Illinois recreational cannabis sales hit a 2023 high in July

Canadian wildfires may not have been the only cause of increased smoke over Chicago last month.

Illinois recreational cannabis sales hit a new 2023 high in July, topping $140 million. It was the second biggest month since the state legalized adult-use marijuana more than 3 ½ years ago, with homegrown cannabis consumers providing most of the boost.

Total sales fell short of the December 2022 record of nearly $144 million, but dispensaries sold about 3.6 million cannabis items statewide in July, the most in the nascent industry’s history, according to a monthly report by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

Illinois residents spent a record $104 million on marijuana in July, while out-of-state consumption came in at a relatively tepid $36 million, according to the report.

Through July, the state has generated $924 million in recreational cannabis sales, a 4.3% increase over the same period last year, but the growth curve has been flattening. In 2022, recreational cannabis sales topped $1.55 billion, a 12.6% annual increase.

While in-state Illinois cannabis sales are up 12.7% through July, out-of-state sales are down 14.4%, according to state data.

One factor weighing on the Illinois market may be the February launch of recreational marijuana sales in Missouri, according to a recent report by cannabis research firm Headset.

“Sales in Illinois will also likely be negatively influenced by the recent legalization in Missouri, a border state,” the report said. “Headset has done analysis in the past showing that border towns see a lot of cannabis sales to out-of-state customers.”

Illinois legalized recreational marijuana in January 2020, and ranks third in the nation behind California and Michigan in total sales, with revenue driven in part by the highest retail prices in the country, according to Headset.

The average cannabis item costs $33.82 per gram in Illinois, 46% higher than Massachusetts, the second most expensive state to buy recreational weed. The dominance of vertically integrated companies — those that own the cultivation, manufacturing and retail distribution — along with fewer brands offered, contributes to higher prices in Illinois, according to Headset.

Cannabis companies with Chicago dispensaries are hoping for another big month in August, with a projected boost from the just-completed Lollapalooza music festival, which descended on Grant Park for four days through Sunday.

“Lolla weekend continues to be our strongest weekend of the year,” said Jason Erkes, a spokesman for Chicago-based Cresco Labs, which owns the Sunnyside dispensary about a mile from the festival in River North. “We were up about 10% over last year on customers through the door on Thursday and Friday, but that slowed down slightly Saturday and Sunday with the bad weather.”

Last year Lollapalooza was in July, so increased festival sales are entirely benefiting August this year, getting the month off to a promising start, Erkes said.

Illinois has 138 licensed recreational cannabis dispensaries.

rchannick@chicagotribune.com

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