| 2022 was a challenging and intense year for the cannabis industry. Oversupply issues led to price compression. Legal operators continued to face competition from the illicit market. That’s just the start of it.
What’s to come in 2023? Will these challenges continue to remain a struggle for operators this year?
Colin Kelley, operating partner for Merida Capital Holdings and advisory board member for Cannabis Conference, laid it all out in his most recent article for CBT: 2023 Cannabis Industry Outlook: "Tough Times Create Exceptional Organizations."
Kelley wrote he anticipates some of the major themes the industry saw in 2022 to continue into 2023, including the industry’s march toward legalization. Kelley also predicts that the legal market will “still pull” from the traditional, or illicit, market in 2023; however, he notes that while the illicit market may be the “competition,” it doesn’t have to be the “enemy.”
“Let’s be open to the idea that we have something to learn from each other,” Kelley wrote. “In 2023, there will be more opportunities for traditional operators to enter legal markets. And, depending on regulatory and tax environments, the price compression of wholesale flower will accelerate the shift of operators and consumers to the legal market.”
Read more from Kelley and how these challenging times can create “exceptional organizations” here. -Andriana Ruscitto, Associate Editor | 
