Innovators are all around us, however, and another company, “Beta”, came along about four years ago and they said, “You know, we’re not sure that everyone really wants 500mg or 1,000mg of THC in a product. Lots of the people we know are asking for really small doses of 10mg or even less because they don’t necessarily want to get couch-locked for six hours.” Beta was representative not of the early adopters, but of the “fatter part” of the demand curve that actually isn’t looking to turn every night into PARTY NIGHT, but instead just wants to relax a bit, take the edge off, maybe forget that you’re ticked off with your husband or wife and just chill.
So Beta launched first a 10mg chocolate product, then a 5mg; and even a 2.5mg. Lots of people in the industry snickered and giggled (and not only because they had just finished one of Alpha’s 1,000mg monsters) and figured that Beta was nuts and doomed for a quick demise. But demand for the micro-dose products took off, through the roof! Beta could barely keep up with demand, hired scores of people, and discovered that a whole new and different market existed that was quietly waiting for a product that more closely met their actual needs. No, it certainly did not pack as big a punch and – guess what – that is exactly what most people who are NOT early adopters wanted. And, of note, it tasted quite good in part because the amount of active ingredient was greatly reduced. There is a huge difference between a glass of wine with dinner and draining a couple of bottles alone in your basement!
Beta’s revenue shot upwards, rumored into upper-8 figures. Meanwhile, Alpha fell on hard times as even many of the early adopters learned that other choices might fit into real life a little better. Alpha ultimately survived but not before dealing with near insolvency and the absolute destruction of their core historic business.
The story is not over: California’s regs on January 1 of this year mandated that not more than 100mg of THC can be sold in any edibles package; and not more than 10mg in any single serving. With the stroke of a pen, the playing field was levelled greater than at any time in the past, and Beta found itself struggling to deal with all the red tape surrounding the implementation of the regulations as well as a group of new competitors all anxious to succeed.
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