Puffin, New Brunswick's New Recreational Cannabis Dispensary, Says Join the Flock

With a festive interior, smiling budtenders, a clever name, and a bright-beaked seabird as a mascot, Puffin is designed to blow away long-held stereotypes about cannabis and the people who use it.

Nathan Yanovitch, the founder and CEO of the cannabis dispensary at 382 George St., says there’s a whimsical aesthetic complete with wall murals and an inviting vibe awaiting customers at the dispensary’s grand opening on Wednesday, Sept. 6.

“I started smoking about three years ago and I was a little intimidated by what I saw when I first walked into a dispensary,” Yanovitch said. “I didn’t know who to ask or what to ask. We want people to be able to walk into Puffin for the first time and feel good about walking in.”

Stripping away stigmas in this nascent industry is a challenge facing Yanovitch and the leadership team, including his wife, Sylvia, in addition to Gabriel Eustache, Alejandro Benjamin III. Puffin, which began serving clients through a soft opening last week, is one of just 50 or so recreational dispensaries to date in New Jersey.

What a recreational dispensary is supposed to look like, sound like, smell like – it’s been uncharted territory since Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law on Feb. 22, 2021 legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults in New Jersey, as well as allowing for the cultivation, processing and sale of retail marijuana. More than 67% of New Jerseyans voted in favor of legalizing the use of cannabis in a 2020 referendum, including 75.76% of New Brunswick voters.

Later that year, each municipality had to decide whether it was going to allow dispensaries to set up in their town, and if so, how many.

In New Brunswick, the City Council in June 2021 voted to establish an overlay zone, creating cannabis retail zones in its City Center and Easton Avenue areas. The ordinance also creates a cultivation, manufacturing, and distribution zone in the industrial Jersey Avenue area.

In July 2021, the City Council voted to issue up to two licenses for marijuana sales downtown and one on Easton Avenue. Earth & Ivy on George Street became the first recreational dispensary to open its doors in May. (https://www.tapinto.net/towns/new-brunswick/sections/business-and-finance/articles/nj-s-first-recreational-cannabis-dispensary-opening-in-new-brunswick)

“In terms of customer service, we want it to be quick and easy,” Benjamin said. “And, education is going to be a big part of it. Many of our customers will need to be educated on what product is available.”

That’s where the budtenders will play a pivotal role. They will try to ascertain what experience each customer is seeking, and make recommendations. For some customers, the flower is perfect. For others, pre-rolled is best. For customers experiencing localized joint pain, for example, a cream or a balm would be in order.

Yanovitch has joined the recreational cannabis dispensary industry after a long career in the communications business. Among other roles, he was the point man for T-Mobile as it expanded its shops and kiosks through the 2000s.

He’s taken that retail and financial experience and reinvested it in Puffin, inviting others to join the flock.

Yankovitch said New Brunswick was an ideal place to start the company because Mayor Jim Cahill’s office was accommodating from the beginning, but the goal is to open Puffin places in other parts of the state

“I think you have great diversity in this city,” he said. “You’re going to have Rutgers students, you’re going to have Johnson & Johnson employees, workers and residents from around town.”

Story & Photo Credit: Chuck O'Donnell