Culture clash For as long as “cannabis culture” reigns supreme, truly inspiring and groundbreaking cannabis brands are unlikely to come from the top down. And what role will they play in developing the great consumer packaged goods (CPG) cannabis brands of the future? How will MSOs—who are positioning themselves as the retail gatekeepers in many states—compete with one another to create, license, distribute, and/or acquire the first generation of national cannabis brands? This is the first wave of truly national brands, and there will be many more coming behind them. Jushi, a Florida-based MSO, has acquired most of its brand portfolio instead of developing the assets.
Just a decade or so into North America’s adult-use cannabis experiment, we have a strong sense of where the biggest companies (multistate operators, or MSOs) plan to assert their dominance. As states make the inevitable shift from illicit to medical or recreational sales, major operators have been gobbling up as many retail and cultivation licenses as possible, hastily assembling vertical infrastructures in a bid to control regional markets and enter the federal legalization era on strong footing.
They have proven adept at raising and deploying capital to accumulate cultivation, manufacturing, and retail operations, but they have been notably less...
Read the full article @ MG Retailer