Local dispensaries benefit the most from Colorado’s annual 420 celebration thanks to the state's medical and recreational marijuana laws. Upwards of 80,000 people are expected to migrate to the states capitol to spend five days celebrating weed, friends, edibles, music, and all around good times.

Pure Medical Dispensary

Pure is an alternative medicine practitioner located not too far from where the annual rally was scheduled to take place. Even though its snow-lined streets had little to no traffic, the dispensary appeared to have all hands on deck—as a steady stream of customers came in and out; and a handful of others waited to have their names called. In between grabbing the driver’s licenses of incoming patients, the friendly (and knowledgeable) associates explained to MERRY JANE that 420 typically leads to a significant increase in sales. Over the course of five days, revenue can be up by as much as twenty percent. When asked how they prepared for the bud rush, one associate quickly declared, “You can’t really prepare. It gets crazy.” He then added that preparation begins as early as three weeks in advance.

By The Numbers

Pure’s sales estimates appear to be supported by Roy Bingham and his company BDS Analytics, a Boulder-based cannabis intelligence firm. According to Bingham, between Friday April 15th and Wednesday April 20th, retailers can expect to see daily sales totaling $5 million. He also estimates that a single day may even lead to $6 million in sales. If Bingham and BDS’s numbers are accurate, then marijuana retailers can expect to generate $25 million—thanks to the five-day celebration of cannabis culture. For these guys it’s probably really fun to have 4/20 approaching and have a lot more traffic in the stores and seeing the kind of volume that can happen. It’s also exciting because it’s a celebration of cannabis and what it means to different people. And that kind of celebratory atmosphere gets everyone in the industry jazzed.

But What About The Snow?

While the moderate snowfall undoubtedly dissuaded many casual smokers from leaving the comforts of their homes, true pot supporters braved the storm in order to stock up on their strains of choice. I mean its cool to Netflix and Chill, but wouldn’t it be more fun to Cheef and Chill? That seemed to be the attitude of the couples, friends, and single folk that entered and exited Pure. If one were to look only at the expressions and body language of the dispensary’s customers, you wouldn’t necessarily believe that there was a snowstorm occurring on the other side of the door; but instead, you would notice the smiling faces and giddy excitement that typically (and quite literally) accompanies a kid in a candy store. And while Pure’s staff did concede that the weather was leading to slower than expected sales—even before the store opened for the day, a line of excited cannabis enthusiasts formed outside of its doors—not willing to allow a little white snow to stand between them and some good green bud.