Retail

Amid a significant and ongoing decline in consumer cannabis prices, Massachusetts this week witnessed the first closure of an adult-use dispensary since the state’s legal cannabis market launched in 2018.

Cherokee medical cannabis company Qualla Enterprises LLC will receive $63 million to increase staffing and build new facilities following a recent Tribal Council vote.

Rhode Island cannabis dispensaries sold about $1.6 million worth of combined medical and adult-use cannabis during the state’s first week of regulated recreational sales.

Connecticut regulators said three of the state’s four medical cannabis producers have finished converting to a hybrid adult-use license and that sales should launch by early next year.

Thieves made off with boxes of fake gummies and display packaging during a botched dispensary burglary last week in Portland, Maine.

New York officials have awarded the state’s first adult-use cannabis licenses, prioritizing individuals who were disproportionately affected by the damages of prohibition.

The first two social equity cannabis retailers in Chicago have opened for business in the last week.

New Mexico broke another adult-use cannabis sales record in October, topping out at $25 million.

New York officials have released the state’s regulations for adult-use cannabis sales by licensed dispensaries.

Green Thumb Industries has partnered with Circle K stores to launch medical cannabis dispensaries adjacent to its convenience stores in Florida.

Uber Eats has begun to deliver cannabis from licensed retailers in Toronto through a partnership with Leafly.

New York Office of Cannabis Management Director Chris Alexander said some of the state’s adult-use cannabis dispensaries will be open before the end of the year. 

Nevada adult-use cannabis sales reached $965 million during the fiscal year 2022.

The Amsterdam council is expected to vote against banning tourists from the city’s cannabis-serving coffee shops.

Adult-use cannabis sales launched in Vermont over the weekend; at least 70 Vermont municipalities have opted to allow retail cannabis sales.

Canopy Growth Corporation announced it will divest itself of its Canadian retail cannabis operations as it takes steps to continued growth as a consumer packaged goods company. 

New York received more than 900 applications for its first round of retail adult-use cannabis dispensary licenses, of which there are 150 available. 

If Missouri voters approve legalization this November, the state’s adult-use cannabis industry could generate between $250 million and $300 million in sales during its first few years.

Vermont regulators issued the state’s first retail licenses for adult-use cannabis shops this week ahead of an October 1 deadline.

A group of New York state lawmakers sent a letter last week urging New York City Mayor Eric Adams to “move swiftly” in clamping down on illegal cannabis sales.

A federal proposal would give small-scale cannabis companies the ability to operate on a direct-to-consumer model to help the smaller operations compete with large, corporate entities once cannabis is finally legalized nationwide.

Illinois has topped more than $1 billion in 2022 cannabis sales by the end of August which represents a 16% year-over-year increase from the previous year.

The union worker’s strike over wages in British Columbia has resulted in about 500 job losses and the closure of 50 cannabis retail locations.