Eight Marijuana Leaders Discuss Emerging Trends In The Market Going Forward: 2020

8 Marijuana Leaders Discuss Emerging Patterns in the Industry

I have the excellent honor of experimenting with many items and going to lots of dispensaries and cultivation websites, and can find emerging trends, however wanted to see what some of the leaders in the market are thinking, as well. So, I asked industry consultant Andrew DeAngelo, Peak Extracts’ Katie Stem, WAFBA’s Morris Beegle, Aster Farms’ Sam Ludwig, and Weed Grub’s Mike Glazer & Mary Jane Gibson, AlpinStash’s Danny Murr-Sloat, and performer Laganja Estranja to share their insights with me.

Here’s what they needed to state …

Warren Bobrow=WB: What trends do you see emerging in marijuana?

Morris: It’s going to be a wild year for the marijuana industry, all markets for that matter with the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, however I see benefits for the hemp and CBD markets.

Sam Ludwig: We see a movement towards sustainable brands.

We are already seeing an increased need for sustainable marijuana. This message is resonating with consumers and we expect the pattern to continue. Aster Farms is vertically integrated, growing our own marijuana, so we can supply outright openness to our consumers and control quality from seed to sale. This is particularly essential because of the current vape scare and with many brand names sourcing all of their flowers. Consumers are getting smarter and starting to understand marijuana is about more than simply THC and CBD. Other lower recognized cannabinoids, such as CBN and CBG, can help with things like sleep, relaxation and swelling. In a market that has been mainly concentrated on THC potency, we believe a shift is coming. Full spectrum, sungrown cannabis, grown in live soil is the best method to reveal the plants complete cannabinoid profile. That’s why we let nature do the work at Aster Farms.

The marijuana market will continue to be strangled by taxes and policies, and by the federal government’s failure to legalize it. On the flip side, there will continue to be fantastic individuals at organizations like Root & Rebound and Last Prisoners Project working hard every day to change things for people impacted by the racist War on Drugs.

Katie: There will be more mainstream CBD business, and combination of the market to include more vertically incorporated multi-state operators that can endure market volatility. Little marijuana companies, such as ours, have actually shown resistant in times of crisis since of our little pool of workers, making layoffs unnecessary as we weather the storm of a global pandemic. Remaining in the market for numerous years has also allowed us to optimize production efficiencies and maintain a variety of months of item in stock, allowing us to pause normal production in order to pursue expansion goals. As the industry grows it will be needed to take benefit of economies of scale and automation in manufacturing. In addition, a primary objective ought to be to consolidate administrative tasks between multi-state operators in order to eliminate redundancy, and likewise decrease the variety of jobs carried out by each person in a small/growing company. Between automation and pooling of administrative resources, we have approximated a minimum of a 40%reduction in necessary personnel. Having a multi-state presence will likewise permit more resilience as the market and regulative environment shifts in individual states. For instance, a more recognized market such as Oregon could buffer one like Michigan, where licensing and supply is still extremely uncertain. In the in 2015, although there are countless brand-new CBD start-ups, there are some clear front runners that will develop themselves as leading performers in the market. It will be difficult to take on recognized CPG brand names that have currently taken rack space in the supplements, food or charm sectors; however, I think there will be a place for those who can establish their expertise with cannabis/hemp as a differentiator.

Laganga: I think the greatest trend we saw come out of the marijuana industry last year was the creation of LGBTQAI Pride Month products. While it was great to see a lot assistance amongst the community, I question the authenticity. It’s my hope for this year that instead of positioning rainbow stickers over existing items, real idea and effort are put into the development. For example, my collaboration last year with Fruit Slabs not just expanded the brand’s flavor profiles, but it likewise was used year around. This is due to the fact that both Fruit Slabs and I think you must be #ProudAF always, not just throughout Pride Month.

Danny: An increasing trend that we are seeing is an increased need for craft/connoisseur items. As marijuana, along with the knowledge of what craft cannabis means, becomes more available, we have actually seen a growing class of informed consumers.

Andrew: Delivery, drive through, curbside pick-up transactions– governments ought to support and motivate this behavior. Legalization efforts will be stalled in the brief term by coronavirus, however may get momentum in the medium term as tax incomes plummet– it’s difficult to object to a marijuana dispensary in your community when there’s no cash to fund the school within it.