Marijuana Prices Crashing in Colorado; Has the Novelty Worn Off?

According to a recent story by Bloomberg Business, a recent survey done of marijuana stores in the state show that marijuana prices are declining much faster than anticipated when it was first legalized. However, the amount of people visiting the stores throughout the state has increased.

The survey found that the average price of an 1/8th ounce of recreational marijuana from a range of $50 - $70 to the current standard price of $30 - $45. An ounce of cannabis has lost close to $100 in price over the same time frame.

Due to the prices drastically lower than expected, does that mean that the novelty has worn off on the newly legalized drug?

Not so fast, say experts. While the prices of marijuana have gone down, the interest is still there and revenues are outpacing what they were a year ago.

With sales increasing by 98 percent over a year ago (April to April), stores in Colorado could still gross up to $480 million in sales in 2015. That would be an increase of 50 percent over 2014.

The article continues to say that between 100 to 300 customers visit recreational marijuana shops on a daily basis and spend $50 per visit. That is down from last year when the average consumer spent $100 per visit.

To help with the sales of recreational marijuana, stores and consumers will be allowed a one-day tax holiday on September 16th. The tax will be reduced to 8% (from it's current 10%) in 2017.