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Happy Friday Pre Rollers! Welcome to another edition of The Pre Roll, the cannabis newsletter that keeps you up-to-date on the industry happenings you need to know.

Here’s what we’re rolling up this week:

• Social platform X (Twitter) amends cannabis ads policy again

• Tilray sees rise in revenue after summer of acquisitions

• Study finds many online dispensaries lack age-gating

…and more. Let’s get to it.

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🚨 Roll Call

Tech

X Gon' Give It To Ya. X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, plans to relax its rules around advertising for cannabis companies again. The announcement was made by Alexa Alianiello, X’s sales and partnership executive for cannabis and emerging markets, at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference in Chicago last week. Alianiello says the move comes on the heels of positive industry feedback, which apparently includes comedian and cannabis advocate Tommy Chong.

Earlier this year, Twitter shared it was taking measures to relax its policy around cannabis advertising. In doing so, they became the first major social platform to take a cannabis-friendly stance.

While many were quick to applaud the move — including Trulieve, who claimed to be the first cannabis company to advertise on the platform — others urged folks to read the fine print before getting too excited.

Perhaps the updated policy will win more people over.

Business

A (Til)ray of sunshine. Global cannabis producer Tilray Brands reported financial results this week for its Q1 fiscal year 2024, which ended on August 31. The corporation reported net revenue of $177 million, up 15% year over year; cannabis-specific net revenue increased to $70 million, up 20% year over year. Furthermore, net loss narrowed to $56 million compared to $66 million in the prior year.

These results come following a headline-heavy few months for Tilray, as the company has worked to diversify its portfolio amidst the uncertain legal environment of the cannabis industry.

• June — completed its acquisition of rival cannabis company Hexo; the deal was initially announced in April.

• August — bought eight beverage brands, including Blue Point Brewing Company, Breckenridge Brewery, HiBall Energy, Redhook Brewery, Shock Top, Square Mile Cider Company, Widmer Brothers Brewing, and 10 Barrel Brewing Company, from Anheuser-Busch for a reported $85 million in an all-cash transaction.

The beverage deal made Tilray the fifth-largest craft brewer in the United States. It ranked ninth on the Brewers Association’s annual list of the top 50 producing craft brewing companies in the U.S. for 2022.

Policy

Child safety gates. According to a study in JAMA Pediatrics, a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association, nearly one in five (18.8%) online cannabis dispensaries in the United States does not require formal age verification at any stage of the purchasing process. Additionally, the findings suggest most websites accept non-traceable payment methods that allow children under the age permitted to legally buy cannabis to hide their transactions.

Another statistic from the report that stood out: 28% of dispensaries had an out-of-state delivery option, something that violates federal law.

🇺🇸 State of the Industry

Florida: The Florida Supreme Court will hear arguments in November on the recreational cannabis initiative that aims to be on the 2024 ballot.

Illinois: The state set a new record for adult-use sales to in-state residents in September.

Michigan: A new proposed bill would allow K-12 students to use medical cannabis and CBD-infused products on school premises or on the school bus.

Missouri: The Division of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) issued 48 cannabis microbusiness licenses this week.

New York: The 60-day application window for new licenses is open; the Office of Cannabis Management anticipates giving out as many as 1,000 new licenses.

📊 Business

HARA Brands partners with Smoker Friendly

The smoking accessory and lifestyle company revealed it is partnering with America’s largest cigarette and tobacco store retailer to bring its innovative smoking accessories brand Hemper to locations nationwide.

💻 Tech

Hoodie Analytics launches new insights platform

The cannabis data and technology firm launched a new market intelligence and product data management platform equipped with dispensary analytics, product velocity metrics, store-level segmentation, and wholesale systems integration to help operators monitor competitor trends, understand sales shifts at different dispensaries, make brand-level comparisons, and filter data by demographic or custom segments.

Simplifya, Ceylon Solutions, Shield Compliance create marketplace for licensed operators

The three cannabis software companies joined forces to build Cannabis OneClick, a marketplace for licensed cannabis and hemp operators to quickly and easily find top-rated providers for services including banking, insurance, legal, compliance, payroll, delivery, cash logistics, point-of-sale, software development, and search engine optimization.

💨 Quick Hitters

• Local government officials in a Minnesota county are considering opening a municipal cannabis dispensary.

• More than 60 Jamaican students were hospitalized after eating cannabis-infused candy.

• Chicago Bears legend and Super Bowl champion Jim McMahon is launching a cannabis brand in Illinois.

• FloraWorks appointed cannabis scientist Dr. Mike McCormick as VP of Strategy.

• Vertically integrated Colorado cannabis company Native Roots is releasing a pumpkin spice cannabis vape pen cartridge for fall.

• Green Thumb Industries is kicking off its RYTHM Artist Series, a collection of strains that are chosen (and smoked) by artists spanning multiple genres, to unite music and cannabis culture.

📚 What We’re Reading

• The cannabis industry still lacks diversity. Improving access is a joint effort (Fast Company)

• The Complicated, Risky—but Potentially Lucrative—Business of Selling Cannabis (The Wall Street Journal)

• A landmark marijuana bill is headed to the Senate floor (CNN)

🔎 Job Board

• Senior Account Executive

  • Dutchie

  • $200,960

• Manager, Geographic Expansion Markets

  • Kiva

  • $115,000—$135,000

• Senior Product Manager

  • Surfside

Stay tuned for more cannabis industry news next week!

💚,

The Pre Roll Team

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