Lollapalooza helped Illinois break the state’s weed sales record
Lollapalooza festival-goers helped break Illinois’ state record in terms of monthly sales of recreational marijuana.
The festival, which took place in Grant Park, Chicago from July 29-August 1, welcomed thousands of music fans and sets from the likes of Miley Cyrus, Tyler, the Creator and Foo Fighters.
The latest report from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation reveals that the US state’s recreational marijuana dispensaries reported record sales of $127.8 million (£92.5 million) in July (via Chicago Tribune).
July’s recreational marijuana sales were 10 per cent higher than the previous Illinois record of $116.4 million (£84 million) which was set back in May, with the boost in sales being credited to out-of-state visitors who came to Chicago to attend Lollapalooza.
State residents spent about $85 million (£61.5 million) on recreational weed products, while sales to out-of-state customers reached $42 million (£30 million), which was up 16 per cent from June.
Recreational weed was legal in Illinois for the first time in Lollapalooza’s history last month after it was legalised in the state back in January 2020. Sales were boosted by nearly 50 per cent at dispensaries which operated near the festival site.
“We saw thousands of festivalgoers over the weekend at our River North store, making it our biggest weekend to date,” Jason Erkes, spokesman for Chicago-based Cresco Labs, told the Chicago Tribune.
“Summer tourism and the Lollapalooza attendees were strong contributors to July’s out-of-state sales.”
Illinois is one of 18 US states to have legalised recreational marijuana use, which is still illegal under US federal law. Total weed sales in the US reached $1.03 billion (£745 million) last year, while recent research by the cannabis research firm Headset projected that legal US weed sales will exceed $30 billion (£21 billion) in 2022.
Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell said last week that the festival “did the right thing” by returning in 2021 despite fears about the coronavirus pandemic.