Online CBD sales: a booming market

CBD is taking the world by storm. From relatively obscure only a few years ago, the industry has exploded into a multi-billion-euro-a-year market. Just 5 to 10 years ago, CBD was often difficult to find. Today, depending on where you live, in addition to purchasing CBD online, you can find it at convenience stores, gas stations, doctor’s offices, and even video rental stores. You can now buy CBD in Switzerland, buy CBD in pharmacies, or buy CBD in Belgium and now in France.

Sales of CBD products are expected to reach €5 billion this year, representing a 706% increase from 2018, according to the Brightfield Group, a cannabis-focused research firm. A market study carried out by BDS Analytics and Arcview Market Research predicts that the collective market for CBD sales will exceed 20 billion euros by 2024 in the United States alone.

“We are seeing the maturation of CBD from a subcategory of cannabis to an industry in its own right,” said Roy Bingham, co-founder and CEO of BDS Analytics. “Our growth forecast for the CBD market across all distribution channels calls for a compound annual growth rate of 49% through 2024. This is a big opportunity for all parties involved, but it means the path to go through will include decisions that must be informed by the best possible data.”

The evolution of the CBD market

CBD market growth forecasts and projections take into account products sold by dispensaries, pharmaceuticals, as well as coffee shops, smoke shops, grocery stores and pharmacies. However, according to BDS analysis, the majority of CBD sales will soon be in general retail stores rather than cannabis dispensaries.

The reasons for this continued success of CBD products are:

• CBD has a history of use for health and wellness, including as an active component of the cannabis plant and due to a mountain of anecdotal evidence from people from all walks of life.
• CBD is one of the few natural remedies to have an official scientific basis for at least some of its health claims, and this scientific basis is growing stronger every day.
• CBD has a wide range of potential applications, from inflammation to mental health and everything in between.
• CBD has no known negative side effects and does not cause any form of dependence.

The growth of the CBD industry is truly unprecedented when it comes to health and wellness products, or any product in general. Sales of CBD products at dispensaries since 2014 have grown at an even faster rate than overall dispensary sales. Yup, you read that right, CBD sales have surpassed THC product sales in states that have general legalization or medically legal marijuana industries.

There really is a feeling in the industry that the sky is the limit. The curiosity of the general population is at its height right now, as CBD proliferates more and more in society, there is a growing pharmaceutical, medical and scientific interest which leads to more and more studies about the effectiveness and specific applications of CBD, and that it is a truly good product that thousands upon thousands of consumers swear by.

Recent Developments in the CBD Industry

Several recent developments in the CBD industry have helped spur this massive growth and explosion in popularity. One such development was the Farm Bill which was signed into law in December 2018. This law removed the hemp plant from the Schedule 1 list of federally controlled substances, thereby legalizing the cultivation and sale of hemp at the federal level. It defines hemp as a cannabis plant containing a THC concentration of less than 0.3%.

The practical consequences of this law are that hemp farmers and companies that sell hemp and hemp-derived products, such as CBD, now have the freedom to pursue their activities more aggressively. This law may incentivize CBD companies to use hemp as a primary source of CBD instead of marijuana, but it also eliminates the possibilities that the federal government suddenly changes its enforcement priorities and decides to pursue hemp product companies.

Another development in the CBD industry was the World Health Organization releasing a report that found CBD is generally well tolerated, non-addictive, and safe. The federal policy change and WHO study bring new credibility and opportunities to CBD businesses across the country and around the world.

The Potential Benefits of CBD

coffee shop france cbd

So what is the reason for this explosion in popularity of CBD? Simply put, because people think it works. From professional golfers to seniors with chronic pain to people with mental health conditions, CBD provides tangible benefits to people who consume it. CBD users are on average 40 years old, have higher levels of education, and are more likely than non-users to have full-time employment.

According to the CBD Project, extensive preclinical research has shown that CBD has powerful anti-tumor, anti-oxidant, anti-spasmodic, anti-psychotic, anti-convulsive, and neuroprotective properties. It has also been shown to directly activate serotonin receptors, allowing it to help relieve anxiety and giving CBD potential as an anti-anxiety treatment.

CBD could therefore be a potential treatment for a range of conditions, such as arthritis, diabetes, alcoholism, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, antibiotic-resistant infections, epilepsy and other neurological disorders.

It’s time for CBD

We are at a critical moment where the floodgates are opening for CBD. The industry is growing exponentially, research is multiplying for an ever-wider range of potential applications, and existing studies show that CBD has almost endless medical and health possibilities.

Add to that its complete non-toxicity, and the explosion of CBD on the market and in the medical research community is nothing short of exciting.