September brought the state $75.3 million in recreational marijuana sales
Arizona and its adult-use marijuana market appear to be having a lucrative relationship. While September experienced a downward trend in cannabis sales, dispensary owners say it was a long time coming and that the market will continue to grow as it stands firm against the winds of a worldwide recession in the wake of a global pandemic. The report for that month recorded $75.3 million in sales, a figure that doesn’t look bad at all based on what dispensaries say they are going through.
September does not appear to have been a bad month. However, it is important to clarify that medical marijuana does not seem to be doing as well as many would expect. This market fell to just under $31 million in sales during the month of September. This translates to a drop of more than 10% from the $35.2 million that patients purchased in August.
Although recreational sales also suffered a significant drop, the jump was not as large. Compared to August’s records, September only saw a $2 million drop. This suggests that the adult market has remained much firmer, hovering at the same gains since May.
The last time medical marijuana sales were higher than recreational was in September 2021. In that period, the Arizona Department of Revenue reported $63.4 million in medical sales, which was about $5 million more than the recreational sector. Since then, however, the winds have been blowing in favor of the legal market for those 21 and older.
“Last year was inflated because of the ‘year of the unicorn.’ We had a really exciting, dizzying year that’s coming down to Earth a little bit. I think we’re going to see more steady, traditional growth in the next few years,” said Ryan Hermansky, founder of Flagstaff’s Noble Herb dispensary, PURE Edibles, and president of the Arizona Dispensary Association.