Every budtender hears this sentence at least three times a day.
Sometimes it’s said confidently. Sometimes it’s said like someone ordering a secret menu item.
But the words are always the same:
"Just give me the strongest thing you’ve got."
Welcome to the world of The Potency Hunter.
This customer has one mission and one mission only: the highest THC number in the building.
They step up to the counter like a fantasy football manager reviewing player stats.
22%? Too weak.
25%? Getting warmer.
31%? Now we’re in the championship bracket.
You can almost see their eyes light up when they spot the highest number on the board like it’s the winning lottery ticket.
Now here’s the funny part.
Budtenders don’t hate this interaction. In fact, most of us smile when it happens because it gives us a chance to gently introduce one of cannabis’s biggest plot twists:
THC isn’t the whole story.
It’s definitely an important part of the experience. But cannabis chemistry is a little more complicated than a scoreboard.
Sometimes the strain with the biggest THC number hits like a freight train.
Sometimes the strain with slightly lower THC—but richer terpenes—creates a far more enjoyable experience.
This is usually the moment when a budtender leans forward and asks a question that changes the entire conversation:
"What are you hoping to feel?"
Relaxed? Creative? Sleepy? Less pain?
Because once that question enters the chat, something magical happens.
The Potency Hunter starts to slow down.
Suddenly we’re talking about flavor, aroma, terpenes, and effects. Words like limonene and myrcene start making their debut. The customer who came in looking for the highest number is now exploring cannabis like a sommelier exploring wine.
Inside places like Vertical Cannabis, those moments happen every day.
And honestly, they’re some of the most fun conversations we get to have.
Because sometimes the person who walked in saying,
"Give me the strongest thing you’ve got,"
walks out saying something very different.
"That was exactly what I was looking for."
And that’s when the budtender knows the mission was accomplished.
Not by chasing the biggest number.
But by helping someone find the right experience.