Want to buy some cannabis? In the United States, 38 states have legalized cannabis for medical use and 24 for recreational use including Illinois. In our twin cities of Champaign-Urbana, we have four dispensaries each with their own vibe, but the process for buying cannabis is standardized. Wondering what exactly is that process? I got you covered, and because I’m a visual learner, I included photos for every step of the buying process. While it’s not illegal to take photos inside a dispensary, it’s still polite to ask, so I reached out to Cloud9 Cannabis‘s Alex Corrao who was super nice and helped make sure everyone in these photos wanted to be in the photos.
Step 1: Prepare
Before going to Cloud9 (or any dispensary), locate your valid government ID and be a person who is 21 years or older. Next, have a valid payment method for the dispensary. Since marijuana is still a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, cannabis purchases must be made either with cash or debit card only, so gather one of those and then visit a dispensary.
Step 2: Check in at the dispensary
At every dispensary, doors open first to a small special lobby with security. This is the gateway to buying cannabis. Fail this room, and no weed for you. Present the ID to staff at the desk; they’ll scan it and verify the ID while a security person supervises. Once the ID is confirmed to be valid, the next set of doors will be unlocked, and it’s time to enter the store part of the dispensary.
Step 3: Shop the dispensary
This is the fun part. At Cloud9’s store, there are display boxes of different cannabis products. The store encourages customers to pick up products and check them out. The boxes and containers have no actual THC products in them; it’s just the packaging. I like to read the ingredients. Sometimes there’s an edibles brand with like four or five flavors, and it’s cool to compare the products side by side.
Cloud9 has little stations inside the shop. At this table, customers can read about five different terpenes, then lift the cork and waft aromas of each one.
Cloud9 has an official smell bar with different strains of cannabis flower that shoppers can smell without buying. It’s the only dispensary in C-U with this option, so I recommend trying it if only to brag that you stopped to smell the flowers.
This station is not as hands-on as the terpenes and other displays. Customers are not allowed to touch the sniff box — only the professionals can. Staff hold the box and push a button on the side that puffs out the aroma of enclosed buds.
Whether one buys any flower or not, sniffing a range of scents is fun, kind of like wine tasting but just the smelling part.
This shopping step is optional, of course. Those in hurry, those that like to plan ahead, and those that already know what they want could put in a pre-order.
Step 4: Select cannabis products
When the customer has picked, it’s time to order. All the tablets in the store are identical, so pick the nearest one and tap the screen. Search by type of cannabis (edible, flower, preroll, topicals, vape, beverage, tincture, concentrate), select the product(s) desired, add to cart, and then submit. The tablet’s ordering process is pretty user-friendly, but the staff can help customers who want advice or assistance.
Step 4: Make payment
Once the order is placed, the staff will fill the order in the secret room of cannabis in the back that customers cannot see or enter. When the order is ready, the cannasseurs call the customer over to the counter to pay. Purchase products with cash or a debit card. A valid ID must be shown again at the point of sale, too.
Step 5: Enjoy responsibly
That’s it! Buying legal cannabis in Champaign-Urbana is as easy as that. Bring the right things, pick the right things for you, and take those things home to enjoy. What’s good to enjoy? Well, the best people to ask are those that work in the dispensaries. Cloud9’s cannasseurs and other dispensaries’ budtenders can make great recommendations based on what it is that the customer wants or needs from the product. That said, if you want to read about my favorite THC products to buy in C-U, check out canna content here, here, here, here, and here.
Cloud9 Cannabis
503 W Town Center Blvd
Champaign
Su-Th 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
F+Sa 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
