With Lightspeed, RESTART CBD & THC can focus on strategic expansion

Inadequate platforms constantly disrupted RESTART CBD & THC’s mission driven-family business.

Sister team Shayda, Sydney and Nika Torabi started RESTART CBD & THC as a personal journey with CBD oils, which quickly evolved into a mission-driven business dedicated to educating customers about cannabis and other plant medicines like mushrooms and kava. Their path, however, wasn’t without its operational hurdles.

For years, RESTART CBD & THC grappled with various POS systems that couldn’t–or wouldn’t–fully support their business. Their previous systems fell short in critical areas, especially for a cannabis business needing seamless integration between payments, POS, ecommerce and in-store operations. The constant need to learn new systems, train staff and rewrite SOPs was a major headache, particularly concerning inventory management.

Without a reliable system, RESTART CBD & THC had to spend more time planning for survival than growing and thriving.

Everything came to a head when their previous system decided not to serve CBD business right before Black Friday, creating significant disruptions. But that challenge presented an opportunity, too. “It was a blessing in disguise,” says Sydney, “because it really forced us to move platforms and now inventory is way less of a headache.”

Building on a reliable system helped facilitate growth.

RESTART CBD & THC found their solution in Lightspeed, a POS that profoundly impacted their operations and enabled significant growth. As a system that wholly believes in supporting CBD retail, the sisters were able to get set up with integrated payments, inventory and sales flows right away.

The immediate benefits were evident, particularly in data reporting. Being able to compare current performance against previous periods has proven crucial for tracking growth and setting them up for success. “I love looking at reports,” says Sydney, and Lightspeed delivers the data she craves. “What are we selling through? When are customers shopping? Are they going in store? Are they using online? What is their average cart value? Those are all data points that we use to market certain products, things that we can tell our in-store staff to highlight. It really sets you up for success.”

Managing multiple sales channels is easier now, too: the automatic inventory sync between Lightspeed eCom and Retail means they don’t double-sell products. That means no more unexpected delays on online orders, so customers are happier–and Lightspeed Advanced Marketing helps them build on those positive experiences. It allows customers to track points and feel more connected to the business, encouraging repeat visits and spending.

Growing into a successful multi-location business needs the kind of support Lightspeed can offer.

Crucially, Lightspeed has transformed RESTART CBD & THC’s capacity for physical expansion. Prior to Lightspeed, adding new retail locations was a nightmare due to their previous system’s limitations, especially with inventory syncing between online and in-store sales. With Lightspeed, the ability to seamlessly turn on another location and navigate inventory with ease has removed significant barriers to growth.

The newfound stability and efficiency mean that RESTART CBD & THC can now genuinely focus on expanding their physical footprint and growing their business.

“It’s such a better experience, such a better program, such a better platform for us,” says Shayda. “That enables us to have our focus not only on growing the business as is, but also being able to physically grow the business into new locations because the tools we’re using are actually able to allow us to have more locations.”