As the experts in the pre-roll category, RollPros is proud to present the second release in our series of market reports.

Our analysis identifies both positive trends and negative red flags that will help you make better decisions for your brand and business.

Note: Data provided by BDSA and reflects Q1 2023 unless otherwise noted.

Executive Summary

The popularity trend line of pre-rolls has marched up and to the right in most markets from 2018 to 2023, and Michigan is no exception. With a stout $91 million in sales from January to March 2023 (a 13% jump from Q4 2022 at $80.4 million), consumers headed into the new year with a higher appetite for infused pre-rolls touting an impressive 10.3% leap QoQ. That increase isn’t due to new market entrants, as the number of brands remained primarily static. What do you get when you take a hot product consumers want and add zero new competitive entrants into your market (with an already relatively wide-open field of competitors)? The perfect environment for boosting top-line revenue with new potential product lines and consolidating market share within a still developing market.

title-michiganmarket

Q1 sales:

$91 million

(+13% QoQ)

Standard pre-roll sales:

$55 million

(-10.3% QoQ)

Infused pre-roll sales:

$36 million

(+10.3% QoQ)

Total brands:

192

(-2 QoQ)

Total products:

3,573

(+33 QoQ)
1

Jeeter

2

Cali-Blaze

3

Glorious
Cannabis

4

Stiizy

5

Redbud
Roots

1
logo-element-site

Hybrid Strains Infused Pre-roll, 1.00g, 1 Pack
2
Peach Infused Pre-roll, 1.00g, 1 Pack
3
Hybrid Strain Blends- Infused Pre-Roll, 1.20g, 1 Pack
4
MAC #1 – Pre-Roll, 1.00g, 1 Pack
5
Baby Jeeter – Bubba Gum – Infused Pre-Roll, .50g, 5 Pack

Who’s Smoking

JEETER

jeeter.com

With 10% of the pre-roll category in hand, Jeeter has emerged as the number one cannabis brand in The Mitten State. Boasting an impressive 4% QoQ growth, they claim five of Michigan’s top 20 pre-roll products. Jeeter’s secret sauce? A massive marketing budget, strong culture, and serious approach to branding and operational excellence. With endorsement deals from celebs like Dwayne Wade, limited-edition Kobe Bryant joints, and a soccer ball-shaped World Cup pack, Jeeter is now synonymous with pre-roll success.

Cali-Blaze

Cali-blaze.com

Big-name MSOs like Jeeter aren’t the only ones dominating the market. Local Michigan powerhouse brand, Cali-Blaze, is close on Jeeter’s heels with 8% of the market share and 7 of the top 20 pre-roll products. While they started the year a little sluggish compared to Q4 2022 (-6%), Cali-Blaze takes home the silver medal by offering quality products, like their Tarantula pre-rolls, that are more affordable than many of their competitors.

Glorious Cannabis

Gloriouscanna.com

The Rochester Hills-based brand put itself on the map with its award-winning Icewater bubble hash-infused pre-rolls which have helped grow its category share to 6%. Glorious has emerged as a significant market contender with four infused pre-roll products making the list of top-selling pre-rolls in the Wolverine state using a solventless ice-and-water-only production process.

Element Extractions

Elementextractions.com

Though they only currently have 1% of the category share, Lansing’s Element Extractions saw a stratospheric rise with a 118% QoQ change. A multi-Cannabis Cup-winning brand, Element was undoubtedly buoyed by their claiming of the number one product spot of one-gram hybrid strain blends of infused pre-rolls.

Who’s Sloping

Rare Michigan Genetics

Raremichigangenetics.com

The award-winning cultivators have been developing craft cannabis since 2010 when MI residents were first eligible for the newly created caregiver program. Known for their unique and exotic strains, like fan favorite Floozie, Rare Michigan Genetics saw a slight dip at -9% to start off 2023.

Michigrown

Michigrown.com

The Muskegon manufacturer saw a -20% drop in revenue QoQ. Still, time will tell whether a 36-hour spring blitz that landed them on the shelves of all JARS dispensaries statewide will provide a QoQ boost in sales heading into the summer and the rest of the year.

WonderBrett

Wonderbrettstore.com

The legendary West Coast lifestyle brand, Wonderbrett, entered Michigan in 2022 with six strains but saw a decline in revenue of 31% QoQ from Q4 2022 to Q1 2023 in the pre-roll category. The legacy left-coast brand may need to leverage its historic brand better to gain a foothold in the mitten and exceed its 1% market share. We LOVE the Wonderbrett vibe and team and know they have so much untapped potential in the Michigan market. (Call us guys! We’re here when you’re ready!)

Infused Is Exploding

Though the Michigan market is still experiencing the growing pains and instability that all middle-age markets do, no one let Michiganders in on that little tidbit of info. The surge in popularity in the infused pre-roll category gives it a whopping 40% of the market share that rivals those legacy markets. It puts the product subcategory on the map as a massive opportunity that pre-roll companies cannot (and should not) ignore.

For brands looking to take a large share of the inhalable cannabis product category, it would be foolish not to take advantage of this current trend. Following the record sales years for many states during the Covid years and then seeing sales declines for the first time in 2022, capitalizing on the product sizing consumers want – 1.0+ gram singles – is a no-brainer.

The Rise of the Multipack

While multipacks dominate most established markets, only 6 of the top 20 products fall under this category. But here’s the kicker – 5 of those six multipacks are infused. Multipacks are on the upswing, with each showing 100% or better growth quarter over quarter (QoQ) and some surpassing that.

Take Jeeter’s Baby Jeeter Blue Zkittlez infused .5g 5-pack, for example, skyrocketed by a mind-boggling 980% QoQ. When we come across numbers that ridiculous, we typically suspect a soft launch or a last-minute quarter entry. However, they are not alone in this growth frenzy. Several other products on the market boast 100%, 200%, 300%, or even 400% QoQ growth.

Here’s our insider tip: there is a golden opportunity for an infused multipack option that’s affordable and priced to move. The average cost of an infused multipack is a whopping $36, or a hefty $7.20 for a .5g joint. Now, considering that all but one of these multipacks is a five-pack, that’s a substantial price tag for a daily consumer. (The exception to this price surge is Redemption’s Mafia Funeral, a non-infused 10-pack that offers a more wallet-friendly option at $34.56, or a mere $3.45 per 7g joint.)

Get ready, Michigan. The multipack revolution is here.

Beyond the Big Dogs

In Michigan’s pre-roll market, the landscape goes beyond just the dominant MSO players like Jeeter, Stiizy, and Cookies. It’s a wide-open field where local brands can make their name known and hang with the big dogs. Cali Blaze, Glorious Cannabis, Redbud Roots, Dragonfly, Redemption, Goldkine, and Element are all Michigan-based and among the top 10 brands, collectively accounting for 24% of the market. Surprisingly, the number of brands remains relatively steady at just over 190, showing that growth comes from current players, not new entrants. Contrast this data point with other markets, like Oregon, which has 256 active pre-roll brands despite a smaller population and market size.

While a few brands shine at the top, the market beyond the top four positions is fragmented, with no brand holding more than 3% of the market share. Positions 9-20 only control about 1% each. Beyond the most prominent contenders, the playing field is relatively ripe for the taking, and ambitious brands can seize opportunities and carve out their own little realm of success in the Great Lake State.

Summary

The popularity of pre-rolls has been on a consistent upward trajectory in the cannabis market, including Michigan. The state has witnessed a significant increase in sales, with $91 million generated in the first quarter of 2023, a 13% jump from the previous quarter. (Compared to 6% growth of the market as a whole). This cosmic rise in demand is fueled mainly by consumers’ growing preference for infused pre-rolls, which saw a skyrocketing 10.3% increase quarter over quarter.

Interestingly, this growth cannot be attributed to new market entrants, as the number of brands in the market has remained relatively unchanged, allowing smaller Michigan cannabis brands to capitalize on existing consumer demand and tap into new potential product lines and preferred pack sizes. With a wide-open field of competitors, brands that can provide hot and desirable products have the perfect recipe for boosting their revenue and gaining an edge in the market.

Michigan’s pre-roll market is poised for continued growth and success as consumers continue to show a strong appetite for infused pre-rolls. Pre-rolls provide a more affordable option for consumption, and infused pre-rolls give even more bang for their buck. By riding a wave of innovation happening in commercial pre-roll machines and developing products that keep competitors off-balance, Michigan cannabis brands can break from the rest of the herd and carve out a piece of the market while also maximizing their top-line revenue.

RollPros is the manufacturer of the Blackbird, the only automated joint machine that makes joints the same way you do: rolled, not stuffed. Brands across the US and Canada use the Blackbird to create unique, value-added products that 4/5 of consumers prefer over pre-rolls made with cones. RollPros is dedicated to helping customers build successful, profitable brands through continuous innovation, exceptional customer support, and category expertise.

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