News

More choice with PAX, as people shop across categories

Published on November 12, 2021 by David Wylie

Photo: Contributed
Spiritleaf Vernon owner Sarah Ballantyne says PAX Era Life is a great choice for vaping.

It’s a new era for PAX pods.

Spiritleaf Vernon owner Sarah Ballantyne says PAX units are the best on the market for vaping dried flower and concentrate.

“We’re finally starting to see that category grow a bit with some new options,” she tells the oz.

She recommended Spherex’s Mango Kush and Grand Daddy Purple pods.

Spiritleaf Vernon carries about a dozen different pods now, with more on the way every week.

“I’ve confirmed with a couple LPs that they’re doing PAX pods, so we’ll see more in the future,” she says.

Ballantyne says you can get more puffs out of the PAX Era, and the pods are consistent across all of the brands. When it comes to 510-thread carts, the mouthpieces are different, which can be annoying for some.

Photo: Jenny Neufeld/the oz.
White Rabbit OG's Raspberry White Chocolate 1:1 gummies are delicious.

As for edibles, Ballantyne says she’s been enjoying the White Rabbit OG gummies.

They come in five flavours:

  • Raspberry White Chocolate
  • Blackberry Lemonade
  • Strawberry Fig Balsamic
  • Craft Blueberry
  • Craft Sour Peach

“They’re more adult sophisticated flavours. When we talk about adult edibles this is the kind of candy I want to eat.”

What’s in demand

Popular flower choices include lots of BC craft bud, such as Organnicraft, BC Black, and Whistler Cannabis.

Meanwhile, Canntrust is back in store with Something about Larry eighths from Liiv.

Customers are buying more products across categories during their visit to the shop, including flower, drinks and edibles.

“There’s more confidence in getting more items,” says Ballantyne.

Cannabis shoppers are also falling into two categories. “A lot of customers shop by price. They come in and ask ‘what do you have for $20 this week. They don’t care about the strain, they base on price. Where others are asking things like, ‘what do you have specifically from Oliver, BC.’ Or, ‘what do you have that’s specifically high in Humulene?’”

As for the near future, Ballantyne says she’s very much looking forward to special edition Christmas pre-rolls that are dropping soon. She’s also excited for large-format packs of Redees, which have 70 pre-rolls per pack (almost an ounce).

Ballantyne owns the Spiritleaf franchise in Vernon. There are three more Spiritleaf stores in the Okanagan—Kelowna, West Kelowna, and Penticton. All are owned by local residents.

Sarah Ballantyne holds a big bag of weed Photo: Contributed
Spiritleaf Vernon owner Sarah Ballantyne holds a large bag of cannabis during a tour of Organnicraft's facility.