Media releases

• Expert advisory: Brock prof expects massive sales for Ontario cannabis retailers

  Wednesday, March 27, 2019 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 27 March 2019 – R00054

  Ontario’s cannabis retailer lottery could mean hitting the jackpot for the 25 companies set to open legal dispensaries starting Monday, April 1.

  Michael Armstrong, Associate Professor in Brock University’s Goodman School of Business, says he thinks legal retail stores in this province could each average more than $1.25 million a month in sales.

  The big question is what that translates to when major expenses such as buying the produce from the provincial wholesaler is factored in.

  “They should do pretty well,” says Armstrong, who recently wrote an opinion column about the issue for The Conversation Canada. “The Quebec stores average nearly $900,000 a month in sales and they charge lower-than-average prices.”

  Of the first 25 stores cleared to open starting next week, one is in the north end of St. Catharines and one is in Niagara Falls.

  Armstrong points out that cannabis consumers overwhelmingly seem to prefer in-store shopping over buying online. In the last quarter, brick and mortar stores accounted for 80 per cent of legal cannabis sales in Quebec, 94 per cent in Nova Scotia and 95 per cent in New Brunswick.

  “Because of this, provinces such as Alberta, Manitoba and the Atlantic provinces with more stores per capita tend to have more legal sales per capita, and have taken more market share from the black market,” says Armstrong.

  Only about 13 per cent of cannabis sold in Ontario last quarter was legal. The Canadian average is 15 per cent while Alberta and Nova Scotia lead the country at 29 per cent.

  “Product shortages, especially of dry cannabis, remain the biggest drag on legal sales nationwide,” says Armstrong.

  He says Ontario’s decision to go with a private retail sales model versus an LCBO-style public model will mean a widely varying customer experience from store to store.

  “Every store will have a different management style and décor. The Yorkdale one, for example, could be high end. The St. Catharines store will likely be your neighbourhood pot shop.

  “From a business perspective, I think it’s a good thing,” says Armstrong. “We don’t really know what the best retail approach is yet for selling cannabis so the private sector will try different things. They will likely all succeed, but in different ways.”

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected], 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases

• Lights out for Earth Hour at Brock University

  Tuesday, March 26, 2019 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 26 March 2019 – R00053

  The illumination of Schmon Tower at Brock University will switch from Badger red to earth green Saturday, March 30, but from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. the lights will go out entirely.

  It’s part of Brock’s annual recognition of Earth Hour, when Canadians turn off the lights as a show of support in the fight against climate change. In addition to the tower lights going dark, other lighting on the main campus and in the downtown Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts will also be dimmed or turned off.

  But beyond simply flipping a switch once a year, when it comes to environmental sustainability, Brock University is a post-secondary leader.

  Brock’s waste diversion rate was 71.8 per cent in 2017, putting it nearly 12 per cent higher than the Ministry of the Environment’s 60 per cent diversion rate guideline.

  When it comes to saving water, the University installed an additional seven bottle-filling stations in 2018, bringing its total to 57. In 2018 alone, 930,343 bottles were filled and that number is expected to cross 1 million bottles for the first time in 2019. Since the bottle station program began five years ago, nearly 4.5 million bottles have been diverted from landfills through the use of reusable containers being filled on campus.

  On a wider level, Brock’s Facilities Management established an Environmental Sustainability Policy in 2016 which includes objectives and actions that contribute to the goal of Green House Gas emissions reductions of 37 per cent by 2030 and 80 per cent by 2050.

  Other ongoing programs include:

  • Numerous projects aimed at improving the efficiency of the heating and cooling systems.
  • Working toward converting florescent lighting to LED across the University.
  • The ongoing District Energy Efficiency Project (DEEP) Phase 1 and 2, which will provide substantial energy savings through newer and more efficient power-generation engines.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected], 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases