Cannabiz Media Client Spotlight – Cova Software

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Cova is the #1 point-of-sale (POS) software in the North American cannabis industry by market share, according to Cannabiz Media’s Point-of-Sale Software in the Cannabis Industry – 2022 Report. Cova’s award-winning cannabis retail software solutions include POS dispensaries, e-commerce, payments, inventory management, compliance and analytics reporting.

Cannabiz Media spoke to Cova CEO Gary Cohen to learn more about how he and his team are using the Cannabiz Media License Database for research, sales, data analysis, strategic decision making and more.

Why does Cova subscribe to the Cannabiz Media License Database?

Cova uses the Cannabiz media license database in a number of ways:

• To understand the license volume and speed
• To allocate resources
• understand market health
• Analyze market shares

Gary explains when states roll out or expand programs, “There’s the volume of licenses and the speed. We have no way of knowing how the states are doing without the Cannabiz Media License Database.”

Based on the data Gary and his team access in the Cannabiz Media License Database, he is able to make important resource decisions. He shares: “We need the information that Cannabiz Media has. It helps us allocate resources. I can turn my marketing on and off and the amount and intensity with which we drive sales into a market.”

In addition, the data helps Cova with strategic analysis. “Another way that the licensing database is helping us, which we’ve just witnessed over the last year and a half, is the health of the markets,” says Gary. “When I see stores closing, I can read about which licenses are being cancelled. I can relate that to the total number. Cova may not have a good market share in a given state, but now that I see the data and think about it, does it represent an opportunity? Or do I want to hold back?”

Another way the Cannabiz Media License Database is helping Gary and his team at Cova is by providing a way to measure market share. “Our industry doesn’t have a market share measurement service like Nielsen does for other industries,” explains Gary. I can go through the information in the license database and get the relative share of my competitors and I can find out who the players are. I can see who gets the retail level licenses. I can look at the names behind it and triangulate that.”

As an example, Gary shares: “[I could find that] Abe Cannabis is up to her 12th deal. They’ve never been on our radar. I do not know him. Maybe we needed to talk to them when they had two stores. Now they have 12. Why don’t we try to work with them? I can see this from the Cannabiz Media License Database data. There is no other resource to get this information than Google Maps where you just zoom in further and look for identical retailer names. But Google Maps is a terrible way to figure out who’s who and what’s what. I can use the Cannabiz Media License Database for that.”

What’s next for Cova?

Cova is focused on continuing to develop technologies that simplify compliance and streamline complex operations for the cannabis industry. Gary explains: “Cova was originally built on an open API architecture and I always thought that ultimately you have to provide a bundle of services. Late last year we acquired an e-commerce company that was already integrated with Cova. Payments and e-commerce are the biggest things we’ve launched recently.”

Looking ahead, Cova has specific growth and development plans to achieve its goals. “We will expand our partnership with springbig to provide more CRM and loyalty functionality,” shares Gary. “I think if you take that whole package, Cova becomes a more comprehensive solution. But we still offer options. We are not a closed system. For example, if a customer doesn’t want to use our e-commerce solution or our payment tools, the integrations are still there, but we don’t cause any issues or enforce bundling.”

For more information on Cova and to hear additional insights from Gary Cohen, follow the link and listen to Cannabiz Media’s latest Cannacurio podcast episode with Gary as a special guest.

To learn more about how subscribing to the Cannabiz Media License Database can help your business, follow the link and schedule a free demo.

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