As a marketer, I often studied cases focusing on life-cycles of maturing industries and products. The product cycle curve is bell shaped, where best opportunities for profit and growth are early in the beginning of the industry or product. By the end of the cycle, there is deep discounting, increasing competition and declining sales and profits.
In New Mexico, I think the cannabis industry went straight from the introduction cycle to the decline stage.
As of the latest data, New Mexico has 1,063 cannabis dispensaries in the state, which has a population of 2.1 million. Compare that to Colorado, with a population of 5.8 million and only 670 cannabis outlets. For New Mexico, that works out to approximately one marijuana dispensary for every 1,975 persons. In Colorado, the numbers work out to one dispensary for every 8,656 persons.
On recent trips in southern New Mexico, I noticed some signs indicating the state of the industry in the state.
One sign said:”We price match.” Another said: “Watch for our daily specials.” And a third said: “Special Discounts for Seniors.”
Deep discounting is apparently already happening and I’ve noticed several stores that have already closed or never got opened. One is just a few blocks north of where we live on Main Street that was stillborn. The entire building, which used to be a liquor store, was painted in a gruesome black and had bold graphics on the sides of the building and the sign, apparently in hopes of a booming business just off Interstate 10. It never opened, despite what I assume was thousands of dollars spent on the paint job and remodeling of the interior.
I’m not going to comment on whether you think we should or shouldn’t have recreational marijuana. What was interesting to me is that none of the vendors seem to have taken the time to analyze market opportunities and that they made the blind assumption that everyone in New Mexico was “all in” on smoking pot.
Last year, marijuana vendors pleaded with state officials to limit the number of outlets in the state — yet another sign of a maturing industry reaching out to the government to help buoy it.
And to me, the great tragedy of this is that no one — as yet to my knowledge — has opened a dispensary in Weed, New Mexico.
aero-cordero.com 
There has got to be a “shake-out” soon. The stores are ubiquitous. If not, the city/state is going to be The Land Of Zombies.
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