Vancouver makes headway on recreational cannabis sales
Across the country, adult-use sales rise again in April
By Angela Stelmakowich
It appears recreational cannabis sales in Vancouver are heading in a better direction, with the city racking up some of the best sales in Canada and contributing to record sales for the entire country.
Cannabis sales in Vancouver were reported to be $16.7 million, up about 30 per cent from March, according to Marijuana Business Daily.
That might offer some solace after Statistics Canada figures earlier this year showed the city had the lowest per capita spending on legal adult-use cannabis products among Canadian cities, the publication reported at the time.
For April, Toronto was reportedly the top legal seller, with $41.6 million in recreational weed sales. That’s not much of a surprise given the explosion of retail stores in both the city and Canada's most populous province.
The growth in stores is thanks to a decision by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to increase the number of Retail Store Authorizations that will be allowed every month.
Cities next in line for sales were Montreal at $24.7 million, Edmonton at $19.5 million, Calgary at $16 million, Ottawa at $10.4 million, Winnipeg at $8.2 million, Quebec City at $5.9 million and Gatineau at $1.4 million, Marijuana Business Daily reports.
Canada-wide, the April figures from Statistics Canada show adult-use weed sales continued their upward trend, following dips in January and February before a rebound in March.
Overall, $309.7 million in recreational cannabis was sold in April compared to approximately $298.3 million in March and approximately $262 million in February.
As a province, British Columbia saw one of the strongest jumps, up 13.4 per cent from $41.6 million in March to just shy of $47 million in April. That is a far cry from the approximately $4 million in legal weed sales in B.C. in June 2019 and the $29 million total in June 2020.
Like other provinces, B.C. is having a retail growth spurt. The list of cannabis stores in the province, both private and government-operated, shows there are now almost 400 stores either open or coming soon.
Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan all saw increases in April cannabis sales compared to March, according to Statistics Canada. Recreational sales in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Alberta and the Northwest Territories all decreased, albeit sometimes very slightly. No figures were listed for PEI, Yukon or Nunavut.
GrowthOp
