Thompson says. Her focus is explaining that
hemp and cannabis come from the same plant, " it's simply
the matter of how high or low the THC is. " Less than a year
after Arbuckle Outdoors began carrying CBD products,
medical marijuana was legalized in Oklahoma and now
three dispensaries are located within two miles of the
garden center.
" Now you have a lot of people who think marijuana is just
as good or better [than CBD], when it may not necessarily be
for everyone, " Thompson says. " It just made it a little tougher
because marijuana has become so rampant in the state. "
Hemp-derived CBD products at Arbuckle Outdoors
are placed by the cash registers, where staff can engage
customers in educational conversations. Thompson and
staff encourage customers to use personal judgement in
26 | LAWN & GARDEN RETAILER | AUGUST 2020
Place CBD products by registers to allow for educational
conversations. Photo: Arbuckle Outdoors.
determining what works best for them and to do additional
research on top of what staff shares.
" A lot of people can see that you're not just trying to make
money off of them, " Thompson says. " You're trying to educate
them and teach them what would be best for them. A lot of
people are going to come back to you and the products that
you have if you believe in them. "
Thompson cautions other retailers from making particular
claims when it comes to CBD.
" This isn't a cure, treatment or prevention method. You
can't say that because it's against FDA rules. "
Things to Consider
When it comes to choosing which products to carry, both
Pahl and Thompson encourage garden centers to do their
research on how a supplier's hemp is grown and to request
a Certificate of Analysis, which determines the quality and
purity of CBD products.
" Hopefully they get information from the company that
they're buying from and it's not a hassle, " Pahl says. " They
should be transparent as they possibly can. There should be
nothing to hide. "
Even if you are just considering growing hemp, like
Arbuckle Outdoors, Thompson warns there are significant
testing costs and recommends starting hemp production on
a small scale with one or two strains.
While it can be a challenging endeavor, introducing CBD
products into your inventory can help customers keep your
garden center in mind any time of the year, Pahl says.
" People will come into your store in the winter time instead
of forgetting you exist. It's a nice addition to the business.
Now I'm not saying you're not going to be sitting on a beach
from it but it's a nice cash flow. "
August 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2020
