HONOLULU (AP) — The state’s medical marijuana dispensaries could generate between $12 million and $38 million in revenue in their first year of operations, according to the Hawaii Dispensary Alliance. ADVERTISING HONOLULU (AP) — The state’s medical marijuana dispensaries could
HONOLULU (AP) — The state’s medical marijuana dispensaries could generate between $12 million and $38 million in revenue in their first year of operations, according to the Hawaii Dispensary Alliance.
A report from the trade group predicts those figures could grow to as much as $80.5 million by 2018. The forecast is based on the state’s more than 14,000 registered medical marijuana patients growing to between 30,000 and 40,000 in the next two years.
Christopher Garth, the alliance’s executive director, said the state’s economic gain from the opening of the dispensaries depends largely on the growth of registered medical marijuana patients.
“As participation grows and as the professional and social stigma deteriorates, we have an opportunity as an industry and as a state to really elevate to a greater level and greater expectation,” Garth said in the report.
The revenue projections for the first year take into account how much each patient will spend at dispensaries based on national prices — between $100 and $200 per month, or $1,200 and $3,600 a year. The average spent per transaction at marijuana retailers nationwide is $72.
