Alberta a leader in Christmas cannabis gifting, survey says
Legal pot is stuffing more Yuletide stockings in Alberta than most other provinces, says an industry survey.
In Canada’s first legalized cannabis Christmas, 12 per cent of adults in Alberta will be giving pot as a gift this month, says an online poll conducted for marketing outfit Lift & Co. that canvassed 1,512 adults across the country on Dec. 5.
The results were similar for Manitoba, which, along with Alberta, leads the country in the number of cannabis retail stores, with 16 and 65 locations licensed respectively.
Quebecers, at eight per cent, are the least likely to offer a pot present Dec. 25.
Twenty per cent of Millennials — those aged 18 to 34 — said they ’d be purchasing a marijuana gift, by far the most likely demographic to do so, said the poll.
Those results might also be a reflection of Alberta having the most medical marijuana patients per capita in the country, said Matei Olaru of Lift & Co.
That retail concept has taken off as a secret Santa gift, said Karen Berry, owner of the Beltline Cannabis Calgary store.
Driving it is legalization’s freshness and the curiosity over it, she said.
“It’s novel and interesting for people,” said Berry.
But Christmas gift bags to carry the Yuletide stash have yet to find a customer uptake, she said.
What has proven popular in the run-up to Dec. 25, she said, could be a function of Calgary ’s slumping energy-based economy.
“We’re seeing a gravitation to the value brands, people are absolutely interested in the affordable sourcing,” she said. “Plain packaging is flying out the door.”
But she said gaps in cannabis supply that limit selection are cutting into what could be a merrier Christmas for retailers. Partly as a result of that, Berry said the store cut back its operating time by three hours a day.
The Lift & Co. survey states men are twice as likely as women to make those under-the-tree purchases.
But the owner of Bongs and Such Plus on Macleod Trail said his staff have seen more gender equality in their customer numbers.
“There’s a lot of wives coming in for their husbands,” said Nick, who didn’t want to give his last name.
“There’s going to be a lot of gifting overall, guaranteed.”
Those gifts run the gamut of strains, from sativa to indica to hybrids, he said. And paraphernalia is booming, which is more typical, said Nick.
“Christmas is always a big time for that, it’s the gift that keeps on giving,” he said.
According to Statistics Canada, Alberta has the second-highest cannabis consumption among the provinces, behind only Nova Scotia.
Legalization last October came just in time for a lucrative holiday season, said Amy Sadler of Queen of Bud on 10th Avenue S.W.
“It couldn’t have been better, we’re getting the kinks worked out now,” said Sadler.
She said gift boxes mixing pot with paraphernalia are a big hit with shoppers.
“We give bottles of wine for a gift, now people can give bud instead,” said Sadler.
But a group of Alberta pot retailers say the biggest Christmas present for them would be for the province to lift a moratorium on new operating licences.
Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis suspended issuing the permits indefinitely, citing supply shortages stemming from licensed producers.
“A licence freeze doesn’t just stop stores from opening, it prevents entrepreneurs from building out their stores, getting the necessary financing and preparing for the stabilization of supply,” Dave Martyn, president of Starbuds Canada, said in a letter produced by the Alberta Cannabis Collective.
“This freeze stalls job growth and causes retailers to reconsider Alberta as part of their strategy.”
The group says causes of the shortage should be identified and solutions enacted to break the logjam as soon as possible.
A spokeswoman for AGLC said there’s no indication the moratorium will be lifted any time soon.
The locations of 20 licensed retail outlets in Calgary, based on information from AGLC (some may not be open for business yet):