Croptober is the fall season where outdoor grows harvest their summer crops and we begin to see the flower hit the market. This sun stimulated season of cannabis affects both regulated and unregulated markets by bringing prices down due to the overwhelming quantity we see in this time. Whether it’s visible or not, Croptober does affect the cannabis industry every year in unique ways across the entire supply chain.
With more flower being harvested and prepped for sale, cultivators are forced to become more competitive with their pound pricing. In areas with large sects of unregulated outdoor grow, the cultivators are battling not only their known regulated competitors but also unregulated outdoor growers from nearby. The flower flood drives overall pound prices down exponentially across markets, so cultivators and production facilities have to be creative to retain profit margin for the next few weeks. For cultivators with excessive flower, we like to see experiments in other THC-infused products like doing rosin concentrates or exploring infused topicals like bath bombs. For producers that have already invested in pre-roll machines, focusing on pre-rolls or infused pre-rolls is also a great avenue to take. Maximize the ROI of any machinery you’ve invested in at this point- now is the time to take advantage of needing non-flower SKUs.
Croptober also affects dispensaries- especially in pricing. With more and more flower available the market gets competitive, and we unfortunately often see a race to the bottom. As a dispensary this can be a great time to stock up on strains that move fast or work with your partners to do co-branded promotions. With more products in the ecosphere, some cultivators or producers can work with purchasers on buy one, get one deals. This can be a key opportunity to start winning over local favor before the holiday’s heavy shopping season comes around. We love to see retailers testing new products or coming up with cross-category promotions for customer education. If a cultivator is drowning in flower but manages to do a buy an 1/8th, get an infused lotion promo, they are able to get that lotion into someone’s hands that may not have considered it prior.
With croptober flooding flower in the unregulated markets, dispensaries have to combat those same unregulated growers that cultivators are also up against. Dispensaries have a great opportunity during this time to experiment with additional activities to entice in-store shoppers. Small activations like having brand ambassadors doing pop-ups or larger activations like DJs or food trucks can keep your customers from shopping anywhere else.
Croptober’s area of effect may vary year to year based on how grueling the summers can be, but they do without fail affect everyone in the cannabis industry. If you’re harvesting this Croptober, we have a handy Croptober checklist right here for you.
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