CanDu.Agency

12/20/2023

Happy to share that Beuhi (pronounced Bowie) made the top canna tech devices of the year! Melissa Perrucci, founder of CanDu, is on Beuhi's Advisory Board, and we look forward to seeing their marketing campaigns when they launch!

Introducing Beuhi, a new innovation for DIY edibles that belongs in every cannabis enthusiast's kitchen.

11/13/2023

To honor veterans this year, may we suggest taking a moment to write to your congressperson to allow VA docs to prescribe medical ma*****na (especially if you are in a red/purple state). The VA has prescribed strong opioids for years and it's time for another option. It is quick and easy via the link.

Tell Congress to ensure veterans can access medical cannabis in military spending legislation.

05/12/2023

Relief is in sight for Rhode Island cannabis businesses!

The Rhode Island House unanimously approved a proposal for reworking the state's advertising laws around cannabis.

Until now, Rhode Island dispensaries have not been allowed to advertise on billboards, while companies in neighboring states are.

Rep. Scott Slater (D), who introduced both the canabis legalization and advertising bills, said state dispensaries were at a serious disadvantage for being restricted from advertising, while out-of-state dispensaries were permitted to run billboards.

Slater told the Boston Globe, " Now that Rhode Island's recreational cannabis industry is up and running, our dispensaries are facing a significant obstacle when competing with our neighbors in Massachusetts and Connecticut. This bill will correct this inequity while also supporting these new local businesses in Rhode Island by hopefully keeping Rhode Islanders from crossing the border to shop for their cannabis in neighboring states."

The measure allows the state Office of Cannabis Regulation to oversee policies requirements for advertising, and still requires approval from the state Senate and the governor.

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

04/28/2023

New Jersey's newly-legal canna market is on FIRE!

Since legalization about a year ago, nearly 1 in 3 NJ adults has used cannabis products, according to a Stockton University poll.

Here are some of the key takeaways:
- 47% used cannabis purely recreationally, 14% medically, and 39% for both medical + recreation
- 69% bought cannabis from a licensed dispensary
- 86% were satisfied with their purchase
- 43% were satisfied because they knew products were safe
- 23% were satisfied with quality, while only 7% were satisfied with price
- Among the 30% who bough unregulated products, 18% did so for financial reasons, but the majority was due to the lack of dispensaries nearby
- 48% of respondents favored cannabis attractions like lounges, while 50% in South Jersey opposed them
- 37% of NJ men and 28% of women consume cannabis
- 38% of Democrats, 24% of Republicans and 32% of Independents consume cannabis

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

04/21/2023

New York state has launched a public awareness campaign in an effort to steer cannabis sales away from unlicensed operators.

"Why Buy Legal New York" emphasizes why regulated products are safer and educates consumers on the potential health risks of buying illicit products. The campaign also highlights how legal product purchases help the state's social and economic equality goals.

Gov. Kathy Hochul states, "To bolster the public health and safety of all New Yorkers, we are providing them with the information they need to make informed decisions and enjoy cannabis responsibly."

In December, Hochul implemented a verification placard to distinguish between unlicensed and illicit cannabis operators.

For years, unlicensed NY businesses have been expanding, including pop-up trucks, bicycle deliveries, bodegas and consumption lounges. As many as 1,400 stores are selling cannabis in the city alone, which adds pressure to the regulated market, already bogged down by regulations.

Historically, consumers largely don't want to do extra work to buy products. It will be interesting to see if this campaign can make a difference in swaying the public to support the regulated market.

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

04/14/2023

The cannabis industry has never needed federal legalization more than now. While mature markets struggle to sustain revenue, new markets are exploding onto the scene.

According to Headset's demographic report for the cannabis industry in 2023, here are some interesting things to keep in mind about maximizing sales with various audiences:

- Millennials and Gen Z make up 63% of sales in the US
- Since January 2021, sales to women has been slowly increasing. Markets vary, but Nevada's sales to women rose from 4% to 33%
- Category preferences are clear across age groups: Older demographics prefer "wellness related" products like capsules, topicals, tinctures, and sublinguals. Younger consumers strongly prefer inhalable products like flower, vapes, and pre-rolls

Hitting the right audience with the right products and messaging will be key as we navigate the volatile economy in the coming year.

Need to maximize your advertising ROI?

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

04/04/2023

The NBA Summer League is set for July 7-17 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Many Retired Greats will be in attendance and are available for appearances and other partnership opportunities.

CanDu can connect your brand to NBA Greats during Summer League and throughout the year wherever your canna brand is carried.

NBA Greats Package for Las Vegas or ANY market may include:
- Store Meet & Greets
- Private Events with Player
- Social Media Content
- Video/Audio footage
- And More!

The Retired Players Association is hosting a Golf Tournament and other events in Las Vegas during Summer League. This is a great influencer opportunity to get your brand out in front of Greats throughout the entire Association.

The Retired Players Association Package may include:
- Golf Tournament Sponsor
- Players Dinner Sponsor
- Sampling likely available in legal states
- Ongoing events, newsletters, etc.

Las Vegas Brands: Let's get a conversation going ASAP before schedules fill up!

NBA Greats that may be interested include (but not limited to):

New York: John Starks, Charles Oakley, Lance Stephenson, Taj Gibson, Sean Kilpatrick, Chris Mullin, Smush Parker, Kemba Walker, David Lee

New Jersey: JR Smith, Andrew Bynum, Kenny Anderson, Albert King, Kenyon Martin

Pennsylvania: Rip Hamilton, Wayne Ellington, Kwame Brown

Boston: Nate Archibald, Dee Brown, Glen "Big Baby" Davis, Eddie House, RJ Hunter, Robert Parish

Chicago: Cliff Alexander, Kendall Gill, Luther Head, Jabari Parker, Jannero Pargo, Bobby Simmons, Quentin Richardson, Evan Turner, Antoine Walker

Detroit: George Gervin, Cassius Winston

Orlando: E'Twaun Moore

Miami: James Johnson

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

04/02/2023

F Republicans. Live free or die!!! It’s the American way.

This week, GOP lawmakers overruled Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's veto and passed a sweeping law limiting the rights of transgender youth across the state, both at school and in their personal lives.

04/02/2023

With all this basketball going around, let's not forget the time the Dead sponsored the Lithuanian basketball team in the 1992 Olympics.

📸 Mike Powell

03/29/2023

Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream has launched a nonprofit cannabis brand Ben's Best Blnz or B3, where proceeds will be used for social benefit.

80% of the company’s profits will be administered in partnership with NuProject as grants to Black cannabis entrepreneurs. Another 10% will go to the Last Prisoner Project, and 10% will be donated to the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance.

B3's mission is to “sell Great Pot and use the power of business to Right the Wrongs of the War on Drugs.”

“Schedule 1 is the whole root of the war on drugs,” Cohen says of Nixon’s campaign that disproportionately targeted Black people and informed the country’s current issue of mass incarceration.

Cohen added, “Schedule 1 is supposed to be for drugs that have no medical value and have a high risk of addiction, which does not apply to pot, but it does apply to beer.”

Cohen worked with Pentagram’s Eddie Opara and Jack Collins to design the brand’s visual identity, which includes packaging, website, and merchandise. The brand is vibrantly designed and transparent in its celebration of Black designers and vendors, who are also listed on B3’s website.

The brand’s packaging spotlights the work of Dana Robinson, whose Ebony Reprinted series recontextualizes 1950s and ’60s ads from the magazine by smearing and layering paint into monoprints. “I remember as a child in Britain, my cousin used to bring Ebony to my house, and this is the only time I would see Black people in adverts,” Opara says.

There's no doubt this brand will take off and hopefully help persuade the cannabis industry to include social equity programs as a necessary component of business!

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

03/23/2023

This week in Women's History month, we're highlighting Women to watch in Cannabis!

Emily Kyle is an author, Holistic Cannabis Practitioner, and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.

Emilykylenutrition.com is the home for incredible cannabis recipes, how-to guides, a dosage calculator, podcast and products developed by Emily Kyle.

From cooking products, her book Cannabis Drinks Made Simple, to gummies, sublinguals, concentrates and topicals, Emily covers all the bases when it comes to healing with cannabis!

Jasmine Mans is an author, artist and creator of Buy W**d From Women.

The New Jersey-based shop creates modern apparel and accessories that support and advocate for women entrepreneurs and the legalization of cannabis.

Jasmine has toured with her poetry, opening for artists like Janelle Monae and her book Black Girl, Call Home, was regarded as one of 2021's most anticipated books by Oprah magazine, Cosmopolitan, Refinery 29 and Essence.

Susie Placencia is a Mexican American cannabis activist and founder of Humo, Mota Glass, and Latinas in Cannabis.

Susie is committed to providing meaningful representation in an industry that has caused disproportionate harm to Latinos, which translates into obstacles to joining the industry.

MOTA glass is a leading brand of US-made functional glass.
HUMO’s craft cannabis is sustainably grown in smart greenhouses powered by its parent company, POSIBL in Monterey County, California.

CanDu is a woman-owned performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]

03/15/2023

Supply of cannabis flower in Michigan has exploded in the past year, creating a consumer's market. The price for an ounce of flower has dropped from $152 in Jan 2022 to just $80 in Jan 2023.

While other states limit the number of growers, Michigan can have as many growers as municipalities will allow. It appears they may have overestimated the rate of growth of the market, which is forcing stiff competition.

Skymint and at least 4 other cannabis companies in MI have been placed under receivership. A receiver is a person appointed as custodian of an entity's property, finances, general assets, or business operations. Receivers seek to realize and secure assets and manage affairs to pay debts.

Chris Jackson, vice chair of the board for the National Cannabis Industry Association, told Wood-TV, "We have a very infant industry overall and so this industry, like every other industry, needs the ability to correct itself. The businesses that will thrive are the ones that are small, locally owned and unique. They're going to become staples in their community, just like any other industry over time. I think there's a lesson in not getting too big too quickly, understanding what you do best, being as conservative as possible."

If you're in the Michigan market, and need help with performance advertising to stretch your marketing dollars and maximize return, let us know. A recent campaign of ours in Michigan had a 6X ROI!

CanDu is the U.S.’s premiere performance-based media agency for multi-state operators, cannabis brands, and other canna-businesses. We combine traditional media & digital tactics to measure the impact of advertising. As the only cannabis agency with large scale national TV experience, we’re ready to run when the FCC approves cannabis for on-air broadcasting. Do you need help reaching canna consumers, and tracking ad performance? Message us here, or email [email protected]