Worcester Business Journal

20 2023 Economic Forecast • Worcester Business Journal • www.wbjournal.com M A N U F A C T U R I N G T he manufacturing industry is 14.9% of the Central Massachusetts economy. It's a $6.5-billion industry and employs thou- sands in various roles. It's also a diverse and broad category covering multiple subsets of industries, and some have been hit hard by supply chain issues while others are flourishing with new and emerging technologies. Here is what we're looking out for in 2023. The cannabis boom is over Aer the first legal adult-use businesses in the cannabis industry opened in 2018, there have been attempts by the state government to make it easier for small growers to get into the marijuana industry. Expect more microbusiness licenses to crop up. A microlicense lets a business owner cultivate, manufac- ture, and deliver as long as they do not own another cannabis business in the state. With so much market saturation and with growers being able to use pesti- cides, buyers have begun to become selective and more in tune with what they're buying and from who. A cannabis dispensary in Northampton became the first to close in Massachusetts since the first legal An industry in transition Certain high-profile subsectors of the manufacturing industry, like marijuana and beer, will slow and search for new revenues BY KEVIN KOCZWARA WBJ Staff Writer adult-use dispensaries opened in 2018. It won't be the last. Northampton had 12 dispensaries until the closure, and the market is now saturated. It's only a matter of time before the booming business sees a slowdown and a market shake-up. Cannabis sales this year were north of $1.3 billion, and total sales since November 2018 have almost hit the $4-billion mark; but prices continue to drop. More local hard seltzer Redemption Rock Brewing Co. is the latest local brewery to join the trend and create its own hard seltzer. According to research from Grand View Re- search, Inc., the national market for hard seltzer will grow and could reach north of $57 billion by 2030. Even as sales of big brands like Truly Hard Seltzer slow, breweries in the area like Greater Good Imperial Brewing Co., Lost Shoe Brewing and Roasting Co., Bay State Brewing Co., and Wachusett Brewing Co. all have seltzers, and the trend of breweries making something for everyone will continue with more and more places offering seltzers or something similar, like Penny Pinchers Brewing Co.'s Hard Water. More workers will unionize Workers at a GM electric vehicle battering factory plant in Ohio announced plans to unionize on Dec. 9, and they won't be the last workers to start a union. Earlier this year, workers at an Amazon facility in Staten Island voted to start a union, and Starbucks workers across the country have gained steam and power by working together. For years, workers were told they didn't need unions, and they listened. Now, that tide has turned, and the developments don't seem to be slowing. Rapper & businessman Diddy buys three Central Mass. cannabis businesses as part of $185M deal Sean "Diddy" Combs – the rapper, businessman, and pro- ducer – is buying three cannabis businesses in Worcester and Leicester, as part of a $185-mil- lion deal to buy 12 marijuana locations in Massachusetts, New York, and Illinois. Among the dispensaries Combs is buying is the Leicester business formerly known as Cultivate, which was the first legal recreational mari- juana dispensary to open east of the Mississippi River when it opened, along with NETA in Northampton, on Nov. 20, 2018. Cultivate is now known as Sunny- side, since it was purchased by Cresco Labs of Chicago in September 2021. e other two Central Massachusetts cannabis businesses Combs is buying are the Leicester marijua- na production facility Sunnyside and the Worcester location of Sunnyside, which also is a former Cultivate location.e fourth Massachusetts business he is buy- ing is the Greenfield dispensary known as Patriot Care, which is owned by Columbia Care of New York City. e sale of the facilities, which was announced Nov. 4, comes as national cannabis wholesaler Cresco Labs purchases Columbia Care, a multi-state and interna- tional cannabis grower and seller. As part of the sale, the companies need to divest some of their assets to meet regulatory standards, which is why they are selling to Combs. Combs is paying $185 million in total to acquire all the businesses in Massachusetts, New York, and Illinois. Combs is buying the companies through his Los Angeles-based Combs Enterprises, of which he is chairman and CEO. e investment is Combs' first in the cannabis industry. On top of the Massachusetts locations, he is acquiring four dispensaries and one production facility in New York as well as two retail locations and one production facility in Illinois. e deal creates the country's first minority-owned and operated, verti- cally integrated multi-state operator, according to the press release. "My mission has always been to create opportuni- ties for Black entrepreneurs in industries where we've traditionally been denied access, and this acquisition provides the immediate scale and impact needed to create a more equitable future in cannabis," Combs said in the press release from Creso and Columbia Care. "Owning the entire process — from growing and manufacturing to marketing, retail, and wholesale distribution — is a historic win for the culture that will allow us to empower diverse leaders throughout the ecosystem and be bold advocates for inclusion." Cresco board member Tarik Brooks is also the president of Combs Enterprises. He recused himself from the review and approval of the sale, which was reviewed and approved by an independent committee. Top manufacturing stories from 2022 PHOTO | EDD COTE Sean "Diddy" Combs W Bob Patton, chairman and CEO of Green Meadows cannabis dispensary in Southbridge

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