Interview, Part 2: Canopy Growth’s Andrew Rapsey

In the second part of our interview, Canopy Growth head of beverages Andrew Rapsey discusses the company’s drinks portfolio, the challenges of operating in a heavily regulated emerging industry, and the potential for the CBD beverage segment looking ahead.

SND: Which brands in your THC beverage portfolio have performed especially well so far?

Rapsey: We’re still early in the life cycle of the category. What we’re seeing is that our Deep Space SKU—which is at 10 milligrams, the highest legal potency in Canada—is consistently at the top of the category. That’s because a lot of the people shopping at dispensaries right now are more experienced cannabis users. Over the summer our Houseplant beverages—created in partnership with Seth Rogen—did very well. We have a Houseplant Grapefruit and a Houseplant Lemon, which tastes a lot like grapefruit LaCroix and lemon LaCroix. Those were definitely the drinks of the summer. Since Deep Space launched and has picked up distribution points, it seems to be doing well no matter the time of the year.

SND: How are you situated from a capacity perspective?

Rapsey: There was a little bit of catching up that had to happen over those first couple months, but we’ve ramped up our production capabilities and we have no question whatsoever that we can now supply the demand here in Canada.

SND: How are you navigating the strict regulatory environment?

Rapsey: There’s no on-premise right now in Canada, and there are arbitrary purchase limits placed on dispensaries. Right now, we sell beverages as single cans, but as those limits increase and consumers are able to pick up more than only five per trip, I do anticipate you’ll start seeing bigger pack sizes, similar to beverage alcohol. On top of those restrictions, there are a lot of advertising platforms we’re not able to take advantage of, so at the moment we’re not able to reach as many consumers as efficiently as a traditional beverage alcohol company would.

SND: You’re also active in the CBD beverage space. How are you approaching that segment?

Rapsey: We just launched our first CBD-infused beverage (Quatreau sparkling waters) a couple of weeks ago. CBD doesn’t have the psychoactive side of things, so it has a wider variety of occasions, and is more about people drinking it to relax and unwind, whether it’s at 10am in the morning or 7pm at night. We’ve designed our portfolio from a flavor and potency standpoint to deliver against those different occasions. People have a morning coffee for energy, or a glass of wine after work to relax. It’s all about addressing those various need states.

Tagged : cannabis

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