Marijuana mints maker nails niche with dosing, full-spectrum oil

(This story first appeared in the November-December issue of MJBizMagazine.)

California cannabis brand Breez has stayed true to its core mission of providing access to medical marijuana patients and recreational consumers since it was established in 2015.

That ethos led Austin and Anna Hice, the brand’s husband-and-wife management team, to develop THC-infused tablets and mints in a widely recognized form factor.

It also prompted the co-founders to launch direct-to-consumer delivery – particularly targeting the state’s vast cannabis deserts, where cities and counties still prohibit marijuana operations nearly eight years after voters legalized MJ cultivation and retail sales.

“It’s all about accessibility,” Austin Hice told MJBizMagazine during a phone interview.

Demand for delivery

Though about 95% of Breez products are sold through retail, delivery provides a solution in a pinch – particularly if consumers are shopping for a specific product that’s unavailable at a nearby store, Austin Hice said.

“We realized that providing delivery was like a release valve for that demand and actually added to the demand within our retail shops.”

Explaining that the company shifts fleet inventory to meet fluctuating demand, Hice called the delivery strategy key to Breez’s brand development.

The Hices’ emphasis on cannabis access is leading the company into new U.S. markets such as Illinois, where Breez has steadily increased market share while fueling product research, development and innovation.

The company’s quick response time when resolving product concerns and operational issues is another element that wins over retail operators and consumers alike.

Breez has a 100% guarantee on any product with a manufacturer’s defect, a policy initiated at its inception.

With millions of units sold, packaging issues and other complaints arise from time to time.

“We’re always there to make it right,” Austin Hice said.

“This has been a major shift from an industry known for strict no-returns policies overall.

“There aren’t a lot of cannabis companies that will protect you that way,” he said.

Building goodwill

Like nearly every successful brand in the industry, Breez had to earn its keep – and it wasn’t easy.

When the company first introduced low-dose, 5-milligram THC Original Mints to California’s medical marijuana market in 2015, retailers scoffed at the concept.

At the time, most marijuana products in Breez’s home state were labeled with little (if any) dosage information, resulting in unreliable experiences for consumers.

Hice said the company utilized integrated testing and a clean supply chain before regulations were established in the adult-use market.

Naysayers failed to deter the Hices, who believed if they could introduce a product that offered consumers the benefits of cannabis in a predictable, controlled way, an entirely new market would materialize.

“Essentially, that’s what happened,” Austin Hice said.

By the third month of distribution, wholesale reorders were increasing as the brand developed a loyal following.

Over the years, the brand toppled a major production challenge: achieving consistent THC dosage in products that weigh a fraction of a gram.

In its extra-strength tablets, for instance, around 10% of the product weight is full-spectrum cannabis oil.

The proprietary manufacturing process at Breez headquarters in Culver City, California, where the company handles extraction, avoids the traditional practice of pressing THC oil into powder to create a new compound, according to Hice.

“We’re basically able to put more oil of a higher quality in our products,” he explained.

“This has allowed us a lot more flexibility to deliver a full-spectrum experience, which isn’t just marketing speak.

“We’re actually getting an oil that is closer to the true cannabis experience in the extraction process,” he added.

Secret sauce

Breez ended July 2024 with nearly $1.4 million in sales in the capsule category, which was good enough to claim the No. 2 position in California behind Level, according to Seattle-based cannabis analytics provider Headset.

ABX/AbsoluteXtracts and Kikoko are other top rivals in the growing category.

“The competitive landscape suggests that while Breez remains a strong contender, it must continue to innovate and adapt to maintain its rank and potentially challenge Level for the top spot,” Headset analysts noted in a recent brand profile.

Breez has expanded its offerings to 77 stock-keeping units (SKUs) in the California market, including extra-strength tablets, tinctures and disposable vapes.

Its product lineup evolves with the market, fueled by consumer preferences and demand as well as changing regulations in different states.

“We grow by being really open to cycles of testing, retiring products that don’t find a market fit and then launching new versions based on market feedback,” Hice said.

“Sometimes we’ll keep a product in the portfolio even if it doesn’t generate much revenue just because it has a passionate fan base.”

As product offerings change, so do equipment and tooling, so finding that right mix in an increasingly taxing economic environment is critical.

“We just try to focus those investments into areas which we think will yield returns over time and justify the cost to scale if it finds product market fit,” he added.

The company’s flower, pre-rolls and gummies are sold under its sister brands, Sashi and Goldmine.

Hice said that since many Breez customers don’t smoke, linking the brand name with a pre-roll product could deter some of them.

“It’s an easy mistake to overextend a given brand,” he cautioned.

Another thing that sets Breez apart: The brand has relied on word-of-mouth referrals to boost awareness, avoiding traditional marketing.

Illinois expansion

Breez has been profitable for years, and the brand expanded into the Illinois market at the end of the first quarter of 2024.

The company has steadily held the No. 4 spot in that market’s capsules category since April, according to Headset.

In June and July, Breez ascended to No. 3 in Illinois’ regulated market for cannabis tincture and sublingual sales, marking the company’s leap onto the Midwest market’s leaderboard in that category.

The company entered the Illinois market with its Extra-Strength Tablets, Mints and Tinctures and has plans to expand offerings as the market dictates, according to Hice.

He credits some of Breez’s early success in Illinois to partnering with Contract Canna, which provides product manufacturing, packaging and labeling services for cannabis companies in the state.

Contract Canna’s structure as an independent, family-run business appealed to Breez’s management team in a market dominated by multistate operators.

“We just thought it would be a good match,” Hice said.

“Picking the right people is really what drove our decision to give Illinois a shot.”

Back to basics

A key regulatory difference between its home market of California and Illinois has challenged Breez to find an affordable solution for consumers and patients seeking high-potency products.

In California, Breez’s popular line of tablets can contain 1,000 milligrams of THC per package.

In Illinois, adult-use ingestibles are restricted to 100 milligrams of THC per package.

The state also has one of the highest tax rates on retail marijuana products.

In Chicago, which has one of the nation’s highest sales-tax rates, total sales tax can eclipse 40%.

“It’s very difficult for all the providers to achieve an affordable product,” Hice said.

Contract Canna, based in the Chicago suburb of Hazel Crest, distributes Breez products to more than 100 licensed Illinois marijuana retailers.

“They’ve really opened up that marketplace and given us this testing ground for us to see what works there and what doesn’t,” Austin Hice said.

“So far, it’s been a great start.”

Chris Casacchia can be reached at chris.casacchia@mjbizdaily.com.