Missouri seeing record numbers after voters make recreational marijuana legal

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri is on track to set a record for cannabis sales in the United States.

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Sales are skyrocketing after marijuana was made legal in Missouri and people were allowed to purchase the drug from dispensaries.

“Pretty incredible that we would see those type of sales in Missouri,” Co-Founder OF Fresh Karma Dispensaries Tony Patton said.

Missouri is on track to be the fastest state to reach $1 billion in cannabis sales. Dispensaries, like Fresh Karma, believe it after seeing high sales themselves in the last month.

“If we had to guess, I would say sales would continue to grow in the state,” Patton said.

Since adult use became legal in Missouri and dispensaries have been able to sell starting Feb. 3, 2023, he said business has been booming.

“We expected a 2 to 3 times the sales,” Patton said. “And we’re seeing approximately a five times the sales.”

He anticipates even more growth and more green over the next several months.

A look at the total amount of cannabis sales in Missouri for February shows $31.2 million in medical use and $71.7 million in adult use. That’s nearly 103 million total in the first month. Which means more than $1 billion in annual sales and could set a new record in the U.S.

“It’s been phenomenal,” Patton said.

Travis Andrews is a frequent flier. He’s not surprised by the high numbers.

“People have heard about it. It’s legal now,” Andrews said, “‘I can try it now, even recreational, maybe it’s for me, maybe it’s not’.”

Patton said they’ve had to hire more staff to keep up with demand.

They saw a spike in sales during the Super Bowl and Chiefs Victory parade, followed by a slight dip. But they’re expecting droves of people for the NFL draft and the NCAA tourney — both in Kansas City, Missouri.

“A lot of influx of out of state individuals and those within the state that are coming to Kansas City for those events,” Patton said, “Sales that hopefully we can meet the demand. We’re getting ready for those increased sales with additional staffing.”

Even after the events, dispensaries expect these high sales numbers to continue.