Let’s face it. 2024 was another tough year for the cannabis industry and the people it serves. We saw last year’s hopes for reform go on standby yet again, in large part with the cannabis rescheduling hearings pushed to 2025, and SAFER Banking never making it to the Senate floor for a vote, despite the legislation being a priority for U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer in 2024. And many cannabis companies shuttered, as price compression, taxes, rising inputs and consumer inflation, which strains discretionary spending, took heavy tolls. As we heard from these cannabis leaders, it was indeed a rough year for the industry; but despite the year’s heartaches, 2024 held a lot of silver linings for cannabis as well, and these operators are still standing—and thriving—as 2025 takes off.
Here are their 2024 reflections and 2025 aspirations and predictions:
Chris BallPhoto courtesy Ball Family Farms
2024 takeaways:
“It definitely was an interesting year, to say the least, just as far as the market, price compression, social media and all the blockage there, household name brands or culture brands who we thought would be around forever going belly up, getting into a lot of different shit and legal problems.
I think it was a very tough year for a lot of people. I think price compression being the biggest—our price per eighth, per pound, almost getting down 40 percent. In a way, that was scary. But … we were still able to make it through the year and be profitable.
Some of the competition who had come into this industry and didn't deserve to be here, more of them have started to fall by the wayside. … They couldn’t sustain it. … They didn't have real culture—culture men and women behind the brands. They came and threw a bunch of money at it, thinking that it was just ‘If you build it, they will come.’ And that's just not our culture. It'll never be our culture. You really got to understand what you're doing with these plants and the genetics and the terpene profiles and the branding, and you really got to tap into the cannabis culture to have success at it.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
“I hope … that more of corporate cannabis finds its way out of our industry. I'm hoping that the competition from culture cannabis gets a lot more aggressive. This is a sport, and if you're going to play at the highest level and grow cannabis at the highest level, we welcome the competition. We welcome the innovation. We welcome the sport of it.
At the end of the day, the more us culture guys compete to grow the best product, the better product there is for the consumers to try and for the new consumers coming into the cannabis space. That competition … keeps the industry healthy. It keeps the consumers coming back for more and trying different things. So, hoping for a lot more of that.
I’m hoping for SAFE Banking. Looking ahead to 2025, that our government can figure out a way to get us to be able to bank our money safely and not get hit with such high fees. I’m looking forward to more states to come online, more states adopting social equity, giving people who have been negatively impacted by the war on drugs an opportunity to participate in each state.
This is something that I'm particularly excited about. We have a program at Ball Family Farms called Rare Breeds that we're starting in 2025, where we go out and find young, talented entrepreneurs—whether they're still growing in the black market, whether they are really great breeders and haven't had the right platform, whether they’re really great growers, marketers, all those things.
There's a lot of people out there who are really good at cannabis, but maybe they don't know anyone with the license, or they don't work for a company where they can showcase their talent legally. So, we are going to launch a program where we're actively seeking these individuals to give them … a platform to showcase their talent, to maybe have their own brand one day or work at a cultivation facility or breed strains and then help them start their own breeding business through Ball Family Farms.
I was able to hire a guy last year, and he's completely changed my company. And he was working in the black market a year ago when I found him, but he just didn't have the right support behind him to showcase his talent. …
In a year's time, he's given me eight new genetics. We won our first competition, and the sky's the limit. We're about to drop his own brand now that we're going to incubate, put it out and tell his story. He's the one that sparked the catalyst for this Rare Breeds program. Because I'm like, ‘If I found you that easy, there's got to be more.’”
David BowPhoto courtesy Origine Nature
Based in Quebec, Canada, Origine Nature is a leading producer of high-quality craft cannabis. The company prides itself on premium product, an empowering company culture, and a commitment to educating the public and destigmatizing cannabis.
2024 takeaways:
David Bow: “We've seen the price of cannabis go up [in Canada], which has been new. After five years of legalization, it's kind of the first time that's happened, I think, so that's positive for sure. We've also seen a moment where the demand for cannabis has outpaced the supply. That's nationally, and I would argue internationally as well. I don't know about in the States—I'm not familiar enough with America.
I would say—and this is specific to Canadian companies—if you've made it to this point, the chances are you've got a pretty solid company, and you should be able to continue operating, except for extreme situations, disaster or whatever. But the companies that are around seem to be finally maturing, and the industry seems to be maturing.”
Alexandre GauthierPhoto courtesy Origine Nature
Also international opened up. So, we're seeing so many players in Canada now going international. All those countries have a need for cannabis. It looks like we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
From the other point of being accepted in Canada, where [Prime Minister] Justin Trudeau is finally probably going to leave, we're going to see new government come in place. We're hoping for reforms. We're hoping for cannabis to be a pillar in Canada's economy, to bring a lot of money from cannabis that we would be shipping worldwide.
Also, as far as technology goes, for me, we kind of saw a hiatus. In the first five years, there was all those shiny objects, all that tech that came from other industries that got rebranded with the 30-percent cannabis tax on them. … We're now entering a more sophisticated [phase] of the industry, where we're talking AI, actual advanced technology. We have some very nice projects that we're looking at for 2025 that five years ago we could only dream of. So, it feels like we're finally crossing the threshold to having the real science, the real edge on technology, integrating everything that the technology has to offer into cannabis cultivation.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
Bow: “I think [Canada is] one of a couple of countries in the world [uniquely positioned to capitalize on the international market]. … Do we have an edge? For sure, because we're first to market, we're first in legalization nationally or one of the first. We’re definitely the most developed cannabis system, I think, overall. But I'm not willing to pat myself or the industry on the back and say, ‘Okay, guys, we're there.’
We should be the dominating force in this industry, or top five, let's say. And I think you can lose that position really quickly. So, I do think that we really have got to pay attention and keep moving in that direction. …
I think we'll see edibles, vapes, noncombustible techniques continue to gain traction. I also think the preroll market will continue to dominate. … Usually, you buy your vice in the easiest method of consumption, and I think prerolls is one of those. We’ve seen the preroll industry really develop year over year, by leaps and bounds in product quality.
If we look inward for Origine Nature, 2025 will be another expansion year. We're building out our Phase Three, which is going to be focused on packaging. It will give us a little more flower in our Phase One and Two, but it's really just to set us up so we can be even more prepared for the market through EU GMP compliance and other things. We're trying to gear up to be more of an international player. We're already playing there but want to be even more present as we see locations open up. …
Part of what always brought me toward cannabis was to be part of this [new industry from the beginning] and experience this opportunity, which is truly not even once in one lifetime, but once in a multitude of lifetimes. It’s great to see this globalization that's occurring, and I'm really excited to see how that continues. I have the most positive and utmost confidence that it will continue to prosper. … I'm expecting an epic year for the industry—for Origine Nature, for Alex and myself, but for the industry as a whole, nationally and internationally.”
Gauthier: “I am hoping also to see the beginning of the end of the synthetic cannabinoid market … all those cannabinoids that … basically have been created to circumvent laws that weren't moving fast enough to cover all the cannabinoids.
… We have an opportunity—for those of us that were in the legacy market—to grow, to become the businessmen that we always knew we could be, to have a positive impact on society. But if people decide not to play within the regulations, …they don't want to fill logbooks and follow regulations, well, guess what? The suits and the big hedge funds and all of those people you don't want to see control cannabis will step in and will take control. So, you have the chance of a lifetime. Believe in it, establish a solid team, learn the rules, play by the rules, and cannabis will take care of you, like it always has.”
Nicolas GuarinoPhoto courtesy Jaunty
Jaunty (formerly known as Naturae) is a top-selling New York cannabis producer and brand. With a focus on vapes—and an expanding product portfolio—the company is working to “bridge the gap between oil and flower.”
2024 takeaways:
“2024 was the biggest year yet, both for Jaunty and for the New York cannabis market as a whole. Our state’s licensed adult-use cannabis market has officially kicked into high gear, and at the time of this [interview], we’re expected to pass $1 billion USD in sales by the end of the year, according to the OCM [New York Office of Cannabis Management]. After a rough 2023 marked by limited store openings, over-supply and hindered growth due to lawsuits, New York now has over 260 licensed dispensaries open selling more than $100 million in legal cannabis per month, and that number is expected to reach 500 across the state by the end of 2025. (Editor’s note; As of Jan. 20, there are 289 licensed adult-use dispensaries open in New York state, according to the OCM.) Enforcement on illicit shops has also increased significantly since that issue peaked in 2023, and in certain areas legal store sales have recovered 98 percent-plus thanks to those efforts.
For Jaunty, we’ve been focusing on expanding our product portfolio and speed-to-market capabilities, and we’re proud of the success we’ve seen on this front. We released 25 new SKUs in 2024, including edibles, tinctures, concentrates and vapes—our bread and butter, all part of our mission to close the gap between oil and flower. The expanded product portfolio also reflects our company’s plans to develop THC products that appeal to the broad spectrum of adult-use consumers, from connoisseurs seeking ultra-premium 100-percent solventless live rosin to casual cannabis consumers and first-timers exploring economically priced, approachable options that taste great with predictable effects.
We also announced a company rebrand this year. When we started in hemp back in 2017, we named our business Naturae. However, we’ve now adopted the name of our top-selling house brand, Jaunty, indicative of our consumer-oriented approach to production.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
“It’s full steam ahead for Jaunty, as we just dropped three new products going into 2025, available in most licensed dispensaries across New York State: Jaunty Palms disposable vapes; Jaunty Live Rosin vape cartridges; and Jaunty Drops cannabis tinctures. And we will have our Jaunty Live Resin vape carts out by the end of Q1 2025, which we could not be more excited about due to the advanced filtration tech we will be applying to create a truly differentiated product.
From an industry standpoint, there’s a few things I’d like to see change. In New York, one of the key issues holding operators back—especially smaller, independent operators—is a tax burden. A crucial step forward would have been for New York State Governor Kathy Hochul to sign a bill that was on her desk to fix it—A10196/S9359, which would shift the filing of wholesale taxes for cannabis cultivators and processors from a quarterly cycle to an annual one, but unfortunately it was vetoed even after receiving overwhelming support from the Assembly and Senate. We will keep fighting this and hope to work it into the Governor’s upcoming budget. The current quarterly payment system is problematic because it requires businesses to pay taxes before receiving payments from that period’s sales, so it almost guarantees that even the most successful companies remain strapped for cash.
It will be critical that OCM employ a data-driven approach in this crucial upcoming year, especially to supply-side licensing, to avoid the same pitfalls that so many state markets currently face due to over licensing (California, Oklahoma, Michigan, Massachusetts, etc.), including wholesale and retail pricing collapse due to oversaturation.
Another industry development I’d like to see in 2025 is more transparent labeling and standardized, regulated terms indicating extraction process and the type of oil used in each cannabis product. It should be uniform throughout the entire industry, mainly indicating the primary oil types such as live/cured resin, hash, live rosin and distillate. Consumers should be able to easily understand what they’re buying—and for extract-based products, two key aspects are the type of oil and extraction method.”
Robert GroesbeckPhoto courtesy Planet 13
Planet 13 is a vertically integrated cannabis company with cultivation, production and dispensary operations in California, Florida, Illinois, and Nevada. The company operates 34 locations nationwide, including the nation’s largest dispensary—just off the Las Vegas Strip.
2024 takeaways:
Robert Groesbeck: “From a company standpoint, we think ’24 was overall a really good year for us. We completed that acquisition of the Florida asset, VidaCann, in May. So that was a significant milestone in the company's history. We're still integrating that operation, and we're getting close. We're just about fully rebranded down there to the Planet name, and we're continuing to build out the footprint and make significant capital improvements to our distribution and our production and cultivation facilities. In Vegas, we opened up our lounge, Dazed! Consumption Lounge, in April and completed construction on the plaza, Planet 13 Plaza area, which now are both fully operational and allow us to do things in the building that we previously couldn't do from an event standpoint. So, we're really excited about that.
On the macro side of things, personally, I'm excited to put 2024 in the rearview mirror. It's been a very challenging year for the industry overall. The economy is difficult, and we'll see what happens here in ’25 with the change of administration. But we do know from talking with our customers daily that ’24 has been especially challenging. We see that at the terminal—the basket size and basket average for sales. … We're fortunate as a company, we've got a pretty strong balance sheet, so we've been able to weather the storm. But like everyone else, we're sure looking to better times in ’25. …
Nothing’s easy. Nothing's gotten easier, and I don't anticipate that it will. Just from a pure operational standpoint, everything we do is more costly. Capital projects are far more expensive. The times to secure permits is as lengthy as it's ever been. So that creates operational challenges, but again, we're accustomed to that. We're just going to continue to navigate through the systems as best we can.
Florida is a little different in that I think the industry was pretty optimistic that we were going to see [Amendment] 3 pass. And, unfortunately, it did not. So that's had a pretty significant impact upon the public MSOs that have exposure to Florida. We're, of course, dealing with that. We don't have much control over day-to-day stock prices, but we're still very bullish on Florida. The medical market continues to be robust. We still believe that there's a lot of upside there for us as we continue to build out our store network. … We're optimistic by the end of the year, we can maybe get upwards of 32 [stores] open.
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So again, we're very excited about it, but it is challenging, and it's going to continue to be challenging until this economy turns. … I, like all of us in the industry—we all deal with the same issues—am hopeful that things will start going in the right direction here in ’25.
Larry SchefflerPhoto courtesy Planet 13
We also started a new LLC, Planet 13 Lifestyles, that is separate from the cannabis-touching part of our company, where we can now start advertising the lifestyle brand. … This allows us to get into the airports where they would never touch cannabis before. But in this company, Planet 13 Lifestyles, we're actually selling apparel. We're not selling a single thing involving cannabis. It's really allowing us to get into a reach of advertising for Planet 13 that we hadn't been able to do before.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
Groesbeck: “Interest rates are still very challenging. We're hopeful we see some drops there. Little disappointed in the Fed's announcement [in December] that they may limit their rate cuts to two in ’25. Obviously, it had an adverse effect in the markets [the day after]. But again, I think until the consumer has more money in their wallet, we're going to continue to run lean here in our company and in the sector.
We live or die by our customers, and if they don't have the free cash or the ability to buy our products, our registers don't ring. So, we're hopeful that things turn for them as well—gas comes down, mortgage rates and rents stabilize or come down, food prices start to moderate or come down. It's just a whole host of issues that are having an impact on everyone, not just Planet 13.
So, we're … just going to continue to see what happens at the national level. Maybe one of these dreams will come true, and we'll see some federal catalyst, whether that's SAFE Banking or rescheduling. I think you have to be an eternal optimist to even be in this business. And we're both hopeful that something happens. We've had a lot of false starts, as you know, and we thought in ’24 we were going to see one of those catalysts drop.”
Scheffler: “We're optimistic. We're hearing different things through our lobbyists and other people we know in Washington that President Trump's idea has always been to get so many things off the federal level—one of them has always been cannabis, to get it out of the federal level and give it back to the states, and every state decides what they want to do. It's always a welcome thought to hear that. Now that he's in, we're hoping for a little bit of help in that direction. So, I'm very optimistic. I think we're over some of the hard part we were in with the last four years. And I think it's going to work out just fine.”
Sarah and Obie StricklerPhoto courtesy Grown Rogue
With roots in Oregon’s Rogue Valley, Grown Rogue is a craft cannabis company operating in Oregon, Michigan, Minnesota, Maryland, and New Jersey. The company is passionate about customer-centric craft, premium quality, authentic community, and disciplined growth.
2024 takeaways:
Obie Strickler: “For Grown Rogue, it was another fantastic year. We have embarked upon our objective of becoming one of the nationally recognized cannabis flower companies. We launched New Jersey, got that project constructed, opened, and the first sales happened [in 2024]. It was a huge undertaking by our entire team … as we embark upon scaling our business. It's given me a lot more respect for the complexity of what it takes to go from one state to the next, and we've learned a lot through the process. We know the next one will be better, which is going to be Illinois, as we take learnings from New Jersey and apply those and look at the future states we're going to go after.
I just really couldn't have been more humbled with the intensity and the drive from the team that puts in the work every single day to make us successful. … Watching the Oregon team hold the ship steady, as we spending more time in other markets.
And I would say Oregon is better this year than it was last year, which is just a testament to what they do every day. Same thing in Michigan, just continuing to improve and perform and compete in these markets, especially under price pressure, like we see across the U.S.
Oregon and Michigan, as more mature markets, still see price pressure. It cuts into margins, forces us to be more efficient, forces us to get better-quality product for our customers to make sure … we still delight them with the offerings that we put out. We launched new products, like prerolls, into Oregon. We launched a new brand in Oregon and Michigan called Yeti, which has gotten really, really good traction.
Grown Rogue is unique in terms of what we do. Really clean balance sheets, really focused on the customer, focused on craft. We don't want to be the biggest. We kind of have the scale that we like to put forward. … Partnerships are good in New Jersey, and that's one of the critical components of Grown Rogue's expansion—having the right local partners that understand the markets, have what we call the ground hustle, to deal with some of the things that happen just inside of these markets that's nuanced.
We talk a lot about how probably 70 percent, 80 percent of our business should be pretty much the same from market to market, and then the other 20 or 30 is very … specific to the customer base, the economic environment, what products they look for, the regulatory structure, how you navigate the political environments. … We're not perfect, but we learn quickly and we adjust as needed in order to continue along the path that we've laid out for ourselves.
In the broader sense, I think [2024] was a fairly disappointing year as it relates to cannabis progress. [Amendment 3] in Florida did not pass, which I think was quite a surprise. We didn't see the regulatory shift federally that we expected. SAFE banking is still not done. The [r]escheduling process has been delayed further.
… Hopefully we'll see better progress, and better outcomes coming into 2025.
One thing I know about Grown Rogue is—we said this since the beginning—we're building a business that is not dependent upon federal regulatory reform. It's not dependent upon regulatory capture. We can compete in competitive markets. We can compete in noncompetitive markets. And so, we're going to continue running our play, adapting as necessary to conditions that we see. But I think just for the health of the industry as a whole, [we need to see] some of these reforms that are sitting.
That being said, … it never goes as fast as we want. But you think about where we were 10 years ago, when the Cole Memo came out a little bit before then, we've made quite a bit of progress over the last 10 years. And I think about how much progress has been made in the last five years in terms of acceptance, and more states going adult use or implementing medical programs, so people have access. As you sit back a little bit, I think it's actually moving pretty quickly. But we'd like to see a little bit more reform coming, which hopefully '25 will deliver that.”
Sarah Strickler: “I agree 100 percent with Obie. But what I love watching the most is from our team. To watch them expand and grow, and the leaders that have risen up to take the challenge on. For me personally, the Grown Rogue journey is seeing people elevate and do things that they never thought that they could do or get things from their life that they never thought that they could get, building a life for themselves that is meaningful and impactful and that they're proud of the work that they do. And build a life outside of not just cannabis, but really feeling good about who they are and what they do and being a part of the community.
So for me, building our culture from that, I think when people are happy and proud, that's evident in the plant and then what we're offering to our consumers. So I think it's kind of this circular, beautiful, harmonious connection. …
I think people are your biggest asset, and our team is everything to us. Without them, none of this would be possible. So for me, probably one of the biggest highlights, not just this year, but year after year, is our team and their dedication to the craft and the pride that they bring day in and day out to what we do.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
Obie: “I think one of the most interesting developing components right now is the hemp piece. It looks like it's going to get continued through the Farm Bill. I have not been tracking it super closely, but I think it's providing access in a way that is very interesting.
I think it's being abused a little bit—I think there's some diversion happening through that FDA hole in the Farm Bill. But I also think it's just creating more acceptance. And so, for me, that's maybe the biggest story for the industry as whole, watching how that shakes out. You're seeing some pretty active businesses starting to be focused on beverages. You saw GTI just make a pretty large jump into that through the Agrify investment and then purchasing Señorita. You've got one of the most respected and biggest players in our space jumping into that, feet first. It's something we've looked at a little bit. It's probably outside of our core, as we maintain a lot of focus. But I think that's really interesting, as an industry.
I think the other thing it'll be interesting to watch is how the markets shake out. I mean, there's a lot of distress in the space right now, with businesses trying to find their footing and clean up their balance sheets to not only survive but thrive in what is an ever-changing industry, as we see a more competitive landscape. The capital markets are still kind of chaos; most stocks are down quite a bit. Grown Rogue is publicly traded, so seeing how that plays out and the frustration that you see from the investment side—we don't work for the shareholders, but a lot of their capital is what allows us to fuel our growth. So hopefully recovering that is helpful to all businesses—all boats rise on a rising tide. So, we'll see if that occurs.
I think there's—rightly so—a lot of pessimism around should these businesses be around, with their product suites and really just how they're approaching their customer. I'd love to see more focus on the customer, more focus on operational efficiency. But I think those will be two big storytells this year to watch: How do these companies that are overleveraged and under distress navigate that environment—and ’25 is going to be really interesting to watch, because everyone expected federal reform to give kind of a boost to their opportunity set.”
Sarah: “I think just continuing to do work in our community here, where our headquarters are in Southern Oregon, just having … our community really embracing what we're trying to do and what we're trying to build. … So continuing down that path, with those relationships that have been established, and normalizing an industry that is new and has for so long been seen as taboo. …
I think something that doesn't necessarily get talked about or highlighted enough is all the positive changes that are happening within communities, kind of holistically. What role cannabis is playing in each of our communities that we are existing in and thriving in; everything that gets reaped from the benefits of what we're doing.
So, … the sky's the limit for us right now, and the future looks really bright for us.”
Hanna BrandPhoto courtesy Autumn Brands
Women- and family-owned Autumn Brands is an award-winning California cannabis company located on the Santa Barbara coast. The family’s hand-selected, greenhouse-grown flower is produced with a focus on zero pesticides and full-circle sustainability.
2024 takeaways:
“While the industry continues to face its challenges, we’re proud to say that our team at Autumn Brands has made significant strides. Despite the market's tough conditions, we saw strong growth in sales, and our momentum is heading in the right direction.
A highlight of the year was our recognition at various award shows, including securing 2nd place [in “Other”/non-infused prerolls] at the prestigious California State Fair for our Blue Limonene Prerolls. Additionally, we launched several exciting new products, with one of my personal favorites being the Double Dream strain, which has quickly become a standout in our lineup. We also responded to our partners' needs by introducing a variety of new packaging options, including the 10-pack Diamond Infused prerolls, 5-pack Minis, and 2-pack prerolls.
Another milestone for us was the launch of now melt in March, a line of product that marks an exciting new direction for our brand as we move beyond farming and into the wellness category. I’m especially excited about the Bath Crystals, which have quickly become one of my favorite products.”
2025 hopes and predictions:
“Looking ahead to 2025, we are committed to advancing the conversation around sustainable, zero-pesticide cannabis and continuing to support family-owned farms. We’ll also be working closely with nurseries to test and release new strains that will set the bar higher for the industry.
Additionally, we are excited to explore the vape market in response to requests from our customers. We're looking into creating a spray-free cannabis oil that meets the demand for zero-pesticide products. Our focus will also remain on being supportive partners to our dispensaries and providing in-person education to both budtenders and consumers, ensuring that everyone has access to the knowledge and resources they need to make informed decisions.
We are excited for what’s to come in 2025, and we can’t wait to continue this journey with all of our partners and customers.”
*These interviews were edited for length and clarity.
Jolene Hansen is an award-winning freelance writer and editor specializing in the commercial horticulture, cannabis and CEA industries. Reach her at [email protected].
