Soberish owner wants to take Cannabis 'from your parents’ basement to your dinner table'
Atlanta Boutique Soberish Redefines Cannabis and Wellness Shopping Experience.
Mehrnush Saadat knows people who hear about a shop in Atlanta's Kirkwood neighborhood selling CBD, THC and mushroom products may have preconceived notions.
She’s here to send them all up in smoke.
Saadat, a real estate attorney and entrepreneur with a strong belief in plant medicine, aims to redefine the bottle shop experience with her boutique, Soberish.
It’s not just because she carries what she believes to be one of the nation’s widest selections of non-alcoholic beverages and “functional” wellness products. Saadat’s shop is an aesthetic-first safe space where customers can learn to manage health issues, support alcohol-freelifestyles or shop for gifts “you can’t find anywhere else in Atlanta," she said.
“I want to change the conception that you can be in a very sophisticated setting [to shop] for these products. … There’s a big stigma that I want to break," Saadat told Atlanta Business Chronicle, leaning against her pink-accented checkout counter. "We can talk about it. We can consume it. It doesn’t have to be ‘hush-hush.’
"I want to take cannabis from your parents’ basement to your dinner table."
Soberish sells cannabis and mushroom products meant to address health issues
Studies have found that in adults with chronic pain, multiple sclerosis and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, cannabis can be an effective remedy. It's also used to treat other ailments, depending on state and legality.
In Georgia, patients with specific health conditions may receive medical cards that allow them to legally purchase cannabis.
The products for sale at Soberish are made with Delta 8 and Delta 9, naturally occurring compounds found in hemp, and do not require a medical card to be legally purchased.
The store itself, crafted by the founder and designer Alyssa Cassatto, features archways that lead into nooks and corridors where customers will find meticulously categorized offerings, from shelves of non-alcoholic spirits to tables of glassware and stacks of gummies and chocolates. There’s even Soberish merch in the form of sweatshirts and rolling papers.
The 1,100-square-foot shop predominantly houses products from woman-owned companies, which Saadat says is somewhat of a coincidence. While she does aim to empower women, her main goal when choosing products is branding.
“Everything in here, the first thing people say is, ‘It’s beautiful,'" she said. "I think that also bleeds into the conversation of when I do go into a head shop, I don’t want to see a psychedelic frog or an alien. I’m not a kid. I want things to feel elevated.”
Soberish is more sophisticated than a typical smoke shop
As the founder estimates her main demographic is adults aged 35 and up, with most probably 40-50 and female-identifying, it’s important to her that Soberish is an “adult” space. She wants a destination where conversations can be had about hormones, sleep issues and chronic pain — all of which can be addressed by her functional products, whether that’s in the form of a THC drink, a CBD mint or mushroom coffee.
“I wanted to provide these things in an adult-like setting, where it’s not like you’re walking into a gas station or a smoke shop and you’re not able to ask questions or get educated," Saadat said.
Once Saadat is assured the products are “beautifully packaged,” she tests the taste and integrity.
“I also want to make sure that [the products] are as natural and clean as possible," she said.
In addition, it’s important that there’s consistency throughout her products. She said this is a common problem with cannabis edibles.
“We vet every product that comes in here," Saadat said. "I’m making sure when I vet these brands that they really know how to manufacture these kinds of things, so that your 10-milligram gummy is the same every single time.”
When asked how she vets her products, Saadat said that she is the first line of defense, sampling products before purchasing them from the brands. But she also studies the certificate of analysis, a certified lab report that tests for quality and strength.
Mehrnush Saadat founded Soberish after using a cannabis gummy to remedy pain
Saadat, a native Georgian who has spent almost the entirety of her adult life in Atlanta, came up with this business venture in 2022, a few years after a herniated disc left her looking for a way to treat the pain.
The real estate attorney ran a solo practice at the time, and she said she had to “crawl” into the office every day.
“I reached out to some of my girlfriends and was like, ‘Hey, I can’t get to the doctor today. Does anyone have anything for me that I can take?'" she said.
A friend offered her a cannabis gummy, and it helped mitigate the pain.
She later merged with another law firm and was given space to ask, “What do I want to do with my life and career? And how can I find balance and be less stressed out?”
She began thinking about access to holistic products like the cannabis gummy that helped her pain, as well as the THC beverages her alcohol-free friend exposed her to at a New Year’s Eve party.
“It just got me thinking about the access to these types of products, where you have to go to get them, and just how women, and adults in general, are excluded from that conversation.”
Soberish opened in August 2023. Saadat has plans to expand with another location by the end of the year.
