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WA pot sales decline for first time in the decade since legalization

This December marks a decade since Washington state became one of the first two states in the U.S. to legalize marijuana.

A look back at the cannabis industry’s growth in the Evergreen State shows the fledgling market has yet to mature, with sales declining after surging during the pandemic and the initial years of legalization.

After voters in Colorado and Washington approved ballot measures to legalize the recreational use and sale of small amounts of cannabis in 2012, the first retail cannabis stores opened in 2014.

Since then, sales have grown exponentially – from about $180 million in 2015 to over $1.3 billion as of July 2022. In the 2022 fiscal year, the state collected $509 million in excise revenue.

However, the cannabis industry’s growth slowed for the first time in the 2022 fiscal year compared to previous years. Retail sales recorded a 8% decline over 2021 — a drop of about $120 million in revenue.

“What you’re seeing as a ‘dip’ is really sales returning to normal growth as more people returned to in-person work,” said Brian Smith, spokesperson for the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board.

The contraction in Washington’s cannabis market is part of a national trend in declining sales recorded since July 2021, according to a recently released report from cannabis data firm Headset.

Headset’s study of legacy markets in California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington found that the frequency of marijuana purchases at stores and the amount of money people spend in stores have been on the decline since July 2021. [Read More @ The Seattle Times]

This Post Has One Comment
  1. The decline in over all sales could have been caused by lower prices alone, as opposed to less product sold, though that is also possible, if not likely, due to a burgeoning black market in legal states.

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