Business, Lifestyle

Cannabis Trend Watch: 5 Industry Predictions for 2024

February 12, 2024 08:00 am ET Estimated Read Time: 4 Minutes

Fact checked by Kymberly Drapcho

Cannabis Trend Watch: 5 Industry Predictions for 2024

Veriheal is more than just a telehealth company — it’s a top source for the latest in cannabis news, culture, industry insights, and more. With the time we spend on our reporting comes an understanding of the political and industry changes on the horizon, as well as the consumer preferences driving the market. What follows is our prediction of the upcoming cannabis trends ready to pop into the mainstream in 2024.

1. Look For More Cannabis Brands To Partner With Mainstream Companies

If Green Thumb Industries’ 2023 collaboration with the iconic Magnolia Bakery showed us anything its that the cannabis industry’s size and influence can no longer be denied.

Gone are the days when associating with anything cannabis was seen as a bad move. Today, the $51.27 billion industry presents an opportunity for mainstream brands to reach a massive audience.

Cannabis brands too stand to benefit from collaborations like these. Partnering with a mainstream brand can legitimize cannabis companies in the eyes of consumers who may not have otherwise considered anything related to cannabis.

For these reasons, we predict that these type of collaborations will be all over the place in 2024.

2. More Cannabis Ads Aimed at Older Generations

cannabis trends older generation — Photo by León Ramisan

America is quickly becoming an older country. In 2019, 1 in 7 Americans were over the age of 65. The Centers for Disease Control predicts that by 2060, over 25% of Americans will be over the age of 65!

Chronic pain is amongst the most prominent health issues faced by older people. Unsuprisingly, an estimated 16% of older adults take prescription painkillers while 70% consume non-prescription pain killers.

According to our 2023 Preference Report, 70% of Americans use cannabis to feel relief/pain-free and relaxed. However, older American’s have always been a hard demographic to reach due to the old stigmas they hold about cannabis.

As older adults begin to represent a larger part of the population look for more cannabis brands to run ads highlighting their products’ pain relieving properties to this group.

3. Personalized Cannabis Product Accessories

Thanks to TikTok, society-wide trends in fashion and design are thing of the past. In their place are “microtrends” which introduce influences from various subcultures to the general public. As a result, fashion today is more of a personalized mishmash than a stiff “uniform” of stylistically similar items.

This shows that today’s consumers value self-expression above all — and not just when it comes to clothes. Recent microtrends have focused on the personalization of everything from Stanley Cups, to Crocs to piggy banks.

Cannabis consumers too want to express themselves through their cannabis products. Look for 2024 to be the year that small sellers and large brands release products meant to help cannabis consumers do just that. This includes items like unique vape holders, bong decals, and personalized flower bags.

4. Cannabis Bursts Onto The “Self-Care” Scene With Infused Lotions, Serums and More

cannabis trends cbd skincare — Photo by Elsa Olofsson

The global skincare market is a behemoth valued at 146.7 billion in 2021. By the year 2031 experts predict the already massive market will be worth a staggering $273.3 billion!

According to Pinterest’s yearly trend report, Gen Z’s interest in selfcare is expected to be a major driver of this growth. Gen Z’s slow climb to becoming a market force — coupled with their positive opinions on cannabis — perfectly coincides with the emergence of uber-effective cannabis and CBD-infused skincare products (and a huge cannabis trend to watch this year).

Look for cannabis-positive Gen Z shoppers to make these infused products a standout in the skincare market.

5. The Summer of CBD-Infused Drinks

Unlike their older counterparts, Gen Z is an incredibly alcohol adverse cohort. According to McKinsey, health concerns, price factors and changing taste are the biggest reasons Gen Z is avoiding alcohol.

This leaves a massive market gap for beverages that act as social lubricants. CBD-infused drinks can do just that without the health hazards associated with alcohol.

Though THC-infused drinks will eventually get their moment too — the truth is that federal regulations mean that CBD products are able to reach a widier audience.

As the weather starts to warm up, look for infused-cocktail brands to make a big push to put their products in front of consumers.

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Mexico-born and California-raised, Cesar is a Marketing Associate at Veriheal. When he’s not scouring social media for the latest internet drama, you can find him working on yet another collage project.