Wow! So many people rushed in to attend our just-released Urgent Cannabis Investor Briefing that our computer servers were overwhelmed … our phone rang off the hook with callers … and even our back-up phone center in Manila was swamped.
That’s a good thing. It reflects a healthy enthusiasm for the huge profit potential now available. But our briefing must go offline at midnight tonight. So go here now if you want to watch it.
Meanwhile, also in a rush are cannabis industry leaders seeking to build their brand names — in a race to become the Coca-Cola or Budweiser of marijuana. And investors who own the winners will be handsomely rewarded.
Why? Because brand is trust.
At the grocery store, do you buy Oreos, or a generic knock-off? Oreos cost more. But that’s what people trust. Far fewer people generally reach for the no-name product. Most are happy to pay more because they know what they’ll get.
But here’s the thing: Right now, the branding opportunities in cannabis and CBD are wide open. At this stage, it’s anyone’s game. And that means we are going to see an extraordinary rush to build brands over the next year or so.
Brands do exist. But they’re still relatively unknown. If I told you that golden-throated crooner Willie Nelson has his own marijuana brand, or that Bob Marley’s family signed a licensing deal to put his name on cannabis-infused drinks, that wouldn’t surprise you.
Suppose I told you that a company called Curaleaf Holdings (OTCQX: CURLF) spent $950 million in an all-stock deal to acquire Select, a maker of oil for vape pens?
Why so much? Branding!
The company says Select is the most well-known cannabis wholesale brand in the country. Others may disagree. But like I said, the market is wide open, and the future big-name brands are just in their early stages.
Curaleaf has its own brands of CBD products, which it is selling through CVS drugstores all over the country. Will CVS customers come to recognize Curaleaf as the brand they can trust?
Here’s how CBD-buying customers choose what they buy …
Thanks to last year’s Farm Bill — and a push from Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. — hemp was legalized. And that means CBD from hemp is legal, despite the occasional great-grandmother getting arrested at Disney World for it. Seriously, look that up.
Anyway, now people are buying CBD oils, lotions and gummies. And they’re creating brands. Looking at the chart, the best way to do that is through a branded website … followed by dispensaries … followed by partnering with an online retailer.
I will bet you dollars to doobies that every CBD maker in North America wants to be the brand America comes to trust. The Colgate of CBD. Other companies want to become the Miller of Marijuana … or the Coca-Cola of Cannabis.
Does the Coca-Cola of Cannabis strike you as funny? That’s exactly how one company described its goal when I was at the Benzinga Cannabis Conference in Toronto. Now, the company that made that claim is more of a vanity project than a real company. Its public face is an Instagram star, a party animal who touts the money he spends on fast cars and faster women.
If I ever invest money in that particular stock, check to see if I’m having a stroke. This company has about as much chance of becoming the Coca-Cola of cannabis as I do of becoming the George Clooney of investing.
Note: In case it’s not clear, the chances of that are mighty slim.
So, Mister “Hey, Look at Me, I’m Blowing Investors’ Money on Instagram” has no chance of becoming the Coca-Cola of Cannabis. But SOMEBODY does. Some company will make that leap.
And again, the field is wide open.
I’ll be exploring those possibilities when I speak in Las Vegas. And I’ll be telling subscribers to my Marijuana Millionaire Portfolio about this, too.
After all …
- 35% of CBD buyers said they were more likely to purchase CBD from a known brand.
- The CBD market may exceed $1 billion in sales this year alone. And those sales are growing like a weed.
- CVS, Rite-Aid, the Vitamin Shoppe and Walgreens are all starting to carry CBD.
- And looking at the bigger picture, the U.S. cannabis market would be $28 billion if legalized today, growing to $41 billion by 2028. That’s according to Barclays.
These all mean new, bigger rewards for cannabis investors. Time to get busy.
All the best,
Sean