The Heritage Club Dispensary in Charlestown MA

Welcome aboard The Heritage Club

Some dispensaries sell cannabis. The Heritage Club Dispensary in Charlestown MA sells you a ticket. At this Charlestown shop, budtenders are “flight attendants,” shoppers are passengers, and the loyalty program is called Flight Club, where you earn miles instead of points. The shop at 116R Cambridge Street sits just off Sullivan Square, a short hop from I-93 and the Orange Line, and its directions end with a cheerful tip: “look for the stone lions!”

Behind the playful theme is a serious first. The Heritage Club calls itself “the first Black woman-owned dispensary in Boston,” and its founder grew up right here in the city. If you live in Charlestown, work near Assembly Row, or are heading into town for a game at TD Garden, here is everything you need to know before takeoff.

Open since August 2022

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission lists 116 Cambridge Street, Boston, as an active, licensed adult-use cannabis retailer, open since August 29, 2022. Its opening drew coverage from CBS Boston and the Boston Business Journal that September.

Meet the founder

The Heritage Club was founded by Nike John, a Boston native and the daughter of a first-generation immigrant. The Boston Business Journal reported that she grew up in Dorchester, studied pre-med at George Washington University, then came home to earn a finance degree at Northeastern University with a minor in psychology. After college she started her own real estate brokerage.

Cannabis was not her idea at first. It was her mother’s. When her mother suggested the business, John’s first reply, as she told the Boston Business Journal, was “Mom, I don’t smoke weed.” Learning how the war on drugs affected Black and brown communities changed her mind, and she decided to build something that could change the industry through education, diversity and quality products.

Her approach to choosing a path was practical. “My idea was that if I could understand money and people, I didn’t have to know what I wanted to do,” she told the Business Journal. At 30, she became the first Black woman, and the youngest person, to open a cannabis dispensary in Boston.

A long road to opening day

Getting the doors open took grit. John told CBS Boston, “I was rejected my first time around.” Local reporting in the Charlestown Bridge followed the plan through Boston Cannabis Board hearings in 2020 and 2021, including a city-funded traffic study of the streets around the site. That study found the shop would add very little traffic compared with other uses, such as a coffee shop or a take-out restaurant.

CBS Boston reported that the path ran from a host community agreement with the city, to state applications with the Cannabis Control Commission, to a provisional license, and that the final step to full licensure took about a year. Through it all, the costs of holding the lease ran past $150,000, which John deferred and worked out with a supportive landlord.

Her advice for other applicants still in the process was simple: “So, don’t give up on finding that if you’re in the process.”

The shop sits in the part of Charlestown known as the Lost Village, set back from Cambridge Street near Roland Street, with parking beside the building. The Bridge described it as tucked behind the Tavern at the End of the World.

A shop built to welcome you

From the start, The Heritage Club was designed to teach as well as sell. CBS Boston reported that John wanted people to feel comfortable asking questions, and her favorite moment from opening week says it all. “The absolute best part of our opening was on day two,” she said, when a first-time visitor told her the shop felt welcoming.

The store’s own About page lists its core values as “education, care, honesty, openness, and transparency.” Its mission is to offer adults of every generation “a life full of relief, relaxation, creativity, and fun,” and to change the conversation around cannabis by dispelling myths, reducing stigma and promoting responsible use.

Representation matters on the shelves too. When the shop opened, John planned to display and promote mission-driven, diversely owned brands, including women-owned and Black-owned businesses, as at least 30 percent of its lineup, according to CBS Boston. In her own words to CBS: “I wanted to show that Black women can run a business and cannabis as well as anybody else.”

Your flight attendants

At The Heritage Club, the people behind the counter are called flight attendants, and their job is to guide your trip. The shop describes them as knowledgeable budtenders, and the whole space is set up so that new shoppers and longtime regulars alike can ask anything. First flight? Tell your attendant. That is exactly what they are there for.

What’s on the menu

The Heritage Club stocks Massachusetts-grown products across the core categories:

Flower
Pre-rolls
Vaporizers
Edibles
Concentrates
Tinctures
Topicals
Accessories and apparel

The shop also runs bundles and specials, and it carries rolling supplies and apparel. The menu changes often, so browse the online shop before you go.

Ordering ahead

Want to skip the browsing and get straight to boarding? The Heritage Club’s FAQ explains how pickup works:

Order online. Phone orders are not taken.
Pick a window. Choose a one-hour pickup window within the next 24 hours, during store hours.
Pay your way. Pay ahead through AeroPay, which links to your bank account, or pay with cash at pickup.

Each location has its own cart on the website, so make sure you are shopping The Heritage Club’s Charlestown store.

Join Flight Club and earn miles

Flight Club is the loyalty program, and it leans all the way into the theme. Sign up online or by text, and you earn 5 miles for every $1 you spend, plus 10 bonus miles just for joining. Happy Hour visits earn bonus miles, and there are birthday rewards too.

Miles add up to three reward classes:

Economy Class. 375 miles, for accessories and small extras.
Business Class. 600 miles, for bigger accessories, apparel and select deals.
First Class. 1,500 miles, for the best rewards on the list.

Members also get subscriber-only specials, first access to new products and invitations to events. Rewards are offered while supplies last.

Giving back to Charlestown

The Heritage Club’s tagline is “Where We’re From is Where We Give Back,” and the shop says it means it. According to its About page, it donates a portion of its revenue to charity, supports local organizations, runs service projects and fundraisers, works with city leaders, hires Boston residents and uses locally sourced materials. It also says it supports social equity initiatives and gives back to the Charlestown community.

Tips from The Heritage Club blog

The shop’s blog has some handy reading for new and returning shoppers.

New to flower? In its beginner’s guide to cannabis flower, The Heritage Club points out that Massachusetts dispensary flower is lab tested, with “THC percentages, terpene profiles, and strain details clearly listed” on the label. It explains that terpenes shape aroma and flavor, and that two strains with similar THC numbers can feel different. Its advice is to “start with a small amount and gradually adjust based on comfort level,” and to give smoked or vaporized flower a few minutes before deciding whether to have more.

Where can you actually enjoy it? A second post on enjoying cannabis responsibly in Boston is a good reminder of the rules. Not on sidewalks, streets, parks, public transit or federal property, and not in any vehicle, whether you are driving or riding along. Home is the safe bet. Hotels, short-term rentals and apartments are only an option with permission from the owner, management or landlord. And always plan your ride, whether that is a rideshare, the T or a sober driver.

Plan your visit

Address. 116R Cambridge Street, Boston (Charlestown), MA 02129, near Sullivan Square. Look for the stone lions.

Hours. Monday through Wednesday, 10:30am to 9pm. Thursday and Friday, 10am to 11pm. Saturday, 9am to 11pm. Sunday, 9am to 9pm.

Phone. (617) 440-2762.

Parking. A dedicated on-site lot sits beside the shop, with public parking a short walk away. Cyclists will find bike parking out front and several Blue Bikes stations nearby.

Transit. Sullivan Square station, on the Orange Line with several bus routes, is close by.

Paying. Cash, gift cards and AeroPay. There is an ATM on site. Credit cards are not accepted.

ID. You must be 21 or older with a valid U.S. government-issued photo ID, such as a U.S. driver’s license (including U.S. territories), a U.S. ID card, a military ID or a passport. Foreign licenses, student IDs, temporary paper IDs and expired IDs are not accepted.

Massachusetts cannabis basics

Here are the state rules from the Cannabis Control Commission:

Age. 21 or older, with a government-issued ID for every retail purchase.
Carrying. Up to two ounces in public.
At home. Up to 10 ounces, and anything over two ounces must be locked up.
Where to use it. Not in public places and not on federal land.
In the car. No open containers in the passenger area. Use a closed container in the trunk or a locked glove compartment, and never drive under the influence.
State lines. It is illegal to take cannabis out of Massachusetts, and it cannot be mailed.

Your first visit, step by step

Check the menu online. Order ahead for pickup, or just come in and browse.
Find the stone lions. Turn onto Stark Street off Cambridge Street and the shop is on your left.
Bring the right ID. A valid U.S. government-issued photo ID showing you are 21 or older.
Ask your flight attendant. Say what you are looking for and how experienced you are.
Join Flight Club. Your first 10 bonus miles are waiting.

Make a day of it in Charlestown

Charlestown is the oldest part of modern Boston. It was founded in 1628, settled on July 4, 1629, and served as the first capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It stayed its own town, and later its own city, until Boston annexed it on January 5, 1874.

History is everywhere here. The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on the peninsula on June 17, 1775, with much of the fighting on Breed’s Hill. The Bunker Hill Monument, built between 1827 and 1843, marks the battle, and it is also where the Freedom Trail ends. Down by the water, the Charlestown Navy Yard opened in 1800 and closed in 1974. It is now part of Boston National Historical Park and home to USS Constitution, launched in 1797 and the oldest commissioned vessel in the U.S. Navy.

Hungry after the climb? The Warren Tavern dates to 1780, and City Square and Thompson Square are among the neighborhood’s historic areas. Sullivan Square, right by The Heritage Club, sits on the old Charlestown Neck, the narrow strip of land that once joined the peninsula to the mainland before landfill erased it. The Orange Line serves the neighborhood at Sullivan Square and Community College stations, so a cannabis stop, a monument climb and a ship tour can all fit in one easy afternoon.

Why The Heritage Club is worth the stop

A founder who made Boston history, a flight theme that makes shopping fun, attendants who want your questions, a loyalty program that pays out in miles and a parking lot right by the door: The Heritage Club turns a quick errand into a trip worth taking. Find the stone lions on Stark Street, and enjoy the flight.

Cannabis is for adults 21 and over. Please consume responsibly.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

Where is The Heritage Club in Charlestown?

The Heritage Club is at 116R Cambridge Street, Boston, MA 02129, near Sullivan Square in Charlestown. Turn onto Stark Street off Cambridge Street and look for the stone lions. Call (617) 440-2762 or use the Get directions button on this page.

What are The Heritage Club's hours?

The shop is open Monday through Wednesday from 10:30am to 9pm, Thursday and Friday from 10am to 11pm, Saturday from 9am to 11pm and Sunday from 9am to 9pm. Hours can change around holidays, so check the website before a late visit.

Is there parking at The Heritage Club?

Yes. There is a dedicated on-site lot beside the shop, plus public parking a short walk away. If you are taking the T, Sullivan Square station on the Orange Line is close by, and there is bike parking out front.

How does Flight Club work?

Flight Club is The Heritage Club’s loyalty program. You earn 5 miles for every $1 spent, plus 10 bonus miles when you sign up, and you can redeem miles at the Economy, Business and First Class levels. Members also get subscriber-only specials and event invitations.

What payment and ID does The Heritage Club accept?

The shop takes cash, gift cards and AeroPay, and it has an ATM on site, but credit cards are not accepted. Bring a valid U.S. government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, military ID or passport, showing you are 21 or older.