MJBizMag November-December 2020 - 64

THRIVE
SURVIVE
L
et's face it: 2020
has been brutal. A
global pandemic. An
economic recession. And a
hyper-partisan presidential
election.
Even for the cannabis
industry-with its history
of federal raids, draconian
regulations, counterfeiters
and more-2020 posed
challenges like no other.
Most of the trials from
the past year are attributable
to the coronavirus pandemic
and the lethal threat it
posed to cannabis industry
employees and consumers.
Beyond that, executives saw
supply chains from China
snap almost overnight, stalling
deliveries of vape parts
and packaging. Meanwhile, governments
in many markets mandated that cannabis
retailers end in-store sales, forcing them
to pivot to delivery and curbside pickup.
Not everybody could hack it.
MAKING THE CUT
Coming off a difficult 2019 that included
a vaping health crisis and a retreat among
cannabis investors, 2020 delivered an
additional punch that broadsided many
companies, from multistate operators
that went bankrupt or laid off scores of
workers to small businesses that were
forced to sell their licenses.
" Throughout this, we're adapting. We
don't know how long it's going to go on.
Years? A month? We don't know, " said
Brandon Rexroad, CEO of Portland, Oregon-based
MSO Shango Premium Cannabis,
which does extensive business in Las
Vegas. " But you don't want to be the guy
who's waiting. There were some retailers
in Vegas that just shut their doors. "
Many marijuana businesses embraced
the challenges that 2020 threw at them
and found they could not only survive
the year but thrive.
Marijuana Business Magazine has
scoured a variety of data sources and
business indicators to bring readers
insightful tables showing which publicly
traded companies excelled this year,
which ones didn't and why.
We also identified eight smaller companies
that survived and often thrived
in 2020. These aren't necessarily the
biggest, best or most profitable cannabis
companies in the United States-coming
up with a short, definitive list would be
nearly impossible. But the companies
highlighted in these pages demonstrated
what it takes to succeed.
Key measures and yardsticks included:
* Top sales positions in various states,
according to data from Seattle-based
cannabis analytics firm Headset
and LeafLink, a New York-based
marijuana industry wholesale
inventory and ordering platform.
* The number of new patients or
customers added by companies.
* Unusual and/or innovative strategies
that allowed companies to rebound
from adversity.
Some other keys to success included
smart inventory management, aggressive
discounting, crafty marketing, product
variety, data gathering and analysis as
well as increasing self-reliance.
The stories and data in the following
64 Marijuana Business Magazine | November-December 2020
pages are intended to offer insight and inspiration
for marijuana businesses dealing
with adversity in the years to come.
-Omar Sacirbey
Cannabis companies that have
succeeded in what's been a tumultuous
year did it with resourcefulness, prudence
and strategies tailored to meet the
unique needs of their own markets and
organizations. Those strategies include:
* Having a large product selection that
can draw consumers to your store
and increase their spending-while at
the same time employing disciplined
inventory management.
* Sales and discounts to attract
customers, including two-for-one deals
and cashback discounts.
* Effective marketing, especially in highly
competitive markets.
* Data analysis and frequent sales
forecasting to help companies better plan
which products and quantities to order.
* Backstopping your supply chain by
having your own retail outlet to move
products if you're a wholesaler-or
having your own cultivation facility if
you're a product manufacturer.
AND
MJBizMag November-December 2020

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