The Travel Agency: A Cannabis Store, the third CAURD-licensed dispensary to open in New York, is celebrating one year since selling its first cannabis product in the legal adult-use market. What a year it has been!
In its first year, travel agency Union Square served more than 125,000 consumers and generated approximately $5 million in New York State between its brick-and-mortar store at 835 Broadway and delivery services in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. generated tax revenue. While creating 120 jobs.
With 12 months of this type of traffic, for the first time, the travel agency was able to collect and analyze data that provides a complete picture of New York's cannabis consumers. This data provides unprecedented insights, from consumption preferences to purchasing patterns, never before available in the market.
Revenue in the first year was generated through product sales across nine categories, comprising 102 brands and more than 1,000 products. The travel agency portfolio is carefully curated around consumer needs and different price points. Consistent with emerging markets, the company's data shows consumers are more likely to purchase edibles, vaporizers, and pre-rolls from legal pharmacies, believing they will buy something legal with additional safety regulations than from illegal stores. has been shown to be high.
The travel agent's diverse customer base spans five generations, from Gen Z to the Silent Generation, and ranges in age from 21 to 91 years old. Regarding consumption method preference, purchasing a vaporizer was the most popular at 29.3%, followed by 28%. Flower fans, 20% buy edibles, 16.6% buy pre-rolls, and 6.1% buy other products such as concentrates, tinctures, topicals, CBD, and accessories.
One of the many highlights of The Travel Agency's first year was the launch of The Do Fund, a nonprofit organization that empowers individuals experiencing homelessness and provides post-incarceration reentry assistance. It is a comprehensive partnership with The distribution of funds from travel agency Union Square to the Doe Fund coincides with the nonprofit's staffing efforts for key support services positions such as case managers, job coaches and housing specialists. Launching a mindfulness and mental health care program in the organization's portfolio of transitional, affordable and supportive housing. Exploring living wages and innovative new job training in emerging industries.
Other highlights of the travel agency's first year include having comedian Amy Sedaris as a guest budtender, winning three Clio Awards, and hosting The Daily Show filming an in-store corner of Cannabis. Many celebrities, including supporter Sarah Silverman, visited to shop. . The dispensary also actively participates in supporting community-based events such as the New York Cannabis Parade & Rally, Reverie Block Party, Village Trip, Affordable Art Fair, and New York City Pride.
“It's incredible how far we've come in the first year,” said travel agency co-founder Paul Yau. “We are proud to be one of the leaders in New York's legal cannabis market, creating new jobs, providing safety-tested products to New Yorkers, and supporting the Doe Fund's thousands of It's amazing to see the impact we've had, whether it's through supporting men or donating significant tax revenue to the state. We're proving that New York's legal cannabis program is a success. We are very supportive of the continued expansion of legal cannabis in New York, the closure of illegal stores, and the continued growth of the legal industry and all its benefits,” he concluded. .
“One of the things we are most proud of is our partnership with the Doe Fund, as well as other organizations looking to the legal cannabis industry to repair the damage done by the failed war on drugs. “We're helping provide a platform for people to travel,'' said Alana, co-founder of Hankin Biggers, a travel agency. “We will continue to support marginalized groups who don't typically have access to economic opportunities in this new industry, support BIPOC, women, and LGBTQIA founders, and help eliminate the stigma surrounding this great factory. We remain committed to educating consumers about the benefits of legal cannabis consumption. This is a core part of a travel agency's mission. ”
“We have seen firsthand how the criminalization of cannabis has disproportionately impacted the people we serve,” said Doe Fund President and CEO. Jennifer Mitchell said. “Our partnership with travel agency Union Square ensures that proceeds from cannabis sales are reinvested into the same individuals and communities. In doing so, travel agents are critical to our efforts to advance restorative justice. ”
