Grower Stories #160: Chase Slappey

Tia Moskalenko, author of the AskGrowers blog, brings a unique blend of content to her readers. She is known for conducting insightful interviews with key figures in the cannabis industry, including brand representatives, manufacturers, and experts. In addition to her interview skills, Tia has a keen focus on CBD. She expertly curates product selections and reviews, offering her readers detailed insights into the various effects and benefits of CBD. Tia's ability to combine in-depth interviews with comprehensive CBD analysis makes her a valuable asset to the cannabis community, offering a well-rounded perspective on the industry.

Published

Aug 31 2022

Updated

Nov 17 2023

Interviews

652

9 min

Chase Slappey chats about ATLRx - a cannabis brand for young adults

The AskGrowers team chats with Chase Slappey from ATLRx as he sheds some light on the brand’s inception and what it stands for. He tells us how the company is bringing a west-coast style retail experience to Atlanta, making cannabis more approachable for young adults. Chase also mentions how transparent the brand is in terms of labeling and how it’s aiming to reduce the use of plastic, in addition to much more about the industry and Delta-8 THC.

Tia: How did you start the ATLRx? Tell us your origin story!

Chase: My business partners and I all worked together at a software analytics company when we first discussed the idea of starting a cannabis company. After months of throwing ideas back and forth, we started ATLRx at the end of 2018 when CBD was starting to become popular in the cannabis industry. We noticed a lack of coverage and high-quality products within the greater Atlanta area and set out to conquer the retail market with high-quality CBD products at affordable prices. To this day, we have bootstrapped our entire operation and have multiple retail stores, a warehouse, and a large online presence.

Tia: What’s the ethos behind your brand?

Chase: ATLRx is a hip Atlanta Cannabis brand that mostly appeals to young adults between 22-40 years old. We have a “west coast” style dispensary that gives our customers a retail experience, in comparison to visiting cannabis dispensaries. This includes all the necessary procedures our customers must take before they enter the showroom to ensure our employees’ safety and limit overall liability. We like to think of ourselves as a super transparent brand that represents the city of Atlanta with a tremendous amount of pride while bringing our market access to other emerging alternate cannabinoids by staying ahead of the curve when it comes to new product releases.

Tia: How do you think we can improve social equity in the industry?

Chase: I think there are numerous ways to improve social equity in this industry starting off with correcting legislation and granting more industry access to people who have previously had a marijuana arrest record. There are many people with a vast amount of knowledge and love for this amazing plant, however, they are shunned from being involved due to often small mistakes they had made in their past, only because they wanted to be involved before legislation caught up.

Tia: What do you do to maintain sustainability in the company? (How do you utilize the wastes? How much electricity do you spend on a daily basis? / Do you use IoT to reduce the spendings on sustainability? / Packaging issues / soil/ water etc?)

Chase: ATLRx maintains a small presence when it comes to electricity costs since we are not involved in the growing side of the operation. We have a loyalty program for all customers that encourages them to bring back their plastic packaging so that we can recycle it on their behalf with a special facility that we found. Plastic is a major issue to our oceans and something that I try to keep in mind every single day. We offer .50c in loyalty points for every returned package to help out where we can while diminishing our footprint.

Tia: How do you think your brand is different from the wide range of others similar to yours?

Chase: I would say that we are more geographically focused than many other brands as we are first and foremost a “West Coast Style” retail dispensary concept unique to Atlanta, GA. On the other side of the house, I think product transparency is another HUGE differentiator when it comes to product labeling. Unlike most all other brands, we print to the exact mg based on our third-party lab results. NO rounding up or down since we perform in-house printing to make this all happen at a reasonable price.

Tia: What was your initial capital for opening up the brand?

Chase: $75,000

Tia: What is the reason for the popularity of Delta-8?

Chase: Delta 8 is more stable and provides a cleaner high than Delta 9 THC that many people are finding that they enjoy it more. In many ways, there are fewer negative side effects such as laziness, foggy head, and anxiety and more of a functional effect. This allows the user to in many ways enjoy their overall experience if they don’t have a great tolerance for THC substances.

Tia: Why do you think Delta-8 is banned in states where recreational cannabis use is legalized?

Chase: Delta 8 THC is impeding on Delta 9 market due to the reasons mentioned above. This is affecting a higher % bracket of tax dollars in an industry with large companies and lobbying power.

Tia: What is the difference between Delta-8 and Delta-9?

Chase: Technically, Delta 8 has a double bond on the 8th carbon chain whereas Delta 9 has a double bond on the 9th carbon chain if you are just looking at the chemical compounds next to each other.

Since Delta 8 has a double bond on the 8th carbon chain, it ends up being more of a stable compound which explains why it is less psychoactive than its counterpart Delta 9 THC.

Tia: Is Delta-8 well researched and safe?

Chase: Delta 8 is researched but not to the extent of delta 9 due to how new this product is to the market. As far as we are concerned based on that research and our own personal experiences, Delta 8 THC is very safe.

Tia: Do you think Delta-8 will be able to compete with Delta-9 in the future?

Chase: Delta 8 is already competing with Delta 9 in many states. As far as where legislation takes us, I can only hope that it remains legal for all to enjoy.

Tia: Do you think Delta-8 can be a compromise in states where legalization is facing the most resistance?

Chase: I think Delta 8 is currently a compromise in all states that are resisting a medical or recreational marijuana program. These cannabinoids are truly helping people stay off prescription medications daily and Delta 8 is filling the void and then some, for many of these patients.

Tia: Delta-10 is gaining popularity along with Delta-8, is it a hype and soon the industry won't remember it, or will these two compounds stay with us for a long time?

Chase: Only time will tell as legislation will determine the legality of all future cannabinoids! Delta 10 THC vape carts are now available at all ATLRx locations. We are also releasing Delta 10 THC flower next week!

Tia: What are your most popular Delta-8 products?

Chase: Gummies and Flower hands down.

Tia: Who is the target audience for Delta-8 products?

Chase: Anyone who enjoys regular cannabis (delta 9) or who can benefit from cannabis products due to health reasons such as pain, anxiety, & sleep.

Tia: In your professional opinion, how do you think the customer can be sure he’s getting the toxic-free product?

Chase: Make sure to look for third-party lab reports and a full panel delta 8 distillate COAZ (a lab test). This will ensure that there are no microbials, pesticides, heavy metals, and other unwanted substances that could be inside cheap and impure delta 8 THC distillate.

Tia: What’s your personal consumption routine? What are the top three products that you’re using?

Chase: I personally enjoy our flower, gummies, and caramels on almost a weekly basis. Our Delta 8 Edibles make me sleep like a baby every time that I use them, and our flower is a great way to indulge in cannabis while being able to remain active for the rest of the day while we continue building this incredible company.

Tia: Do you make all the products yourselves?

Chase: We do a lot of in-house formulation after we source RAW distillate from a multitude of different trusted manufacturers. We have so many products and each of them has its own unique story

Tia: Your top strains to smoke? Why?

Chase: Afghan Goo and White Runtz would be considered our most popular, mainly due to the potency level that our customers enjoy. Additionally, the effects and overall smell of these delicious strains make customers usually tend to gravitate towards them!

Tia: If you could smoke with anyone in this world, dead or alive, who would that be and why?

Chase: Hmm that's a super tough one but my knee-jerk reaction tends to lead me towards Bob Marley. I'm always so fascinated by his interviews, and I think it would be an incredible experience to smoke with one of the biggest legends ever when it comes to cannabis pop culture.

Tia: Are there any cannabis brands in your state (or in the USA) you appreciate and follow? Name them.

Chase: I love to see what Berner is doing over there at Cookies. I think he is a marketing genius that is supplying some great products to the market with a cool twist on his merchandising game that tends to breed a lot of copycats. Hats off to him for leading the way in a variety of marketing concepts that he has developed over the years.

Tia: Do you work under any affiliate programs to spread your products to dispensaries/delivery services?

Chase: Yes, we have a variety of affiliate programs that sell our products online. We also have our own affiliate program that you can sign up for on our website at www.ATLRx.com to earn a 15% commission on all purchases made through your affiliate link that we will send you.

Tia: What’s the number 1 rule when you’re in the cannabis business?

Chase: The customer comes first. Make a product and service with the customer in mind ALWAYS. This will lead you to make a better and more transparent product before focusing on ways to cut corners and achieve more profit.

You can follow ATLRx at:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Thank you so much, ATLRx team, for taking the time to do the interview. To learn more about them, head on over to their website.

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