Booming cannabis market to the north hints at state’s future
As state legislators rolled together the final pieces of Connecticut’s marijuana legalization law in June, a quartet of vendors had registered 10,000 cannabis brands for medicinal purposes covering everything from joints to brownies. And there are perhaps 10 times as many to come for recreational use, if the Massachusetts market is any indication.
Marijuana possession and recreational ingestion became legal this month in Connecticut for those age 21 and older. The Lamont administration has set up a website at Portal.ct.gov/cannabis for updates on regulations for retail sales and anticipated timelines.
Prior to passage of the recreational marijuana law, Arcview/BDS Analytics had projected Connecticut sales to hit $355 million by 2025.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection is awaiting guidance from a newly formed Social Equity Council created under the state law to ensure businesses in lower income areas have an equal shot of landing licenses to sell cannabis products.
If Massachusetts is any indication, marijuana could become a boom market in Connecticut. The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission cites survey results that suggest 14 percent of adults in the state now use marijuana nearly daily.
At last report, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission listed more than 120,000 discrete products in an online catalog. By comparison, the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection lists less than 90,000 alcohol brands in its registry.
The Incredibles S’mores Bar infused with THC and CBD is sold today in a handful of Massachusetts stores, but perhaps destined soon for Connecticut as well. Grease Monkey Pre-roll cigarettes can be had 30 minutes north of Hartford at a dispensary in Springfield, Mass., and others statewide. Cannabis headbands are sold in Bay State stores.
Both Connecticut and Massachusetts passed laws in 2012 authorizing medical use of marijuana, with Massachusetts legalizing recreational use in 2016. Massachusetts only put its full product catalog online in April, showcasing the immense diversity of options for recreational and medical marijuana users.
Advanced Grow Labs leads the Connecticut market today offering more than 3,500 brands for medical cannabis, both distinct products and some differentiated according to their dosage and packaging specifics. Curaleaf and Theraplant are next with roughly 2,500 each, and CTPharma having about 1,900 brand registrations.
Curaleaf tops all companies for U.S. revenue, according to market analysis firm Capital IQ, at $635 million in 2020 and projected to double this year, with the parent company of Advanced Grow Labs a distant second. The parent company of Advanced Grow Labs was second, followed by Trulieve which lists one dispensary to date in Connecticut: The Healing Corner in Bristol.
Watertown-based Theraplant plans to go public by merging with a “blank check” company in New York that has already registered for an initial public offering of stock, amassing $150 million in cash to fund the acquisition of Theraplant and three other companies. Theraplant sales totaled $28.4 million last year, according to acquirer Greenrose, with projected revenue of $39.3 million this year.