Klutch Cannabis Revives Cleveland’s Musical Landmark

In the heart of downtown Cleveland’s entertainment district, where neon
signs and live music pulse through the city’s veins, Klutch Cannabis has
opened what may be Ohio’s most culturally rich dispensary. The store sits
inside the historic Record Rendezvous building, a landmark as deeply
entwined with American rock and roll as the genre’s first guitar chord.

Cleveland knows how to hold history. It’s a city of grit, artistic genius,
and deep creative soul. And now, at 300 Prospect Avenue East, that legacy
finds new expression through Klutch’s flagship dispensary, a space that
feels less like retail and more like reverence.
Where rock and roll was born

To understand the dispensary’s design, one must understand the building’s
historical context. Record Rendezvous was much more than just a music
store. It was a cultural lightning rod. Under the vision of founder Leo
Mintz, young Clevelanders came together across racial and class divides to
indulge their common love of music in shared listening booths.

“Leo was an innovator, and his store was a place where Black and white
people came together and stood shoulder to shoulder listening to music
together,” said Pete Nischt, Klutch’s vice president of compliance and
communications. “He noticed that a certain genre of music was causing
patrons to literally ‘rock and roll’ as they listened.”
[image: Customer seating area and checkout counter inside Klutch Cannabis’
Cleveland dispensary with neon signage and merchandise display.]

Mintz coined the now-iconic phrase, helped launch legendary disc jockey Alan
Freed’s career, and planted the seed for the Moondog Coronation Ball —
generally acknowledged as the world’s first rock-and-roll concert. Although
the inaugural event at the Cleveland Arena in 1952 ended in chaos, rock and
roll was unstoppable.

Mintz, Freed, and local concert promoter Lew Platt “underestimated the
cultural impact,” Nischt said. “They decided to plan the ball. They brought
in some bands, printed tickets in the store, and sold them all the first
night. Then they went back to schedule a second night but forgot to change
the date when they printed the tickets.” With twice as many attendees as
the arena could hold, not everyone could get inside. Ticketholders “were
banging down the door to get in,” Nischt said. (In fact, contemporary
reports described the scene as a riot.) “The guys were caught off guard by
how popular the music really was and what they’d done together.”

Mintz owned Record Rendezvous from its founding in 1938 until it closed in
1987. When the Klutch team stepped into the crumbling remains of yesteryear
— long vacant and condemned more than once — they knew they wouldn’t be
just renovating a building. They would be restoring a legend.

“Retail is going through a hard time right now, but the cannabis industry
provides a unique opportunity where it’s still brick-and-mortar retail
dominant,” Nischt said. “And that’s what made a dispensary the perfect
thing for this building. We would have been excited about it even without
the history, but when you’re working with that kind of story, it’s not like
we were just going to sell marijuana. We’ve taken on something of greater
importance to the community: We are stewards of a historic asset. That was
the impetus for this entire project and its design process.”
A space that sings

The design journey wasn’t easy. The building was erected in 1905, and the
structure was decrepit when Klutch came across it. But thanks to historic
preservation tax credits and sheer determination, the team brought the
venerable edifice back to life — not as an exact replica, but a charming
remix.

Inside, the dispensary balances modern retail with mid-century nostalgia.
Floor-to-ceiling murals mimic the view from inside a 1950s record store.
Listening-room-style displays in the front windows feature curated
Cleveland-linked vinyl from modern indie students at Case Western
University to rare Iggy Pop and David Bowie recordings from the Agora in
1977.

“Instead of blacking out the windows, which would have violated historic
preservation rules, we recreated the original record displays from back in
the day, and we also tried to recreate a Mid-Century Modern listening
room,” Nischt said. “All of the records we have on display, we submitted
lengthy explanations of why we felt each one was important to include, and
they were all selected due to their connections to Cleveland and/or
northeast Ohio.”
[image: Close-up view of Klutch Cannabis album cover wall featuring Kid
Cudi and other iconic musicians.]Classic and contemporary record jackets
line the walls. (Photo: Klutch Cannabis)

Nothing about the design was left to chance. Even the empty product
displays are intentional, designed to be compliant while staying on theme.

“The city wanted us to restore the building as close to its original
aesthetic as possible, and that was on top of the [Division of] Cannabis
Control restrictions we already had to keep in mind,” Nischt said. “But our
North Star was paying homage to Record Rendezvous. Whenever we came across
a hurdle, we relied on that to guide us, to stay true to the vision.”

The result is a dispensary where the curious and connoisseurs alike are
greeted by guitars, original posters, Klutch-branded record sleeves, and a
deep sense of place. The energy is welcoming, open, and effortlessly cool.
Kiosks make the ordering experience seamless, while roaming budtenders help
customers explore the menu and find what they seek.

“I think if you’re a tourist coming to Cleveland and spending some time
downtown, this is a cool place to come and see just because of what
happened here years ago,” Nischt said.
[image: Preloader image]
[image: Klutch Cannabis check-in desk at the flagship Cleveland dispensary
with bold “Cleveland” lettering and a wall of vinyl records.]
[image: Custom Klutch Cannabis-branded record players spinning vinyl
records at the Downtown Cleveland dispensary.]
[image: Close-up view of Klutch Cannabis album cover wall featuring Kid
Cudi and other iconic musicians.]
[image: Exterior view of Klutch Cannabis’ flagship dispensary at 300
Prospect Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio.]
[image: Customer seating area and checkout counter inside Klutch Cannabis’
Cleveland dispensary with neon signage and merchandise display.]
[image: Wide-angle view of Klutch Cannabis retail floor featuring
interactive display islands and product showcases in Cleveland dispensary.]
[image: Colorful Record Rendezvous-inspired mural and seating area inside
Klutch Cannabis Cleveland flagship dispensary.]
[image: Historic Record Rendezvous entrance mosaic preserved at Klutch
Cannabis dispensary in Downtown Cleveland.]
[image: Close-up of geometric acoustic foam wall texture at Klutch Cannabis
Cleveland dispensary.]
[image: Framed Moondog Coronation Ball concert poster and phonograph record
packaging displayed inside Klutch Cannabis Cleveland dispensary.]
A dispensary worth the detour

While the façade may draw in curious pedestrians, the thoughtful, lived-in
vibe keeps them talking. This isn’t just a sleek showroom or trendy
wellness space. It’s a love letter to Cleveland history.

On any given day, a mix of regulars and visitors stream in: fans headed to
a concert, folks grabbing dinner on East 4th Street, sports fans fresh from
a Guardians game. They might not even know what the building used to be
until they step inside.

“When people walk in, they’re met with a full-floor mural that makes it
feel like you’re standing inside a record store window looking out at 1950s
Cleveland,” Nischt said. “There are artifacts hanging everywhere — Moondog
Ball tickets, vintage posters, old guitars — and upstairs, even our offices
have Klutch-branded record sleeves on the walls. Wherever we could lean
into the theme, we did.”

So far, reactions from both customers and culture buffs have been
overwhelmingly positive.

“We’ve had people from other cannabis companies stop in and tell us it’s
one of the nicest stores they’ve seen,” Nischt said. “And we’re lucky. It’s
a dense neighborhood, with more foot traffic than most folks expect. People
come in before concerts or after grabbing dinner. It’s really special to be
able to share the space with so many people.”
More than a storefront

The Cleveland location is just one note in Klutch’s expanding symphony.
With Ohio’s cannabis program still in flux and operating under a patchwork
of medical and partial adult-use rules, retail buildouts aren’t simple.

“Our state’s program is in a transition period, but Klutch always does best
when we focus on ourselves,” Nischt said. “We are taking this time to build
out infrastructure, launch new brands and products, and expand our fleet of
retail licenses. This month we’ll be opening a new store near MGM
Northfield Park, and more stores are on the way. We don’t like to rest on
our laurels.”

Still, no matter how many dispensaries Klutch opens, the Cleveland flagship
likely will remain the company’s soul. What started as a tribute to the
city’s role in shaping American music is now playing a role in shaping
cannabis culture. At a time when retail struggles to reinvent itself,
Klutch proves brick-and-mortar can still feel magical.