Instead of the Mighty Island, maybe P.E.I should be called the “High” and Mighty Island.
After all, we’ve just been crowned number one in Canada with the highest per-capita cannabis sales in the first six weeks of legalization.
And, our average sales of $13.83 per person is a comfortable lead over our provincial counterparts in Nova Scotia ($11.34), Newfoundland and Labrador ($8.17) and New Brunswick ($6.87).
it turns out, Atlantic Canada has two top four spots in per-capita sales. Yes, it seems that we’ve found another way to work together.
Of course, not everyone on the Island is buying pot. But a lot are.
From legalization day (Oct. 17) to Dec. 31, sales were a whopping $3.51 million, including $591,264 the first week alone.
What stands out in P.E.I.’s success is that with only three of four stores open, we weren’t at full capacity.
The sky is the limit with the fourth store in O’Leary opening on Friday.
For some, the O’Leary store will be remembered for a man walking in two days before opening during a media tour looking to buy pot.
Sometimes, you can have all the numbers in the world, but it is an incident like this that puts in perspective how motivated some Islanders are to buy pot.
Seeing the cars in the parking lot, the man believed the store was already open.
The Charlottetown store will also be remembered for the poor bloke who was first in line looking to make history with the inaugural P.E.I. cannabis purchase, only to be turned away for having an expired driver’s licence.
The bright side is that the province is raking in a lot of tax revenue from cannabis sales, which hopefully will be put to good use.
Legal cannabis has also been good for businesses and could be good for tourism if the province embraces its cannabis popularity. It isn’t too much of a stretch that P.E.I. could become a cannabis tourist destination in Canada and the world. Kevin Murphy and Steve Dunne’s business Canna Island is already thinking along these lines with plans to hold Atlantic Canada’s first recreational cannabis event this year.
We can only imagine what cannabis sales will be once edibles and infused beverages hit the market.
So, being number one has some advantages. A proud day for Islanders, right? Well, maybe a lot of us are not comfortable with the reputation that could follow from the sales numbers – that we’re a province of stoners.
There certainly is much more to being an Islander, but with the numbers as they are, our slogan as Canada’s Green Province may take on a whole new meaning.
