Compliance with a Culver City feel is Jushi Holdings’ mission for their location

 

While there are no particular local roots within the Jushi Holdings team, founder and president Erich Mauff feels very much in tune with Culver City, and what it is looking for in a business.

“We have to take all of these very LA-centric people and bring a very aesthetic feeling to this building that I think would be very much in line with what Culver City would like to see,” Mauff explains. “The store that ultimately goes up there is really not going to be something you would label a cannabis store. It’s going to be really rethinking what we believe the wellness aspect of cannabis is.”

Unlike most applicants for storefront retail in any sector, one of the key points in the Jushi Holdings’ application in Culver City at 3800 Sepulveda Blvd. is the fact that there is no building currently there.

Jushi was specifically looking for such a situation because it provides them the ability to mold the store the way that they imagine it to be.

“The fact that is a ground-up build allows us really as a company to make this our flagship store,” Mauff said. “When you move into an already existing building, there is only so much you can do. You are constrained by the physical limitations of that location. But this location was part of why we were so attracted to allow an architecturally driven rethinking of what that wonderful environment of wellness and well-being can be, and not just be a pot shop.”

There were a few points that Jushi has been sure to stress from the beginning. First and most importantly, Jushi believes in the utmost compliance with Culver City regulations. While they believe in creating something that is aesthetically pleasing and provides a comfortable experience, Mauff and Jushi understand how important compliance is for creating their own location, and intend to take advantage of the opportunity in front of them.

“This particular design is to create a store that ensures the safety of our community and the compliance of the building,” Mauff lauds. “One of the great things about a build-up from the bottom is that you don’t have to compromise those aspects around a physically existing structure where you may not be able to do what you can with this ground-up build.”

One of these aspects is what Mauff call a “closed-loop” system of admittance, where people enter through one door in the front, and exit through another door in the back.

“Allowing that closed-loop really allows us to be incredibly vigilant around the compliance and the safety of [the store],” Mauff emphasized.

While compliance is a huge part of Jushi’s mission with this location, it isn’t their only one. In trying to keep with the aesthetic of Culver City, Mauff explains the precise detail that goes into making this project one that truly feels like it is part of Culver City.

“The way we envision this store is a beautiful glass structure that has solar paneling on the top to be able to make it a LEED-compliant building. We plan to have a lot of natural vegetation, and a beautiful living tree in the middle of the building.”

Mauff continues to demonstrate Jushi’s focus on compliance even when discussing the aesthetics of the building. “Compliance is critical, but within that, you can still have a lovely aura,” Mauff reiterated

“I think the single most important thing a cannabis company can do is to make sure customers are walking into an environment that’s safe and secure number one, and number two can buy compliant tested product at a very fair price. That’s what we stand for, and the ability to do that in a beautiful building with tremendous local input for artists and a fresh, clear, light design that’s LEED compliant that self-sustaining from an energy standpoint, that’s just a bonus.”

“So the beautiful look is one thing, we think that’s critical because we think that’s the aesthetic of Culver City. But compliance, safety, and deliberating quality regulated products at a fair price, that’s what we have to be.”

Overall, Mauff believes that putting effort into embracing the culture of Culver City within the building is paramount to their aesthetic.

“You are going to have local sculptures and sculpture workaround. When you think about cannabis and wellness and art, especially art and beautiful design, it is very much a part of the motif of Culver City, so we very much plan to do that as we go into Culver City.”

The current plan is for the build to take about a year and a half. Mauff believes that this undertaking will be beneficial not only for Jushi and Culver City but also for the products they sell.

“As they’re shopping, people think through what they want, and we help them understand responsible dosing, which many people just don’t know. Having a beautiful building in a great place like Culver City will be a great way to bring people back. It’s good for businesses, it’s good for the community, and it’s good for cannabis as a product.”