Celebrated in Ayurveda for its healing powers and part of India’s heritage for thousands of years, Cannabis is often misunderstood with respect to its healing and medicinal properties. Bombay Hemp Company (BOHECO) is leading the forefront of awareness creation, turning India’s ancient relationship with the Cannabis plant into a modern movement for natural, science-backed healing. Founded in 2013, BOHECO is India’s first integrated cannabis wellness enterprise, with its experiential stores across Delhi, Mumbai and now Bengaluru, with plans to expand to newer geographies. BOHECO recently unveiled their flagship holistic health & wellness clinic & store in Bengaluru in partnership with Soulgoal Artisan. Located at Brigade Road, the flagship, designed by Restore Design, serves as a hub for education, consultation, therapies, and discovery, combining doctor-led consultation, research-backed formulations, and immersive brand experiences under one roof.

Speaking at the launch Yash Kotak, Co-founder & CMO, BOHECO shares the brand’s experiential retail format, offline growth strategy and more.

Can you tell us about the retail experience you wanted to create with this first flagship outlet in Bangalore?

Our Bengaluru store represents the next chapter in India’s Cannabis revolution; one grounded in science, sustainability, and education. It’s not just a store, it’s an ecosystem built to help people rediscover the ancient, evidence-backed benefits of Cannabis responsibly and credibly.

The Bengaluru flagship experience begins with a discovery zone that we call the ‘unlearning zone’ - because before we learn something new one has to first unlearn existing know-how and myths. This is followed by a curated product discovery zone to understand more about BOHECO’s clinically tested hemp remedies for sleep, anxiety and pain. Besides wellness products, customers also get to indulge in the brand’s hemp fabric range at a dedicated zone with an array of swatches. The doctor consultation room allows customers to have conversations with in-house doctors in privacy for the right diagnosis before treatment. On the upper level, we’ve created a dedicated therapy room for Ayurvedic treatments, along with a serene, green ‘Calm Corner’ — a space designed for quiet reflection and pause.

How have you approached debunking misconceptions about medicinal cannabis through your store design and customer experience?

Our intention at the store is to humanize everything and ensure that we are giving information on medicinal Cannabis-leaf based Ayurveda in a way that is easy without too many jargons that everyone can understand. The biggest question on anyone’s mind once they enter is “Is this legal?” and that’s the first misconception we try to solve. We help inform visitors that we only work with the plant parts that are non-psychotropic in nature. Our in-store communication and visual displays highlight the plant’s remarkable versatility, from textiles and paper to biofuels and beyond.

Further inside the store, visitors encounter products displayed alongside a clinical trial repository which reinforces that each offering is scientifically backed, doctor-formulated, and recommended. In-house doctor consultations further strengthen trust and credibility, ensuring accurate diagnosis and personalized treatment.

What is your strategy for expanding offline retail presence?

The intention is not to expand our presence rapidly. As a business, it is very important that every outlet is profitable and that's why we don't rush into opening stores. Currently we have 5 outlets, where the first one was launched in 2021 and the second outlet only came up in 2023. So, it was important for the proof of concept to succeed, once we saw customers coming back we opened 4 more stores. Moving forward, with growing conviction in this space, we plan to open 10 additional outlets over the next 18 to 24 months. At present, majority of our stores are company-owned (COCO). The Brigade Road outlet in Bangalore operates on a FOCO model. As we scale, we aim to diversify our footprint with more FOCO and FOFO formats.

As a digital-first brand with a strong online presence, we have real-time insights into where our products are gaining traction. For now, we plan to expand to Chennai and add more stores in Hyderabad, while staying focused on a few key markets to ensure sustainable growth rather than spreading ourselves too thin.

Interestingly, we’ve seen significant interest from Kashmir, likely driven by the challenging living conditions there. These insights help us observe emerging needs and identify regions where expanding our presence could make a meaningful impact.

What customer-facing technologies are you using to elevate engagement and experience in your stores?

We are in the space of hyper-personalization, as medicinal cannabis solutions are never one-size-fits-all. We want to really understand the patient through a lot of consultation, diagnosis and testing. We’ve seen many experiential tech interfaces in international stores, where awareness and understanding are far more advanced. In India, however, the category is still evolving. So our focus is on simplifying the experience rather than overwhelming customers with too much information. From a diagnostic standpoint, we’re collaborating with a company in Israel on a headgear that provides real-time readings of stress and anxiety levels. These medical instruments are currently under review, as accurate diagnosis forms the foundation of effective treatment.

What has your experience been in setting up stores, from retail infrastructure to managing on-ground execution? What key challenges have you encountered along the way?

In the medicinal cannabis space, there are quite a few complications we have to deal with. The first is that cannabis as a subject comes under the Concurrent List, which basically means that while the Central Government lays out the broad framework, every state creates its own set of rules and regulations. So, before we can even think of setting up a store, we have to go through multiple departments - the State authorities, AYUSH, Health and get their approvals. It really starts with educating and clearing misconceptions at a regulatory level. Once we have their go-ahead, we start looking for the right location.

We're lucky to have a strong team from retail backgrounds, people who’ve seen the entire cycle of store building and operations. And our design and project partners like Restore Design have been with us from day one. They really understand how to bring modern Ayurveda and contemporary retail together. That experience has helped us make fewer mistakes and maintain the kind of design and quality we want the brand to stand for.

Our next big challenge is training and retaining people. Store staff and doctors are the first impression of the brand, so they must understand not just the science but also the nuances of dosage, lifestyle, and use.