10/02/2026
For the last 6 years Better Ways has had the privilege and honor of being community nominated and voted into the Top 3 for Connecticut’s Best on the Shoreline competition for Best Alternative Medicine / H**p / C*D Store.
Each year of hard work paired with multilevel education about the plant, sensible understanding around its mechanics and limits, transparency with sourcing and testing results, and an awareness of industry standards, safeties, and operators has allowed us to destigmatize an incorrect narrative around a great plant-based medicine and help people understand they can get the benefit of using cannabis products without the high.
Building a community and space in hometown Branford has been nothing short of transformative on such a deep level both personally and professionally.
Having had the honor to be connected with so many great members and leaders of such an expansive cannabis community and culture within the advocacy space, event management, cultivators, breeders, extractors, edible and beverage makers, hospitality space, glass artists, other retail and education centers, workforce safety, and so on has been profoundly eye opening and life changing. I couldn’t be more grateful, thank you all a googleplex times over.
For this 7th year of the competition, when The Day announced blending the H**p / C*D store with the Dispensary category it was unsure what the outcome would be.
To take FIRST PLACE means so much more especially here within Connecticut’s cannabis landscape.
This FIRST PLACE is for the little guy, the small business owner, the advocates, the true canna-warriors, the growers and breeders that have innovated and protected this sacred plant for decades, and those that have worked and protected this plant and community well before any licensed operators.
The biggest take away from all of this has been it isn’t about your brand or your products, it’s how you show up for the plant and existing community. Collaboration over competition and always, always, always people over profits.
Thank you all once again for your trust, support, feedback, and encouragement.
Free the Plant, Free the People!
