Debra BorchardtApril 25, 2023
Sales on 4/20 were roughly twice the sales of a typical Thursday.
Flowhub Archives - Green Market Report
Debra BorchardtApril 25, 2023
StaffJanuary 6, 2023
The holiday season wasn’t filled with joy for cannabis retailers.
Joanne CachaperoJuly 7, 2022
Canna-tech companies were busy over the long 4th of July weekend, analyzing sales data from their various platforms for what was expected to be one of the biggest weeks of the year for cannabis retailers. In Canada, the national holiday Canada Day is celebrated on July 1, with vendors hoping for a holiday spike in sales.
Last week canna-tech company Surfside predicted that the Thursday before the 4th of July, 2022, might be the busiest day of the summer in the U.S. Their analysis also indicated that Fridays in the summer have a magic of their own and consistently saw increased sales compared to other days of the week and Fridays during other times of the year.
Pregaming the 4th
According to data analyzed by canna-tech companies Akerna Corp. and Flowhub, the Friday before the 4th of July turned out to be the big day for retail sales in the U.S.
Akerna (NASDAQ: KERN) said that according to their data, Friday, July 1, became the second highest-grossing sales day for 2022, with USD $106.7 million in sales. Data from Akerna’s MJ Analytics platform indicated that compared to $89.6 million in sales on the same day in 2021, this year showed a 19.1 percent sales increase. Monday, July 4th, had lower sales, which was attributed to stores being closed for the holiday.
Data from Flowhub’s platforms said sales on Friday, July 1, were up 15 percent compared to a regular Friday. The Saturday and Sunday before 4th of July saw a five percent increase each day, while the 4th of July saw a scant two percent increase. Flowhub added that 33 percent of sales on their platforms for the holiday weekend included a discount.
Delivery and distribution company Lantern said sales were strong before and throughout the weekend, with customers purchasing “flower, then edibles, and then vapes, (with) more customers than usual who bought drinks and pre-rolls.”
SpringBig, a company that develops customer loyalty program technology for cannabis vendors, said their platform saw a slight increase in overall sales, with $16.9 million this year, compared to $16.8 million for the same weekend last year. “The sales and loyalty redemptions numbers are almost identical between last year and this year,” they said.
Canadian Declines
Data company Headset saw declines in sales this year, specifically on Canada Day and July 4th.
In Canada, on July 1, Headset noted an average decline in sales of 23 percent across all provinces, with Ontario experiencing the biggest drop at 29 percent. Across product categories on Canada Day, there was a decline in sales for typically popular items including “vapor pens (-27%), flower (-25%), oil (-22%), and concentrates (-19%).” The company did not have comment on what may have triggered sales to trend lower or if sales prior to Canada Day were elevated.
In the U.S., July 4th saw a 6.6 percent drop in sales, compared to the four previous Mondays. Across product categories, Headset data indicated, “Not all products fared the same with Pre-Rolls actually seeing an increase in sales of +6% on July 4th while Topicals and Capsules (traditionally consumed in a more health and wellness setting) saw declines of -17% and -28% respectively.”
Dab Day Outlook
With medical and adult-use cannabis vendors now looking forward to July 10 – aka 7/10 or cannabis concentrate event Dab Day – it remains to be seen if the little-known cannabis holiday will grow in popularity. With looming global recession, worsening inflation and market mayhem in effect, consumers may be looking for bargains or more conservative with spending, though July typically sees higher overall sales than other months of the year.
In comparison, Headset shared insights for Dab Day 2021 with Green Market Report after last year’s holiday. Their data indicated that U.S. sales increased slightly, while 7/10 sales in Canada remained flat:
- Total Sales Growth: On Dab Day 2021 (7/10/21) total US cannabis sales slightly increased by 3.3% over an average of the previous four Saturdays. Canadian cannabis markets experienced more or less flat sales over the same time frame with a decrease in daily sales of -0.7%.
- Category Sales Growth: US cannabis customers showed up for ‘Dab Day’ 2021. Concentrate sales increased by 67.4%, and was the category with by far the highest sales growth on that day. Vapor pens, which we’ve seen also get a little lift from ‘Dab Day’ in the past, increased in sales by 7.1%. Unlike the US, ‘Dab Day’ was not as successful in Canada; concentrate sales increased by only 5.5%.
- Concentrate Segment Growth: In the US on Dab Day 2021, Rosin products had the strongest growth, increasing in sales by 213% over the previous four Saturdays. HTE (+153.4%) was the next most successful segment.
- Dab Day Discounts: Dab Day was a fantastic day for American concentrate fans to stock up on products this year. In the US the average discount on concentrates grew by a whopping 60%, rising from 16.0% during the previous four weeks to 25.6% on 7/10/2021.
Debra BorchardtApril 22, 2022
Several cannabis data providers have confirmed that this year’s April 20 holiday was the highest ever – in sales. Despite falling in the middle of the week, sales were determined to be significantly higher than an average Wednesday and the highest day of sales in the past four years. Perhaps because some of these states have more mature markets. shoppers were spending slightly less on average, but there were more people shopping.
Cannabis consumer product preferences are also shifting year over year as more customers are reaching for something different from traditional flower for 420. Edibles and concentrates are winning over consumers. The data providers say that this can be partially attributed to the growing maturity of both cannabis markets and the consumers within them. The East Coast is quickly becoming the hot spot of the cannabis industry as Massachusetts won the day. While online ordering continues to have fans even after the pandemic, cannabis consumers continue to love going to their brick & mortar store.
420 Sales
Headset reported that in the US, the average cannabis store experienced 148% higher sales on 4/20 than over the previous four Wednesdays. Average discounting increased by 72%.
In Canada, the average cannabis store saw sales grow by 65% and average discounts rise by a whopping 92%.
In both countries, Headset said that sales growth was driven primarily by increases in total transaction volume. In the US, the median cannabis store saw a 107% increase in transaction volume on 4/20 in comparison to the previous four weeks. In Canada transaction volume at the median store increased by 57%. However, in the US customers purchased more per transaction on 4/20, with the median store seeing a 19% increase in average basket size. In Canada, average basket size at the median store only increased by 3%.
As usual on holidays, Headset said that beverages were the top-performing products in both countries. On 4/20 sales of Beverages grew by 110% in Canada and by 176% in the US. Pre-Rolls also performed well in both markets with 74% growth in Canada and 150% growth in the US. In Canada, Edibles were the second-best performing product category on 4/20 with 83% sales growth. Concentrates took the silver medal in the US with 155% growth.
Flowhub’s data agreed with what Headset experienced. The company said that Edibles saw a major jump in popularity in just a year, climbing 5%. Flower was also less popular this 420, while concentrates had a slight jump year over year. “It’s clear that consumers are beginning to move away from traditional products like flower and are consuming more edibles and concentrates instead. There is also a slight decrease in accessories, clones, and seeds – potentially caused by a maturity in markets, people don’t need as many accessories if they’re regularly consuming.”
Flowhub also noted that online orders made up 3% of all transactions on 420 this year, the rest were in-store. Also, more than twice as many online orders were placed on 420 in 2022 vs. 420 in 2021.
Jane Technologies reported that stores using Jane in both 2021 & 2022 saw an 11% increase in online sales. Overall Jane had ~35% growth in GMV between 2021 & 2022. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 34% increase in edible sales. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 43% increase in vape sales. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 22% increase in flower sales. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 10% increase in extract sales.
Jane said that the average cart size on 4/20 increased 15% compared to the previous four Wednesdays and overall sales on 4/20 increased 160% compared to the previous four Wednesdays.
East Coast Wins
Flowhub reported that the East Coast was recording very high average revenues per location. Flowhub wrote that “This is likely due to how new the markets are and the lack of competition. There are also likely high numbers of people driving in from out of state to purchase products in these states whereas states like California and Colorado are more mature and accustomed to cannabis. Oklahoma’s very low average sales per location can be attributed to the massive number of licenses in the state. The competition is too high for locations to haul in the same revenues as lower licensed states.”
Top-selling states according to Flowhub were as follows:
● Massachusetts had the highest average revenue per location on 420 of all Flowhub markets. The state also had the highest average basket value ($130).
● Maryland had the second-highest average revenue per location on 420 of all Flowhub markets.
● Oklahoma had the lowest average revenue per location of all Flowhub markets.
● Some states with very high sales compared to an average Wednesday:
○ Michigan’s average sales were 175% higher than an average Wednesday.
○ Maryland’s average sales were 156% higher than an average Wednesday.
○ California’s sales were 134% higher than an average Wednesday.
Jane also reported that it experienced year-over-year growth for these states: Arizona, Michigan, California, Colorado, Illinois, and Florida.
i. Arizona
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 100% increase in sales YoY.
ii. Illinois
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 54% increase in sales YoY.
iii. Pennsylvania
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw an 18% increase in sales YoY.
iv. Florida
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 10% increase in sales YoY.
v. Michigan
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 remained flat in sales YoY.
vi. California
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 15% decrease in sales YoY.
vii. Colorado
1. Stores using Jane in both ‘21 & ‘22 saw a 20% decrease in sales YoY.
Ordering Trends
All of these dispensaries have to place orders for inventory and Leaflink has excellent data that shows how the companies were preparing for the big day. The company said that overall, sales trended upwards in the weeks prior to 4/20 in 2022. “Sales increased week-over-week, starting on 3/27 with 6.1% growth. The next week sales grew 6.9%, and an additional 2.7% in the final full week of sales prior to 4/20. Each week set a new high watermark for total sales in LeafLink, and the week of 4/10 is now the biggest week for sales in LeafLink history.”
When it came to specific state data, Leaflink noted that the vast majority of states saw sales grow in the 30 days before 4/20 with Colorado being the only exception. States included below (CO excluded) grew by varying percentages from 14.9% in Washington to 44.3% in Massachusetts over this time period. Colorado saw sales decrease by 2.3% in the 30 days prior to 4/20 compared to the previous period.
StaffFebruary 28, 2022Flowhub
Leandre Johns, COO at Flowhub
When did you formally enter the cannabis space?
-
2021 was my initial formal foray into the commercial cannabis space. Joining Flowhub as COO presented an exciting opportunity to be a part of a new and emerging industry.
What made you decide to work in the cannabis industry?
-
I was originally introduced to the cannabis industry by a friend. His venture partners with a university to teach marginalized students the ins and outs of the cannabis business — from seed to sale. This opportunity, coupled with the rapid advancement of technology in cannabis and the overall need for drug reform in our country, drove my decision to work in this space.
Do you feel there is more opportunity for Black Americans in the cannabis industry versus a more traditional industry? Yes or No?
-
No, I can’t say with absolute certainty that there is more opportunity in the cannabis industry than in a traditional industry. Given the fact that cannabis is still relatively young as an industry and it’s not legal across all states, the opportunities are still limited. Other established industries are more plentiful in the opportunities for Black Americans just through the sheer size and diversity of jobs requiring all levels of experience and skill. As the cannabis industry matures, more opportunities will open up.
What is the most successful social equity effort in your opinion?
-
It’s difficult to gauge one social equity program against another. In general, I am encouraged by the efforts made by all social equity programs. They are providing greater access to resources and thus a higher chance that marginalized communities can take part in owning in the success of this burgeoning industry. My only concern is that these programs may not go far enough. Just providing access to startup capital isn’t going to create the outcomes that we desire. These programs should incorporate some version of ongoing mentorship so that these businesses have a higher chance of thriving and competing against the larger corporate entities that are beginning to overtake this space. These cannabis corporations may ultimately push out smaller mom and pop players, thereby creating the non-diverse industry that we are trying to solve with these social equity programs.
-
I am proud of the work we are doing at Flowhub with our Social Equity Program. Since launching in June 2021, we’ve awarded nearly $3 million in free software to eligible recipients, providing them the point-of-sale solutions needed to run their business.
What is your personal goal for 2022?
-
This year will be momentous for me personally. I have just completed building a home where my family hopes to reside for some time. In addition, my SO and I are expecting our first child in July. I also wouldn’t mind shaving a few points off my golf handicap but that may be wishful thinking with everything else going on.
Debra BorchardtJanuary 6, 2022
Cannabis data providers have weighed in on the 2021 holiday sales for dispensaries with some surprising results. The data included the Thanksgiving holiday and then tracked sales through to the end of Christmas. Most agreed that sales increased in 2021 despite the resurgence of the new Covid fear with the variant Omicron. Consumers upped their cannabis shopping throughout the month of December causing Christmas week comparisons to be less strong than in the past. Still, sales remained elevated leading up to Christmas in both the Canadian and U.S. markets.
Increased Sales
Headset said that its data showed that Canada saw a rise in sales of more than 26% while the US saw an increase of 17% during the holiday month. Headset reported that in Canada, sales were up by 8.9% versus the previous four Fridays. In the US, sales increased by 6.0%. In Canada, Saskatchewan had the largest increase in sales, up 12% over the previous four Fridays. In the US, Michigan had the strongest showing with a 13.7% increase in total sales.
LeafLink is a wholesale cannabis platform and as such has visibility into orders that licensed retailers place from the brands they carry. In December, sales through LeafLink increased by 6.8% when compared to the average growth rate over the prior three months – signaling that the holiday season positively impacted sales this year.
Cannabis delivery company Lantern said it saw consumers start stocking up their holiday stashes earlier this season. Specifically the company noted that sales started to increase the second weekend of December with a +56% increase in daily order volume. “That trend continued through December, a +26% lift in order volume and +7% increase in AOV the week before Christmas, peaking the day before Christmas Eve with a +51% lift compared to our daily average. Lantern reported a +110% lift in order volume the three days before New Year’s Eve vs. three days prior, peaking three days before NYE with a +56% lift in daily order volume.
Springbig reported that starting from a week before Christmas and going into New Year’s Day, it saw (excluding Christmas day) $276 million in total sales with a daily average gross of $20.82mm. This was an 11% increase over the same period last year. “In terms of how big the increase was, as compared to normal days of the year, we see that last year had a roughly 50% increase over normal while this year we only saw 21%. This could be due to the major Covid outbreak that has occurred recently. Another hint that this may be the cause is the fact that last year Jan 1st saw $15 million in sales while this year only saw $13 million.”
Flower Power
While some of the ingestible categories got big lifts, flower continues to command the market. Leaflink said that flower was the most popular category, making up around 32% of sales through LeafLink in the month prior to the holidays. Cartridges were the second most popular, at around 24% market share. Leaflink said that both were relatively consistent with the previous month, showing that buyers did not significantly change their purchase habits into different categories for the holiday season. The most popular Flower subcategory in the month leading up to the holidays in 2021 was Packaged Flower at 15% of sales, and the second most popular was Bulk Flower at 14.7%.
Jushi (OTC: JUSHF) also reported that Flower remains the number one category leader in demand and interest from patients and consumers. “However, we saw an aggressive uptick trend in disposable and edible sales in 2021,” said the company.
Discreet products were also big winners. Perhaps consumers wanted to have their cannabis but not be obvious about it when visiting friends and relatives. Lantern said, “What’s interesting about our trending products in Boston for the holiday season, was that our most popular products were discreet and designed to share – predominantly edibles, drinkables, and pre-rolls (typically flower products are our best-sellers). Similarly in Detroit, pre-rolls were our most popular holiday product (party-ready for individual sharing and more discreet).”
Headset’s data seemed to agree. Their data from Canada showed that the categories that saw the largest sales increase on New Year’s Eve were: Tincture & Sublingual (+30%), Concentrates (+23%), and Beverages (+21%). In the US, the categories with the largest sales response were: Beverages (+18%), Flower (+8.5%), and Concentrates (+7.8%).
Jane Technologies noted that edibles online sales were up over 10% in December 2021 compared to the previous three months and topicals online sales were up over 9% in December 2021 compared to the previous three months. They noted that Airo Black Mamba Specialty Pod online sales were up over 290% in December 2021 compared to the previous three months and –Incredibles Cookies & Cream 100mg chocolate online sales were up over 200% in December 2021 compared to the previous three months
Christmas Coupons
With so many shoppers, it was a wonder why anyone would offer a discount, but then people love a bargain. Plus competition is heating up in some markets. Flowhub said that dispensaries were discounting for the holidays, but the discounts themselves weren’t huge.
Flowhub reported the following discount data:
- Typical Day = 18% of transactions include a discount
- Christmas Eve = 39% of transactions included a discount
- Christmas Day = 40% of transactions included a discount
- New Years Eve = 39% of transactions included a discount
- New Years Day = 38% of transactions included a discount
- Across the Christmas and New Years’ holidays, the average discount amount stayed consistent at $5.00 off their total amount.
Headset’s discount data found a modest increase in discounting on New Year’s Eve in both Canadian and US cannabis markets. Noting that tThe average discount in Canada on New Year’s Eve was 4.0%, up by about 10% over an average of the previous four Fridays(3.6%). The average discount in the US on New Year’s Eve was 21.1%, up by about 13% over the previous four Fridays (18.6%).
Cali Sober
After all that holiday drinking, many people look at January as a month to sober up and give their bodies a break from all that alcohol. Lantern said, “As we head into the new year, we’re seeing consumers really embrace “Dry January” with our record-best Monday, +29% lift in daily order volume.”
Julie AitchesonDecember 2, 2021
The numbers are in and it’s official—Green Wednesday 2021 was a big one for the cannabis industry, while Black Friday fizzled in comparison. Green Wednesday saw cannabis sales increase across the U.S. Black Friday did not have the sales growth seen in previous years, though some data (Flowhub) showed larger order values and bigger discounts than Green Wednesday. Data from market analytics and cannabis companies like Headset, LeafLink, Lantern, Glass House Brands, and others show common trends regarding most popular products and year-over-year sales numbers. Using this data, companies extrapolate some possible variables affecting this year’s numbers, including a decreased emphasis on Black Friday door-buster deals targeted towards packing stores with bargain-hungry shoppers, focusing instead on online sales spread out over the holiday season (Springbig).
Headset’s Green Wednesday 2021 data showed a 33% increase in total retail sales compared with the four previous Wednesdays, with a marked trend of customers taking advantage of promotions on offer to receive discounts on holiday shopping, with the average discount up 29 percent. This was in contrast to a slight decrease in sales (-4.6%) on Black Friday relative to the previous four Fridays, despite the fact that average Black Friday discounts increased by 56% from the previous four Fridays.
Flowhub’s data showed an average Green Wednesday discount of $9.57 (up from $8.94 in 2020) and an average Black Friday discount of $11.09. Notable in Flowhub’s findings was the conclusion that while Green Wednesday was a big sales day, Thanksgiving weekend as a whole had lower pre-tax sales than a typical Wednesday through Sunday. Jushi Holdings (OTC: JUSHF) didn’t seem to notice, however, experiencing its best online sales day in the company’s history on Green Wednesday 2021 with an 80% uptick in sales during Thanksgiving week and online ordering up 200% on Green Wednesday. Eaze saw a 135% increase in deliveries compared to a typical Wednesday in 2021, making it their second biggest day this year by both numbers of deliveries and sales after 04/20/21.
Edibles Most Popular For Green Wednesday
Headset’s data on category winners by sales numbers showed edibles leading the pack with 67% growth on Green Wednesday and 11% on Black Friday. Topicals and tinctures took second and third place while beverages saw a whopping 86% growth. Leaflink showed flower holding the top spot for most popular category in the month leading up to Green Wednesday making up 33% of sales with cartridges coming in second up 24.9% from the previous month. Jane Technologies saw its biggest category sales increases in edibles (94%), vapes (84%), and flower (73%) compared to the previous three Wednesdays, with chocolates and disposables leading subcategory sales by increases of 126% and 100% respectively. For Glass House Brands (OTC: GLASF), flower, carts, and edibles were the big winners.
LeafLink’s data measured the growth of sales (10.61%) during the month leading up to Green Wednesday compared to October, with the biggest sales increase (16%) coming during the week of November 14th over the previous week. The run-up to Green Wednesday broke records for cannabis company Lantern, with a 44% rise in average daily sales leading up to Green Wednesday, though there was no significant change to daily Average Order Value. As the cannabis economy continues to transform to meet a shifting retail environment and shopping behaviors adaptive to these uncertain times, market analysts and retailers will continue to keep an eye on Green Wednesdays and Black Fridays to come as annual bellwethers for the market.
StaffOctober 12, 2021
Cannabis retail point-of-sale company Flowhub, has raised $19 million with some help from Headline, Poseidon, and a personal investment from world-renowned rapper, entrepreneur, and entertainment mogul Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter. The company has so far raised to nearly $50 million and is currently valued at over $200 million.
“We are thrilled to announce this capital raise. Headline is an incredible Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm, Poseidon is a pioneer investor in the cannabis industry and Jay-Z is a cultural and creative global force no matter the industry he is involved in,” said Kyle Sherman, founder, and CEO of Flowhub. “I couldn’t think of a better group to be working with as we take this company to the next stage. This funding not only underscores the significant value that Flowhub provides to our customers, but also the maturation of the cannabis industry at large. We remain committed to developing innovative products that help our retail customers run better businesses.”
Flowhub said the additional money will speed up its expansion into emerging markets, develop its product line and grow its social equity program. Launched in June 2021, Flowhub’s social equity program invests in those who have been adversely impacted by the War on Drugs. Per the program, eligible social equity business owners receive Flowhub’s POS software discounted at $4.20 for up to three years, the mobile Stash and Greet apps, the View app, and free implementation. So far, Flowhub has awarded over $1 million worth of software products to eligible cannabis entrepreneurs via this program.
Flowhub processes more than $3 billion in cannabis sales annually and is trusted by over 1,000 dispensaries. Built specifically to serve the highly regulated cannabis industry, Flowhub helps dispensaries operate compliantly, effortlessly expand, and deliver exceptional guest experiences. By automating the compliance process that cannabis retailers have to deal with on a daily basis and helping dispensaries sell smarter, Flowhub is working to enable a future where cannabis is accessible to every adult on planet Earth.
Recently, Flowhub appointed Leandre Johns as Chief Operating Officer. The former Uber executive was brought in to help shape the business for the next stage of growth. The company also announced a recent integration by Weedmaps (NASDAQ: MAPS) to streamline online ordering for consumers and Flowhub-powered cannabis retailers.
Debra BorchardtSeptember 8, 2021
Cannabis consumers flocked to dispensaries on the Friday of this past Labor Day weekend resulting in the third-largest day for cannabis sales in 2021. Unfortunately, that was the only good news for cannabis retail. Overall, sales dropped in 2021 versus 2020 for the last weekend of summer. Analytics firms Headset and Flowhub both reported that sales dropped for the regions they cover. While LeafLink the B2B wholesale e-commerce marketplace company saw an early jump in orders for the holiday, orders seemed to taper off as the weekend got closer.
Headset
According to cannabis data and analytics company Headset, Labor Day weekend (Friday 9/3 through Monday 9/6) actually saw a slight decrease (-3.2%) in average daily sales in comparison to the previous four weekends. On a positive note, though on Friday 9/3/21 alone, we see a different story. Sales on September 3rd, 2021 were up 10.3% over the previous four Fridays and drove this day to be the third-largest day of total US cannabis sales so far this year. All data for the US is from the following markets: CA, CO, MI, NV, OR, PA, WA.
Beverages For The Win
Headset said that for the full holiday weekend, the only categories to see sales growth over the previous four weekends were Beverages (+8.4%) and Edibles (+4.2%). “When we look at only Friday, September 3rd instead, all categories saw positive growth with Edibles (+15.1%), Capsules (+13.3%), and Vapor Pens (+11.2%). The category with the lowest sales lift was Concentrate with +2.8% growth over the previous four Fridays.”
Coupon Clippers
Dispensaries must’ve had an inkling that sales might be down because there was a slight increase in discounting over the entire holiday weekend. Headset said that the average discount over Labor Day Weekend 2021 was 13.7%, up from 12.3% over the previous four weekends – a relative increase of 11.8%. While Friday, September 3rd was the highest sales day of the weekend, Labor Day itself (Monday 9/6) had the highest average discounts of 15.1%, up 27% over the previous four Mondays.
LeafLink
On the wholesale side of the business, it seems dispensaries were planning ahead for a busy holiday. LeafLink said that sales increased 4.33% during the month leading up to the 2021 Labor Day holiday versus a 2.39% increase across the same period in 2020. Leaflink also said that the most significant GMV (gross merchandise value) percentage increase came during the week of 8/15, increasing 4.5% over the previous. Sales then leveled off for the rest of the weeks leading up to Labor Day.
Leaflink outlined the category demand as follows for the holiday:
- Flower remained the most popular category in the month leading up to Labor Day, driving 36.33% of GMV compared to 35% of GMV in the month prior to Labor Day 2020 and 35.37% in the previous month.
- The second most popular product category leading up to Labor Day 2021 was Cartridges, which made up 22.29% of GMV (about a 1% increase over the previous month). This is a slight drop over 2020 when Cartridges made up 24% of GMV in the month before Labor Day.
- Flower saw significant growth during the week of 8/15, increasing 23% in GMV compared to the week before then grew another 9.9% in the following week. This could signify an increase in dispensaries stocking up on Flower in advance of Labor Day 2021.
- Packaged Flower was the most popular subcategory, making up 17.47% of total GMV in the month before Labor Day, with Bulk Flower coming in second at 16.29%.
The most popular products in the month leading up to Labor Day in 2021 were: ○ Slurricane Packaged Flower – MUV (FL)
○ Gelato Cake Packaged Flower – District Cannabis (MD)
○ Wedding Cake Packaged Flower – Pacific Stone (CA)
○ Blueberry Indica Gummies – MUV (FL)
○ Moon Rocks Concentrates – UBaked (MI)
The most popular Cartridges in the month leading up to Labor Day 2021 were: ○ Biscotti – Platinum Vape (MI)
○ Sour Jack – MUV (FL)
○ Double Bear Honey Cart – Terrapin (PA)
○ Pink Lemonade – MUV (FL)
○ Pie Driver – Platinum Vape (MI)
Flowhub
Flowhub provides point-of-sale, inventory, and other dispensary analytics. That company found that on average, Labor Day normally outperforms the typical Monday by 17-27%. Unfortunately, Flowhub’s data agreed with Headset as this year’s Labor Day 2021 was right on par with (actually slightly less than) a typical Monday. Flowhub said that there didn’t appear to be any holiday bumps in sales or transactions for Labor Day Monday and sales dropped by 9% versus the 2020 holiday.
Maybe the pandemic lockdowns of 2020 caused consumers to buy more last year? Labor Day’s Monday 2020 sales increased around 10% versus 2019. Just one year later as more people were able to get out and return to a less restrictive lifestyle, Labor Day weekend sales dropped 35% compared to 2020. On average, Labor Day weekend outperforms the typical (median) weekend by 15-21%. Flowhub said that Labor Day weekend 2021 sales were 27% less than sales on a typical summer weekend.
Debra BorchardtOctober 15, 2019
Cannabis tech company Flowhub has raised an oversubscribed $23 million Series A financing round led by e.ventures, Evolv Ventures — the venture fund backed by Kraft Heinz — and Poseidon, with contributions from investors 9Yards Capital, former NBA commissioner David Stern and Iqram Magdon-Ismail, the co-founder and former CEO of Venmo, among others.
Evolv Ventures’ goal is to invest in new tech companies innovating within the food industry. The firm was created to help Kraft Heinz stay on top of the food industry’s changing trends. However, it isn’t limited to food investing and also looks at new consumer models and consumer insights.
The Flowhub platform is used by dispensaries making it easier for them to run their operations. Some of the features include the Stash app, a mobile inventory management solution, the Cashier app for enhanced front-of-house point-of-sale capabilities with iPad/tablet compatibility, and Order Ahead with integration partner Dutchie for a streamlined in-store pickup process. Flowhub said it also added new technology integrations with LeafBuyer and Leafly as part of its commitment to creating a robust partner ecosystem that enables customers to build their own custom cannabis tool stack.
“What we are experiencing right now is an end to cannabis prohibition and Flowhub is on the front lines of this movement,” said Kyle Sherman, founder and CEO, Flowhub. “Every legal transaction completed with the Flowhub retail platform is a positive step forward, and we are committed to helping our customers build thriving cannabis businesses. With this investment, we will continue to automate the cannabis supply chain, retail and reporting processes and bring to market technology solutions that are not only shaping the cannabis retail business, but also driving forward the future of legalization and de-stigmatization.”
“We are excited to join Flowhub at such a crucial time in the company’s overall growth journey,” said Jett Fein, partner, e.ventures. “As the demand for legal cannabis products rises across the U.S., Flowhub is focused on using technology to advance the future of the cannabis industry and has built a cloud platform with a suite of applications that enables dispensaries to provide superior and tailored consumer retail experiences in this highly regulated industry.” According to Tech Crunch, the firm e.ventures is a 20-year-old, early-stage venture outfit that has raised $400 million in fresh capital across two new funds: a $225 million U.S.-focused fund that’s based in San Francisco, and a $175 million fund that’s focused on Europe and based in Berlin.
Flowhub has experienced tremendous growth over the last year, increasing revenue by 200 percent and doubling its customer base across 11 markets, which includes household brands like Cookies, Dr. Greenthumb’s, Green Dragon, Nectar and Starbuds. The company also added strategic roles to its executive team — including SaaS enterprise tech leader Dave Smith as CRO — grew its female leadership across key strategic business roles such as marketing, product management and finance and has already increased headcount by 50 percent in 2019. Flowhub also recently announced its new headquarters at the former Slack HQ near downtown Denver’s Union Station and three satellite offices to support continued expansion efforts.
“Cannabis is not an industry that you just jump right into,” said Emily Paxhia, managing director, Poseidon. “The compliance and regulation aspects make this a unique industry and Flowhub is one of the leading cannabis tech companies that is taking a meticulous and strategic approach. We saw the potential for Flowhub’s technology and mission early on and we’re thrilled to continue to support them in delivering the cannabis retail experience of the future.”
The $23 million of financing closed on this round brings the company’s total funding to $27 million. This marks the first cannabis tech investment from round leaders Evolv Ventures and e.ventures and is indicative of the increased appetite to bet big on a maturing market segment with an industry leader like Flowhub. With this injection of capital, the company will continue to invest in product innovation, hire top technical talent and expand its partner ecosystem with future technology integrations and collaborations through an open API approach.
Get the latest cannabis news delivered right to your inbox
Unpack the industry with the daily cannabis newsletter for business leaders.