Consolidation was the legal cannabis industry’s focus for most of last year. With numerous high-profile mergers and acquisitions, many wonder whether small farms can survive in this new age of Big Cannabis.
With multi-state operators (MSOs) expected to continue their expansion in 2022, small, boutique farms face a real danger of being muscled out of the market. These small farms can lose their autonomy and the unique characteristics that make them exceptional when acquired by larger companies.
There’s still hope for small cultivators, though.
With innovative tools and the right support, small farms can thrive in California’s cannabis market. Helping those small farms succeed is our business.
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Challenges facing California’s small cannabis cultivators
In California, growers can’t deal directly with retailers to sell their products. They need to work with a distributor as an intermediary. This restriction can limit a cultivator’s ability to market their products and maximize their revenue on each crop. It’s not surprising that the advantage goes to multi-state operators and larger farms.
Small growers can get lost among more profitable, high production farms when they partner with a distributor. While small batch sales can be mixed in with larger market, it can lead to under-representation as part of their distributor’s portfolio. This further complicates culltivators’ ability to sell their harvests.
Smaller California cannabis farms also need to connect with a rapidly growing number of consumer brands. Falling behind in representation on the market’s limited shelf space hurts the business and brand. Small farmers need carefully cultivated distribution and sales networks.
So how can small cultivators thrive in Big Cannabis world?
Finding the right cannabis distributor to compete
Picking the right distributor is a critical step for small farms trying to gain a foothold in the California cannabis market.
Small batch, 10,000-square-foot cannabis farms shouldn’t be handicapped. They need access to the tools, assets, and connections that large scale 100-acre cultivators enjoy. They need a distributor who will advocate for their products. One that will highlight the exceptional quality and value that can be found among boutique farms.
Giving craft growers access to a wide network of dispensaries, real-time market data, and the security to confidently sell their products harvest after harvest opens them to success. A comprehensive digital network of growers and retailers can bridge the gap between farm and shop. In-person distributor showrooms give buyers a tactile experience with a farm’s available products.
Growers need access to detailed data analytics to understand and anticipate market trends, ensuring they produce quality genetics that will sell. Farmers with this digital advantage can feel confident they are growing high-demand cultivars and will be able to sell their crops at competitive prices.
How we help small cannabis cultivators thrive
At Thrive Society, we believe in all our growing partners. We support them throughout the process as they navigate the cannabis market. With a network of more than 400 cultivators and over 200 buyers in California, we specialize in helping small-batch growers compete. Most of our growers are on farms 10,000 sq ft or smaller, producing exceptional cannabis flower in small batches.
Growers of all sizes benefit greatly from comprehensive digital solutions capable of optimizing growth cycles and easing the path to market for harvested flower. However, it’s more than the network and the technology that should set a distributor apart.
Operating exclusively within our network, these craft growers have added assurance that we will be able to promote their products to our network of high quality buyers throughout the state, helping to level playing field against the state’s biggest cultivators. High visibility between growers and dispensaries through integrated channels allows both sides of the equation to anticipate the cannabis market’s frequent fluctuations.
Thrive Society is working hard to help California’s craft legacy cannabis farmers compete.
To learn more about Eco Farm Holdings PBC / Thrive Society, visit our website: https://www.ecofarm.ag/who-we-are
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