Welcome!
What’s Happening in Your Community
Vermont’s 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey shows that local youth are using substances too early, too often, and in harmful amounts. Early substance use increases the risk of addiction and health issues later in life. While youth typically don’t buy adult-use substances directly from a store, they may obtain them from others who do.
What Retailers Can Do
Exposure to in-store alcohol and tobacco marketing plays a role in early use. Substance misuse is a justice and health equity issue because it disproportionately affects vulnerable population groups, including youth. Each year the tobacco industry spends billions marketing directly to these groups.
Retailers play a critical role in preventing problematic substance use. By reducing in-store access to substances and creating healthier store environments, you help youth make healthy, substance-free choices as well as supporting adults in recovery.
Retail Strategies to Help Reduce Substance Misuse
- monitor product placement and keep signage to a minimum, avoid placing alcohol and tobacco near youth-oriented products or at eye level for children
- enforce age verification by training staff regularly to ensure consistent enforcement and displaying clear age verification signage like “We Card Because We Care”
- display cessation and recovery resource cards or posters in visible areas and ensure employees know how to direct customers to these resources
- limit price promotions: price stability reduces over-consumption and discourages youth from buying
- volunteer to stop selling flavored tobacco products or all tobacco products. Watch Video: Vermont Retailers Take Steps to End Tobacco’s Influence
How Healthy Lamoille Valley Can Help
Healthy Lamoille Valley (HLV) is a community coalition working to reduce youth substance misuse and promote substance-free, healthy environments. We can support retailers with resources and proven strategies. Contact Policy and Outreach Coordinator Alison Link at [email protected] to get started.
Community Planning Toolkit
HLV’s Community Planning Toolkit has a section for retailers of adult-use substances. See pages 22-23. The Community Planning Toolkit: Preventing Youth Substance Misuse and Building Protective Factors is a community planning guide focusing on reducing youth misuse of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and prescription drugs, while supporting efforts to help youth make healthy substance-free choices. There are many factors, including the individuals, family, organizations, businesses, and systems level policies that impact substance prevention. This Toolkit highlights stakeholders from across the community demonstrating the role we each have to play.
Free Store Consultation
HLV offers free consultations to help your store prevent substance misuse. We can:
- conduct a Youth Risk Audit of your store
- share resources like tobacco cessation classes, recovery friendly workplaces, and employee wellness initiatives including 3-4-50
- provide resource cards, posters, and stickers to place in visible areas like break rooms, bathrooms, or community boards to support both employees and customers in need of prevention, treatment, and recovery support
- help you replace substance-related marketing with healthy youth messaging
- designate substance, smoke and vape-free zones by posting clear signage to designate substance, smoke and vape-free areas surrounding your store, showing your commitment to creating a healthier environment
- educate your staff by regularly training employees to recognize the signs of underage purchasing and how to handle these situations effectively
Resources for Cannabis Retailers
HLV’s Cannabis Retailer Packet has cannabis retailer best practices, our Secure Your Stash campaign materials, safe disposal guidelines and poster, and other resources.
Resources for Alcohol, Tobacco, Nicotine Retailers
HLV’s Retailer Packet has resources for alcohol, tobacco, and nicotine retailers.
This Strategies and Tips for Retailers handout has insights from the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery for local retailers who want to help prevent youth access to alcohol and tobacco products while also reducing their financial losses.