Cannacurio No. 93: Best list for pharmacies and retailers in the first quarter of 2024

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With the first quarter now complete, we would like to share our quarterly summary of which states have issued the most dispensary/retailer licenses. We counted 333 new dispensary/retailer licenses issued during the quarter, with New Jersey and Michigan each accounting for approximately 20% of the 333. 699 licenses were issued in the first quarter of 2023.

• 333 new store licenses were issued in the quarter, compared to 699 a year ago
• Four states accounted for 60% of these licenses: New Jersey, Michigan, New Mexico and New York
• Oklahoma accounted for 1.2% of new licenses, compared to 47% last year

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Last year, states issued nearly as many store licenses in January as they did in the entire quarter of this year. The total in the first quarter of 2023 was 699, compared to 333 in the first quarter of 2024. The full list of issuing states is available on our Cannabis Market Intelligence platform www.cannabiz.media.

When looking at the 333 new licenses, it is insightful to see which companies have added licenses. Based on the Cannabiz Media Cannabis Market Intelligence Platform, here are the 10 companies that added four or more licenses in the first quarter of 2024. Six of these companies have a presence in New Mexico – so they are likely chain extensions:

Finally, the table below shows the top 5 states that issued new pharmacy/retail licenses in the first quarter of 2024:

The full list is available on our Cannabis Market Intelligence platform www.cannabiz.media.

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Although 333 licenses were added, the net number of new stores in the quarter was only 97, primarily due to the loss of licenses in Oklahoma. Licensed cannabis dispensaries and retailers are under enormous pressure. In some states there is market saturation and in most states the legacy market is gaining market share. A third factor is the availability of hemp substitutes. In states like Texas and Florida, there are far more CBD store licenses than legally licensed stores. Some regulators have discovered that there is a cannabinoid economy and are considering how to regulate it. In states like Connecticut, we are seeing ripple effects in alcohol distribution as the state figures out where and by whom these products can be sold. Stay tuned for more quarterly updates as new programs like Ohio's launch soon!

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Ed Keating is co-founder of Cannabiz Media and oversees the company's data research and government relations. Throughout his career, he has worked with and advised information companies in the compliance area. Ed has led product, marketing and sales while overseeing complex, multi-country product lines in securities, corporate, UCC, security, environmental and human resources.

Cannabiz Media customers can stay up to date on these and other new licenses through our newsletter, alerts and reporting modules. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive these weekly reports straight to your inbox. Or you can schedule a demo to get more information about how you can access the Cannabiz Media Market Intelligence Platform yourself and dive deeper into this data.

‍Cannacurio is a column from Cannabiz Media featuring insights from the most comprehensive licensing data platform. Check out Cannacurio posts and podcasts for the latest updates and information.