A growing number of New York cannabis stores can’t keep up with their bills.
According to the New York Office of Cannabis Management, 87 retailers – about 12% of the state’s licensed marijuana outlets – are on an official list of delinquent payers that owe money to suppliers, cannabis law firm Vicente noted in a recent blog post.
How much do New York cannabis shops owe?
Under state law, New York cannabis retailers can purchase product from distributors via cash or via credit.
However, credit purchasers need to pay in full within 30 days. If they don’t, they’re put on the state’s “cash on delivery” list until payment is received in full.
The OCM now tracks delinquency data through Metrc, the state’s track-and-trace system, as officials noted during a Sept. 10 Cannabis Advisory Board meeting.
Collectively, the retailers owe about $3.89 million to 44 suppliers, noted Vicente, citing OCM.
Listed retailers owe an average of about $45,000 across nearly 10 invoices.
The average delinquency is about 281 days – more than nine months past the 30-day credit term set by state rules.
Does New York cannabis have a cash-flow problem?
The reported total may understate the problem.
Since some suppliers keep struggling retailers off the official list as they make alternative payment arrangements, industry representatives said, according to Vicente.
The industry also raised a cash-flow concern. Suppliers may owe excise tax on invoiced sales before the retailers has actually paid.
OCM didn’t respond to that issue during the meeting, Vicente reported.
Cumulative adult-use sales stand at about $3.9 billion since the market opened in December 2022.
The state reported about $1.24 billion in sales this year as of Sept. 3, according to OCM.
But that pace trails the projection OCM gave earlier this year.
Where do cannabis sales stand in New York?
In March, Acting Executive Director John Kagia said record early sales put the state on track for $2.6 billion in 2026, with annual sales potentially reaching $4.6 billion by 2028.
OCM attributed the apparent decline between the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter this year to a reporting change, not an actual drop, Vicente reported.
The state switched from self-reported figures to Metrc data, which it said accounts for the gap.
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New York now has more than 2,300 licensed adult-use businesses, including:
- 275 cultivators
- 559 processors
- 245 distributors
- 917 retailers
- 361 microbusinesses
- 10 registered organizations that hold the limited number of New York’s vertically integrated medical cannabis permits
About 709 retail stores are in business, including 160 that opened this year.
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