Cannabis Market in Illinois – Cannabis | weed | marijuana

What’s going on with the Illinois cannabis market? The state of Lincoln legalized cannabis in 2019 after six years of using medicinal cannabis.

With a population of 12.7 million, Illinois is one of the largest cannabis markets in the country. A recent report from Headset focused on sales, product popularity, pricing and demographics.

The central theses

Courtesy of Headset.io

Regarding the Illinois cannabis market, there are some key takeaways from the headset report. Namely, Illinois has experienced a strong market consolidation.

68% of the state’s sales come from the top 10 brands. Despite its size and population of millions, there are only 118 cannabis brands in Illinois.

The government issues 55 new retail licenses to expand the market. But at the time of the report, Illinois had just 120 licensed retailers, which is incredibly few compared to other states.

Another anomaly in the Illinois cannabis market is the pre-roll market. In Illinois, one of the fastest growing categories in other states (and Canada), pre-rolls aren’t as popular.

This could be because Illinois prices are also among the highest in the country. Significantly higher. The median price for a cannabis product in Illinois is 89% higher than the rest of the US legal market.

Consumer demographics are also at odds with the national trend in the Illinois cannabis market.

Illinois Cannabis Market Consolidation

Courtesy of Headset.io

In the first few months of 2023, Illinois generated $950 million in cannabis sales. This makes the state the third largest cannabis market in the US after California and Michigan.

And this at a time when the cannabis industry is suffering. Be it inept politicians unable to pass banking laws, central bank induced inflation, or increasing competition in the market. Whatever the reason, many cannabis markets have reported flat or declining sales.

Illinois, however, bucked the trend and managed to grow 2.1%, making it one of only five U.S. cannabis markets to post annual growth through 2023.

While Illinois may still be growing its cannabis market, branded growth is slowing. Illinois has one of the fewest brands in the US cannabis market.

With just 118 brands, Illinois has 52.6% fewer than Arizona, another highly consolidated market.

Michigan has a similar population size and cannabis sales to Illinois. But while Illinois has just 118 brands, Michigan has 800.

Not surprisingly, 68% of Illinois cannabis market sales come from the top 10 brands. One reason for this is vertical integration.

In Illinois, 27% of total sales come from retailers selling their own brands. Only Massachusetts and Colorado beat Illinois in terms of vertical integration.

Prices in the Illinois cannabis market

Courtesy of Headset.io

Illinois follows the trend towards popular cannabis categories. However, one area of ​​interest is the pre-roll market.

In Illinois, this category is underrepresented. State pre-rolls were up just 5.6%. Concentrates are the biggest loss, down over 15%.

While floral is the most popular category, it’s up just 0.7%.

Illinois now has some of the highest cannabis prices in the United States. The average item is 46% higher than other Massachusetts and the price per gram is 36% higher than Nevada.

High vertical integration and small brand selection likely help keep prices high. Headset compares Illinois’ numbers to Washington state’s.

There are over 1,000 different brands in Washington state, compared to 118 in Illinois. Washington also has some of the lowest prices in the country, averaging 61% less than Illinois.

Poor accessibility (12.7 million people and only 120 retailers) also contributes to higher prices. However, we are seeing lower cannabis prices. However, the decline in Illinois was slower compared to the rest of the US

The demographics

Courtesy of Headset.io

Millennials account for 45% of total sales in the Illinois cannabis market. However, the proportion of baby boomers and Generation X is higher than in the rest of the country.

Consumers over 41 make up 36.4% of sales in the US. In Illinois, however, they capture 42.1% of the market.

Illinois women are also more likely to use cannabis than the national average.

Finally

So what’s going on with the Illinois cannabis market? Market consolidation and government gatekeepers restricting access to cannabis.

In other words, similar to how cannabis legalization is progressing in many parts of the world, including Canada.

Illinois is not the poster child for a cannabis legalization lesson.