MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA — On International Cannabis Culture Day, or more commonly known as ‘4-20’, and Initiative Australia, the culturally-driven media agency within Mediabrands, launched a deep-dive study into the potentially explosive growth of Australia’s legal cannabis industry.
The study, called ‘Cannabusiness’, forecasts the emergence of a massive industry in legal cannabis across Australia and its opportunities for marketers. Forty-two percent of Australians support legalisation of recreational cannabis and between 20 to 40 companies are already listed on the ASX to help manage investment in the industry.
Initiative has today launched a Cannabusiness website to coincide with Cannabis Culture Day and will be holding a public, live-panel discussion in May hosted by Initiative Australia managing director Sam Geer. The panel will interrogate the rising cultural re-acceptance of cannabis and what marketers can learn from this shift and apply to their own brands to help power business growth.
“We are approaching a rare phenomenon in Australian marketing – the birth of a new category,” said Geer. “Australia is the fastest-growing medical cannabis market in the world and the 5thlargest in size – it’s time we started paying attention.”
Initiative is launching Cannabusiness as part of its Culture Shock series of investigative research into how developments in culture impact marketing and media investment decisions.
“Positive interest in legislation to legalise cannabis demands a massive shift in culture in this country after decades of negative personal and political connotations,” said Geer. “But the industry is an approaching powerhouse, with global estimates that Cannabis will be a $104 Billion market by 2024.”
