A New Sales Record Isn’t The Only Milestone Colorado’s Cannabis Industry Saw In 2020

Like so many things about 2020, cannabis sales in Colorado were outrageous; people spent more than $2 billion on products. That’s more money than they ever have before.

That total continues the industry’s upward trajectory and breaks the previous record set just the year before in 2019.

“We definitely saw a huge uptick in sales in March when… we really had all the public health orders go into effect,” said Brooks Lustig, co-founder of Seed & Smith, a Denver-based marijuana cultivator, concentrate manufacturer and dispensary.

Before the pandemic, Lustig’s company offered behind-the-scenes tours like a brewery but for cannabis, which meant most of their customers were tourists. When the pandemic forced people to stop traveling, he saw their absence made up by locals shopping at the dispensary.

The boost in spending on cannabis, Lustig thinks, was a result of people being stuck at home and eager to relieve stress and anxiety.

“They wanted to try something new or different,” he said. “They were interested in getting a little bit of a buzz or whatever it may be.”

The increased sales weren’t just in the recreational sector. Medical marijuana sales increased by almost 20 percent compared to 2019. Coloradans also bought more liquor in 2020, too. [Read more at Colorado Public Radio]