LGBTQ Interest in CBD Grows Higher Than Ever

Cannabidiol (CBD) revenue has been growing for years; a trend that experts say will only increase throughout 2020 and beyond.

National CBD sales grew over 133% from 2018 to 2019 as celebrities like Jane Fonda have partnered with CBD brands or have even created their own.

In fact, there are even CBD companies specifically owned by and geared toward the LGBTQ community – like Out & About and many others.

These companies position the herbal supplement as a healthy way to help LGBTQ folks cope with depression and anxiety – which our community suffers from at roughly 2.5x the rate as the general population.

According to CivicScience data, CBD usage and intended usage among the LGBTQ community is generally steady, hovering around 33%. But from July to August, the percentage of US LGBTQ consumers who say they have used or intend to use CBD products rose from 33% to 45%, a whopping 36% increase in just two months.

Mirroring this rise, the percentage of LGBTQ consumers who say they have never used and don’t intend to use CBD products dropped by 6 percentage points. Those saying they’ve never heard of CBD products dropped by the same percentage.

A timeview graph showing that more LGBTQ consumers are using CBD products than ever before, as of 2020.

In the months preceding July, it appears there was a decline in satisfaction among LGBTQ consumers who use CBD products. After July, however, satisfaction for CBD products among LGBTQ consumers (rebased to only include users) increased from 55% to 61%.

A timeview graph showing that LGBTQ consumers are becoming more satisfied with CBD products than they have been in previous months.

One interpretation of these statistics is that more consumers were turning to the supplement as mental health consequences of the pandemic dragged on, and those who had rejected it earlier were giving it a second chance.

Lastly, it seems that CBD isn’t the only herb that LGBTQ consumers either use or support. 52% of LGBTQ consumers responded that they would strongly support a state law to legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana in the way we do alcohol.

A bar graph showing that 52% of LGBTQ Americans would strongly support a state law that legalizes, taxes, or regulates marijuana like alcohol.

It will be interesting to see if this trend of increased CBD usage and satisfaction continues over the next few months. If so, which brands will be the ones to captivate this engaging, high-end consumer base? It could be anyone’s game.