Missouri tops $12 million in marijuana sales during opening weekend
The numbers are in: The Missouri Department of Health and Human Services today gave its first look at how well Show-Me’s state’s first weekend of recreational cannabis sales was going.
As of Friday, February 3, Missouri’s 198 operating dispensaries collectively sold more than $3 million in over-the-counter marijuana and nearly $2 million in medical cannabis. On Saturday, rec sales topped $3.3 million and medical sales fell to $1.3 million. Consumers in Show Me State declined Sunday, purchasing nearly $2.2 million worth of adult-use marijuana and about $900,000 worth of medical supplies.
Over the weekend, a total of $12.7 million in cannabis sales was made, with $8.5 million from recreational shoppers and the other $4.2 million from medical cardholders.
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After a big weekend, stores are getting back to a normal groove
Last week, state officials surprised almost everyone by giving stores the green light to resume selling adult-use cannabis on Friday, rather than waiting until Monday as expected. That started a busy weekend for consumers scouting for the nearest store and retailers who saw an early surge in sales.
The situation had calmed down by Monday morning. A tour of the shops in the St. Louis area came across a few curious customers being served by budtenders still catching their breath.
The waiting room at the Root66 South Grand was empty shortly after the popular store opened at 10am on Monday. But the weekend was a different story, according to budtender Patrick O’Donnell. After serving about 40 paying customers a day during the medical-only era, the Root66 location — one of three Root66 stores in St. Louis — recorded Friday, Saturday and Sunday this weekend as state authorities flipped the switch, more than 200 paying customers rec.
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“Absolutely insane,” O’Donnell said. “We had lines of people from the time we opened until almost the minute we closed.”
Root66 officials found out late Thursday night that Missouri could start rec sales last Friday instead of today, O’Donnell said. They learned that the pharmacy had the green light for adult use at 6am on Friday and looked forward to the exciting day with mixed feelings.
For weeks, they slowly filled the pharmacy, a converted former McDonald’s restaurant. Despite this, Root66 sold out for almost a third of its pre-roll menu in its early launch.
Customers filled the store’s waiting rooms by the dozens over the weekend, with about 20 to 25 people waiting at a time. Luckily, the lines didn’t get long enough to keep customers out in the freezing cold of St. Louis.
No lines, no waiting on Monday morning
Local resident Deion Harris stopped by Monday morning to load up on Root66’s popular ‘Fruit by the Foot’ pre-rolls after burning through stock he bought on Friday. Three half-gram joints, which sold for $14, were enough to last an evening, Harris said. But he tripled his order Monday morning.
“I’m really glad that day is here and that we can all buy legal cannabis,” he said. “It’s usually cheaper on the street, but you definitely get what you pay for here.”
Viola in St. Louis: Yes, it’s actually open
Former NBA stars Al Harrington and Larry Hughes announced just two weeks ago that they would be opening downtown St. Louis’ first dispensary and the city’s only black-owned cannabis store. Built right across a small crosswalk from a massive new Major League Soccer stadium and just down the street from the St. Louis hockey and baseball stadiums, Viola STL couldn’t have found a better place to reach the tens of thousands of sports fans who this honor cheering the area almost every night.
Fast-forward two weeks from Harrington and Hughes’ announcement, and a giant sign over Viola’s front entrance still reads “Coming Soon.” But guess what: it’s actually open.
The door is unlocked and leads into a waiting room and then into a shopping area where three smiling waiters are ready to serve customers.
The weed for sale comes from the kennels of competing dispensaries: Good Day Farm, Prosper Cannabis, and Illicit. But there’s no doubt that the much-touted shop is already up and running, if not thriving.
“We will have our own flower here very soon,” said Managing Partner Dan Pettigrew. “We are very excited to be a big part of this community and the industry in Missouri.”
Good Day Farm: “It was a funny madness”
Good Day Farm St. Louis employees spent more than a month building up the store’s inventory for an expected Monday rush of pot buyers — only to have them show up on Friday. Good Day Farms had more than three times the number of paying customers during its first rec weekend compared to a typical medical-only weekend. They expect this trend to continue in the coming days.
“The early start was a blessing in disguise, because it bridled the rush and made us more approachable,” said Luke Gerau, Good Day’s brand manager. “We have a lot of customers and nobody had to wait in long lines.”
As Good Day’s team expanded (200 employees across 19 pharmacies in Missouri), the number of budtenders at the St. Louis branch went from three to five at one point. On Monday morning, the souped-up staff offered extra help to two customers who had the shopping floor all to themselves.
The customers, brothers in their 30s from St. Louis, asked not to be named. But they smiled as they walked out of the pharmacy with eighths of Blueberry Headband and Poison OG Flower.
“Enough to get us high,” one of them ground out.
Good Day’s chief marketing officer Laurie Gregory said the majority of products flying off the store’s shelves are floral treats like pre-rolls and eighths, but added that concentrates and edibles each account for about 15 of total sales. The company also breeds and sells Titty Sprinkles, one of Missouri’s most popular strains, whose breeders donate a portion of the proceeds to breast cancer research groups.
“It’s been a crazy few days,” Gregory said, “but it’s a fun weirdness.”
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