MAINE, USA — Maine's adult-use cannabis market has grown exponentially since the state opened its first eight recreational stores in October of 2020.
With few locations open for sales, the supply was limited and the price for products was high.
Now, nearly two years later, the price of the premier cannabis product, flower, has dropped by more than $3.
According to the Office of Cannabis Policy, the price per gram of flower was $12.85 in August 2021. The price per gram of the same flower product dropped to $9.26 in June 2022.
July was another record-setting month for the state.
Erik Gunderson, director of the Office of Cannabis Policy, said the state saw more than $16 million in adult-use sales.
“There is room for exponential growth within our adult-use program," Gunderson said.
“Once you get more competitors coming in, it’s macroeconomics. The prices are going to go down," Jim Henry, CEO of Sweet Dirt, said Thursday. “We are putting ourselves in a position where we’re focused on making sure the people have the product in their hands instead of profitability.”
Henry was onsite to celebrate the opening of Sweet Dirt's newest adult-use recreational dispensary. Their location in Bridgton will officially open to customers on Friday.
Henry said his company is happy to offer better prices for customers.
As of Thursday, Sweet Dirt employs roughly 150 people in Maine. Henry expects that number to increase to 200 by the end of the year, as Sweet Dirt looks to open even more locations in areas that don't have a lot of options.
He said the cannabis industry allows companies to hire more local employees and, in turn, help boost their local economies.
Henry and Gunderson say the state's geography creates a lot of opportunities for continued industry growth. Gunderson said less than 10 percent of municipalities in Maine have opted-in to the adult-use program.
The Office of Cannabis Policy is helping to spread the word of its recreational program through a series of "Community Listening Tours" to engage with the public about cannabis in the state.
Gunderson also said the office is also willing to award grants of up to $20,000 to assist municipalities to opt-in to the recreational market.
Helping the customer--or the "guest," as Steve Pulos puts it--save money and find the right product is the goal at Theory Wellness locations in Maine. Pulos is the company's director of retail in Maine.
“We’re Vacationland. We pride ourselves on treating visitors to our state and the guests here locally in a certain way. So we’ve really developed that, and that’s what we pride ourselves on," he added.
Theory Wellness has done this by offering deals on products for customers since its South Portland location opened in 2020. Pulos expects the price of flower products will only continue to lower as the market expands.
While flower-product customers are enjoying the summer savings, other product prices have remained steady. Matt Hawes of Novel Beverage got into the THC-beverage game while the industry is still in its infant stage.
“The products that we make are low doses, so the actual cost of the THC is pretty low in our overall cost model," he added.
As Gundersons says, Hawes said his industry will likely expand as more towns open up shop around the state, and that's when prices of beverages could drop.