Can cannabis beverages thrive in one of beer’s spiritual homes? If you ask Doug Mars and Corey Christanell, the answer is a hopeful yes.
After spending nearly a combined 50 years working at beer giant Anheuser-Busch (AB) at its headquarters in St. Louis, the pair are hoping to emerge as an early player in Missouri’s nascent cannabis beverage market with the launch of Society, a three-SKU line of THC-infused (5 mg each) flavored low-calorie seltzers, early next year.
After approving medical cannabis in 2018, Missouri only began licensed sales last October. But the market has accelerated at considerable speed, generating over $70 million in sales through July and is on track to do $200 million through the end of the year. With licensed brands like Keef and Wynk already in area dispensaries, Mars and Christanell are eager to give consumers across Missouri a local cannabis beverage brand to call their own.
“We really do see the opportunity with beverages, and with us being the first local company producing a [cannabis] beverage in Missouri, we feel like it gives us a good runway and then hopefully allows us the ability to scale at some point,” said Christanell.
Though Society’s parent company, Monarch Supply Company, is a licensed cannabis manufacturer able to produce a range of products, there’s a reason it has turned its current focus to beverages. Mars spent 26 years at AB in various sales management positions before departing to serve as managing director for Illinois-based cannabis operation Harbory in 2015, and later served as a general manager at craft beer maker O’Fallon Brewery. Meanwhile, Christanell spent time as Vice President of urban sales and Senior Director of Sports and Entertainment Marketing at AB before joining Monarch as CEO in 2019.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Mars, Monarch’s COO, and Christanell see THC-infused beverages as a way to “take back some of those (use) occasions from alcohol.” As its name suggests, Society is positioned as a low-dose, session-friendly adult beverage for social occasions, while Mars said the initial flavors — Blood Orange + Yuzu, Ginger and Lime and Cherry Blossom — are inspired by current flavor trends in the sparkling category. The product is available in single 12 oz. cans ($7) or 4-packs ($28), with a percentage of total quarterly sales to be donated to a charity chosen by the dispensary that sold the most product during the period.
For production, Society has partnered with female-owned beverage advisory firm Beverage Solution Partners (BSP), and uses the group’s mobile canning operation to fill and seal cans of Society at Monarch’s facility.
As they begin seeding the brand at 13 St. Louis-area dispensaries this month ahead of a wide launch next year, Mars and Christanell are eager for Society to become a cannabis beverage leader in a city mainly known for beer. That means, along with promoting the brand on social media, taking AB head-on by going after high-visibility targets — including St. Louis Ballpark Village, a mixed retail area just outside of Busch Stadium — for local advertising activations. Even the Monarch name, Mars noted, is a sly nod to his and Christanell’s shared history with the “King of Beers.”
With sales rising every month and nearly 200 dispensaries now open statewide serving over 130,000 patients, demand for medical cannabis is set to continue growing in Missouri, and cultivators are racing to keep up. Monarch plans to play across categories — it markets cannabis wax, shatter and other concentrates via its SAP (Serve A Purpose) brand — while Society itself serves as the inaugural release from its eponymous beverage portfolio that is set to include future drink innovations.
“One of the things that I’ve learned through my years at AB is that you’ve got to have a pipeline of innovation,” said Mars. “And that’s really what we’re working on right now, whether that’s (in) packaging, or flavor, or liquid, that’s where we’re spending our time and money right now. So I think we’re in a pretty good strategic position to lead with beverages.”