Whether you’re the manager of a cannabis dispensary or maintain a marijuana brand, it’s important to take a look at upcoming cannabis market trends in order to shift your business’s focus so that you can prosper.
Cannabis Market Trends in 2019
As with any business, staying up to date with the latest market changes can have a positive impact on your company. Here are the latest trends of 2019 to look out for.
Cannabis Beverages
Edibles have long been a staple of cannabis consumption, but it’s only recently become an ingredient in beverages.
Whether it’s cannabis-based teas, shots of coffee or even powders that can be mixed with your favorite drinks, there’s a sharp rise in the number of cannabis beverages available on the market. Alcoholic drinks such as beer are also a popular choice for cannabis infusion.
Cannabis beverages are expected to see a meteoric rise in sales, going from just $30 million at the end of 2018 to a staggering $374 million by 2022. With the increased popularity of hemp-based CBD products that are mainly used in edibles, we expect both of these trends to rise together in 2019.
Ageing Consumers
Cannabis has long been associated with youth audiences but that doesn’t mean that your average consumer isn’t aging. While people in their 20s are considered the main audience for cannabis consumption, many older folks are still purchasing cannabis products and they’re often not the target of most advertisements, promotions, and products.
In fact, there are many older cannabis consumers that do so for health and medical reasons in addition to just unwinding and enjoying their day.
Many marijuana startups, dispensaries, and brands are targeting younger audiences, so it’s important to remember that there’s still a large audience of older consumers left out. With the median of consumers growing every month, there’s a developing trend that is slowly heading in the direction of targeting older consumers.
The Growth of CBD
CBD, the compound that is found in cannabis and hemp, has long been praised for their potential health benefits. Unlike regular cannabis, it’s not psychoactive and often comes from hemp instead. It’s also not smoked, inhaled or vaped.
It’s often used in oil form as part of edibles which are also a growing market trend. As consumer awareness starts to increase on the differences between CBD and regular cannabis, we can expect to see many consumers seeking out hemp-based CBD products instead.
Convenient Cannabis
While elaborate cannabis setups are commonly shared on sites like Instagram and Facebook, many people are switching away from the complex and expensive rigs in favor of convenience. This includes high-quality pre-rolls bought in packs much like cigarettes.
It includes delivery services that offer incredible convenience and bulk purchase possibilities and even improved availability for lesser-known strains of cannabis. More consumers will start to rely on delivery services both for the sake of convenience and privacy, so adapting to this trend is going to make a huge difference in the popularity and success of your brand.
Use these market trends to prepare your marijuana marketing to meet your customers’ changing tastes and capture the attention of new buyers.