Star-Spangled Surge: July Fourth Weed Sales Hit Record High

It may not be included in the next remix of the classic ad jingle “baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet,” but cannabis is increasingly cementing its place in American culture—most recently on the biggest flag-waving holiday of the year. Cannafans spent a record-setting $255.5 million on flower, vapes, THC-infused drinks and other products during the July 4th weekend, according to data from canna-tech firm Akerna. The real standout was the Friday before the Fourth, per Akerna, with $106.7 million in sales, a 19% leap from the same day in 2021. July 1 now ranks as the second-best sales day in 2022, trailing only April 20, the annual ganjapalooza that’s a combination of Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day for weed sales. The overall numbers continue to climb year after year, despite current inflationary hits to consumers’ pocketbooks. Even a looming recession may not stunt the momentum, per analysts. “As more markets legalize cannabis and more people gain access to the plant, we expect these year-over-year increases to continue,” James Ahrendt, business intelligence architect at Akerna, said in a statement. Stock up, party hardy Analysts and industry watchers point to several factors for the stellar July 1 numbers, including stocking-up behavior that’s now as typical at weed retail as in any commerce channel. For the weekend as a whole, people across the country traveled and socialized in numbers not seen since before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in 2020. The return of in-person events like live concerts, food festivals and street fairs likely boosted cannabis sales. Meantime, dispensaries are mirroring mainstream retail in launching sales and promotions around traditional holidays, not just canna-friendly ones. Focused on rebuilding foot traffic and appealing to both loyalists and newbies, dispensaries pumped up their in-store activities, product sampling and brand partnerships to capitalize on the Fourth. Sweet surge Sweet Flower, with six locations in the Los Angeles area, did an exclusive product drop with THC Design and created weekend grab bags, “which sold out in some stores by 10 a.m.” on Saturday, according to Tim Dodd, CEO and co-founder. Latching onto the current beverage boom, Sweet Flower hosted popups with Pamos and Artet, in addition to showcasing the new Mary Jones line and the Cann collaboration with pop star Tove Lo. The experiential marketing and special products helped boost the bottom line, which Dodd said was “39% above our 2021 sales for the same period and higher than this year’s 4/20.” Doubling down In keeping with double-digit projections released pre-holiday, Flowhub reported 13% sales growth July 1-4 compared to the average Friday through Monday period during the rest of 2022; 33% of those purchases included a discount. July 1st sales were 15% higher than an average Friday, per Flowhub. Ecommerce activity also increased, as some consumers have developed and maintained a digital habit across categories since lockdown. Cannabis websites got an 11% week-over-week bump on July 1, per data firm Surfside, and a 16% increase in unique users. Online shoppers started even earlier than their brick-and-mortar counterparts, boosting sales 18% on Thursday, June 30. Even with that double-digit jump, Friday the 1st won the weekend, showing an additional 13% pop in sales over June 30, per Surfside. Cannabis Has Grown Up. It’s Time to Ditch the Stoner Jokes