WORKWEEK

Do you know Cann? 

Cann’s cannabis-infused tonics made their colorful & flavorful splash into cannabis in 2019, first launching into MedMen’s retail stores in California. 

Since then, the LGBTQ-owned brand has exploded and can be found in several states. Cann is currently available in California, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Nevada, and Illinois. 

There’s a lot to love about this brand, starting with the product itself. 

I absolutely love Cann’s lemon lavender tonic. 

I got to try a few while I was in Los Angeles for The Green Paper event in March (more events coming your way soon, btw!! 🤠) and I’m in love with them. 

The flavor is amazing. I can literally taste it in my mouth as I write this and I had it like 2.5 months ago (is that a weird thing to say to 24,000+ people or not?) 

It’s really freaking good y’all. I really love lavender drinks & Cann exceeded my expectations. The flavor is bold, just how I like it. 

The social tonics are made with natural ingredients and that’s an important factor to me when I buy cannabis products.

Side note: I think the sugar-laden edibles are phasing out of the market. We are, for the most part, a health-conscious community. That includes our cannabis products. 

Back to Cann: There are no artificial ingredients in the drinks. The lemon lavender drink is sweetened with agave and has fresh lemon and lavender-infused. 

It contains 2 milligrams of THC and 4 milligrams of CBD. 

And that is precisely the first reason why Cann is a landmark cannabis product. 

Cann’s low-dose drinks were the first of their kind to hit Eaze’s delivery platform in 2019. 

Cannabis products with small amounts of THC weren’t – and honestly still aren’t – widely popular. Most consumers are going for higher doses than Cann provides. 

But. A new demographic is emerging. And Cann is cashing in. 

“Consumers are looking for new ways to enjoy cannabis and Cann is perfect for those looking for a low-dose, sociable option. We’ve met a unique market need and have seen great success with our sales in select retail stores across Southern California so far…,” said Jake Bullock, one of Cann’s founders, when the product hit Eaze’s platform. 

There’s a genuine need for products like this, and this wasn’t necessarily the case even 10 years ago. 

The number of American adults ditching alcohol is steadily increasing by the year, rising from 20% to 28% from 2002 to 2018.  Alcohol abuse decreased by approximately half during the same time. 

The early 2000s were filled with late-night parties and alcohol was almost glorified by young American adults in the media, as the Hollywood nightlife scene raged on. 

But somewhere along the way, young adults had had enough and slowly began to ditch the drinks. 

Cann’s low-dose drinks give adults the option to sip on something a little different. It’s not like alcohol-free beer, which gives you the taste and none of the effects.

Cann’s drinks give you a buzz, but it’s lighter. It can be compared to a light beer or wine – but there’s no hangover.

And if you want more than one, you’ll still be coherent enough to socialize. 

The product is amazing. But what I love most about Cann is that they are unapologetically themselves. 

Cann is proudly LGBTQ-owned, and the brand’s many star-studded marketing campaigns are masterpieces. 

The LGBTQ+ movement has been a leader in cannabis advocacy efforts since at least the 1980s during the AIDS epidemic. Much of these efforts are what led to Proposition 215, California’s 1996 medical cannabis bill. 

The San Fransisco Cannabis Buyers’ Club was founded by a gay man named Dennis Robert Peron, a cannabis and gay rights activist who was also friends with Harvey Milk, the first openly-gay elected official in U.S. history. 

Harvey Milk was assassinated less than one year after his election on November 27th, 1978, alongside George Moscone, who was serving as the Mayor of San Fransisco at that time. Most people believe Milk’s murder was a gruesome display of homophobia. 

Peron’s San Fransisco Cannabis Buyers’ Club was the first known underground medical cannabis dispensary, and it became the place to go for people living with AIDS and other terminal conditions. 

Cann clings close to the LGBTQ community’s role in cannabis history, as we enter a new era where both homosexuality and cannabis are stepping out of dark times and into brighter days. 

The brand represents and supports the gay community with every step, all year long. They are sassy, fun, welcoming, exciting, and proud to be them. 

Yes, Cann is unapologetically themselves for all of those reasons. But I also think they are unapologetic in ways that so many cannabis brands aren’t:

And that’s knowing their audience and staying committed to that audience 🤷‍♀️ 

Cann isn’t trying to be the most potent product on the market. They aren’t trying to get you stoned. Cann’s products are geared towards people who want to be social with friends without alcohol. 

And have a ton of fun doing it. And that’s pretty much it. They aren’t trying to be anything else. And wow, if that isn’t working out swimmingly. 

Cann is insanely successful and just raised a $27 million Series A round in February of this year. Some of the investors were celebrities like Nina Dobrev and Adam Devine, the latter of whom had just worked on a campaign with Cann to promote their limited-time flavor. 

Cann had already seen investors like Ruby Rose, Rebel Wilson, and Gwenyth Paltrow in 2020. 

The cannabis beverage category is small but mighty. And I’ll be the first to admit: I wasn’t necessarily bullish on beverages until recently.

You might have seen my newsletter a few weeks ago discussing Boston Beer’s entrance to Canadian cannabis.

I talked about my hesitancy regarding the sustainability of the cannabis beverage category, and how my Twitter community shifted my perspective. 

I’ve always loved cannabis beverages but had a hard time seeing them as a viable replacement for alcohol, primarily because most people won’t justify the cost.

But. The category’s growth was up 22% year-over-year in 2020 compared to 2019. 57% of people who do consume cannabis beverages do so at least weekly.

Approximately 188,000 of the 4.7 million cannabis consumers in the U.S. prefer beverages as their primary form factor. Over 1 million consumers drink beverages. It’s not their preferred method, but they drink them.

Using that data, I changed my opinion and believe the cannabis beverage category is bubbling under the surface – getting ready to take off and give alcohol a run for its money. 

Cann was one of the first companies to capitalize on this and they’ve done it so well. 

The company’s branding and marketing are impeccable, attracting consumers from all communities, but especially making LGBTQ+ consumers feel seen, heard, and valued. 

Cann markets their drinks as social tonics, perfect for a fun night with friends. Every bit of their marketing and copywriting makes you feel like a best friend. 

This approach makes consumers feel like Cann is definitely the right choice for time with friends – because hey, even the company is my friend. 

Pair it with the bright colors and packaging – it’s no wonder why Cann is doing circles around other cannabis brands, some preexisting Cann’s launch by decades. 

In a world where cannabis brands are trying to appeal to everyone – Cann isn’t. 

So when it comes to low dose social beverages and Pride-filled marketing every month of the year: you can take it or leave it. Because Cann has no intentions of changing.