{"id":9251,"date":"2019-07-04T13:43:33","date_gmt":"2019-07-04T17:43:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainstation.io\/?p=9251"},"modified":"2020-05-11T17:02:45","modified_gmt":"2020-05-11T21:02:45","slug":"tokyo-smoke-how-to-take-a-brand-from-illegal-to-established","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/tokyo-smoke-how-to-take-a-brand-from-illegal-to-established","title":{"rendered":"Tokyo Smoke: How to Take a Brand From \u2018Illegal\u2019 to Established"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not every day that a black market industry goes mainstream, but that\u2019s what\u2019s happening with North America\u2019s fast-growing cannabis industry. The transition is raising a number of interesting questions on the retail and marketing front, most notably: How do you market a brand as it moves from \u201cillegal\u201d to established?<\/span><\/p>\n

To find out more about the process, <\/span>we spoke to Josh Lyon, the VP of Marketing at Tokyo Smoke<\/a>, <\/span>an award-winning cannabis retailer in Canada that has earned praise for its focus on design and customer experience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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BrainStation’s Digital Marketing Diploma Program<\/a> is a full-time, 12-week program that equips professionals with the skills and experience to start a new career in marketing.<\/p>\n

Speak to a Learning Advisor<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Josh Lyon, Tokyo Smoke<\/p><\/div>\n

BrainStation: As the VP of Marketing at Tokyo Smoke, what does a typical day look like for you?<\/b><\/p>\n

Lyon: As clich\u00e9 as it sounds, no two days are alike. I tend to be in meetings from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and they fluctuate between overall brand strategy work, campaign execution, and partnership work. My team and I work closely together to continually push our brand activations forward, think through how to address strategic objectives and improve our owned and paid channels. In an industry that moves so quickly, much of what the focus is revolves around bringing the teams together to work collaboratively.<\/span><\/p>\n

You have a background in advertising and consulting. Has that experience had any impact on you when it comes to developing a marketing approach\/style?<\/b><\/p>\n

Definitely. Both of those paths helped shape how I approach marketing right now. It\u2019s funny, I started off in marketing at a large agency as an account exec (client services). One of my first bosses, who I\u2019m still friends with today, advised me to get out of the agency world. I was terrible at saying yes to the client without pushing back. I always had the instinct to challenge what we were doing and my consulting\/research experience helped me better formulate a way of thinking and articulate how we can strive to do better. Agency gave me a begrudging respect for process and consulting helped me breakdown problems and articulate a central vision to rally around.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What are some of your favorite marketing campaigns?<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always been a huge fan of Nike\u2019s work. Their ability to mesh functional with emotional is always impressive. The somewhat recent Kaepernick campaign was fantastic. As a brand, it can be hard to take a stand. You have to be prepared for the backlash and difficult conversations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The work North Face did during the 50<\/span>th<\/span> anniversary was also quite amazing. Essentially, their core assets were simply a look at the consumer. The consumer-centric message plus pure beauty of what they created really resonated. Your community is your best conduit and North Face nailed that.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What would you say are the core elements of Tokyo Smoke\u2019s marketing strategy?<\/b><\/p>\n

First off, it really starts with the pillars of design, community, and education. Cannabis is in an interesting place where so much is happening at a rapid pace and you have people hungry for information. We\u2019ve positioned education in a manner that is as engaging as it is informative. Not only is it providing what consumers need to know to confidently navigate the cannabis space but it\u2019s also creating events and activations that people are excited to take part in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Secondly, we use design to open up and facilitate conversations. Cannabis usage, for many, has been hidden. By providing design-forward, high functioning products, we\u2019re encouraging people to be proud of the association with cannabis.<\/span><\/p>\n