What is Alchemy?

Established in 2020, Alchemy sells Canadian-grown cannabis, accessories, and merchandise using a business model that challenges traditional stigmas of cannabis.

To us, the death of retail is a misguided notion. Instead, we believe that the future of retail is immersive, engaging, and compelling. Our downtown Toronto flagship encompasses that vision in a highly-considered space designed by acclaimed Studio Paolo Ferrari. Here, we deliver a customer experience that intuitively understands our many different customers; some buyers rely on a high level of guidance with their purchase, while others prize efficiency.

At Alchemy, the choice is yours.

Buyers who know what they want can pre-purchase online for easy in-store pick up, or use the in-store self-checkout stations, minimally interacting with staff. For those interested in deeper exploration, Alchemy pairs innovative in-store technology with a highly-skilled team of staff to recommend the perfect product for your personalized wellness journey.

A magical journey from ordinary to extraordinary

Elevated. Sublime. Energetic. Soft. Alchemy is transforming the future of cannabis with the opening of Canada’s first highly immersive cannabis retail store in the heart of downtown Toronto. Designed by Paolo Ferrari, Alchemy’s innovative licensed flagship rejects staid cannabis cliches to deliver a cerebral experience infused with artistry, nature, and technology. By melding high-tech ingenuity with natural materials, the elevated space that feels much like a high fashion house or contemporary design boutique.

“For us, the store is somewhere between a laboratory and temple,” says Ferrari of the space. Customers who know what they want in advance can pre-purchase online and take an expedited checkout route inside – which may be preferable for some during COVID-19 – but for those interested in browsing, a multisensory journey awaits.

The arrival area sees customers queue around a lush plant installation. Small digital viewers are embedded in the surrounding walls, showing kaleidoscopic visuals and acting as voyeuristic points of discovery for guests to explore while waiting. Once inside, soft and strong geometry coexist alongside a few key elements of tech ingenuity in this room, such as custom cannabis sniff jars, which give product descriptions on a screen when customers interact with them. The highly technical self-checkout table is engineered from solid aluminum sheet and outfitted with custom wheels that allow it to glide through the space along an in-floor aluminum track.

A cinematic David Lynchian aesthetic takes over in the accessories room, a scintillating space of mirrored stainless ceilings, carpeted floors, undulating orange walls, and products displayed against a back-lit shelf. To end their journey, customers enter the checkout area where natural terracotta brick, aluminum walls, terrazzo flooring, and a brightly-lit ceiling evoke a world quite different than the last.

“The best retail environments are about celebrating the human experience and presenting highly considered, multi-sensory environments,” says Paolo Ferrari. Alchemy’s unconventional flagship exhibits just that: a highly architectural feast for the senses, with a sublime artistic soul.