Over the past few years, there has been a surge in the consumption of CBD in the UK. From acquiring a small part of the market 5 years ago, it has grown to be a multimillion-dollar business in today’s world. The growth suggests that by 2022, the CBD market will generate about £2 billion.
Note that as more and more people are beginning to understand the benefits of CBD, the demand for CBD products is ever increasing. Since it is used by millions of people on a daily business, selling CBD is a very profitable business and a relatively new and untapped market for entrepreneurs.
Indeed, there is no definitive cause behind the recent growth in the cannabis market. Changes in legislation in certain jurisdictions and the isolation of the cannabinoids cannabidiol (CBD) as a medicine and food ingredient are likely to have contributed, as well as the increased awareness among the public of its perceived wellbeing benefits.
The market is currently worth £300 million in the UK, a figure that is expected to more than triple in the next five years. Note that this translates to a £1 billion market in CBD alone by 2025. The number of CBD oil users also doubled from 125,000 to 250,000 between 2017 and 2018. High street chains such as Holland & Barrett, Boots, and Lloyds Pharmacy are all stocking CBD products as they provide the most accessible products for both producers and consumers.
This business is ideal for anyone who has an interest in CBD and wants to help people deal with medical conditions. As an entrepreneur, you are expected to explore new opportunities, and if you are looking for a profitable and exciting business venture, the CBD market is a wonderful place for you.
Meanwhile, only people who don’t have much knowledge about CBD raise concerns because of its relationship with marijuana. CBD, which is short for cannabidiol, is a compound that is found in cannabis. What makes CBD different is that CBD products don’t contain any THC, a psychoactive compound, which is responsible for the “high” associated with marijuana.
CBD is totally non-psychoactive and is used by people to help them with several medical conditions. So, your target audience is people who want to relieve pain and are suffering from anxiety and depression. Remember, CBD is not weed and will not get you high. The stuff that gets people stoned is THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and it is this that makes smoking cannabis illegal.
CBD products produced in the UK however only use the CBD part of cannabis and often use CBD extracted from hemp – cannabis plants bred to have fewer flowers and a THC content of under 0.3 percent. Essentially, the virtual absence of THC is what makes CBD products legal.
What CBD Business ideas and Opportunities Exist in UK?
As today’s modern world embraces the cannabis plant and its trusty sidekick CBD, opportunity abounds for budding “cannapreneurs.” Note that with so many uses for these cannabinoids, it comes as no surprise that the CBD business opportunities are equally as enormous. Below are the top 20 opportunities to consider in the United Kingdom.
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Open a CBD Restaurant
If you would prefer to see the satisfaction on your customers’ faces when they sink their teeth into an infused edible, why not start a CBD-focused restaurant in the United Kingdom? However, for this option, you have to set aside time and money to secure a space where your guests can peruse CBD-infused dishes and enjoy them socially. Since you can organize events inside a restaurant, regularly update the menu and introduce deals for special occasions or guests, there are plenty of opportunities to earn encouraging revenue.
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CBD Blogger and Reviewer
Note that an eCommerce company can increase its chances of selling a product if it provides its website visitors with unbiased reviews. Reports have shown that 92 percent of B2B buyers are more likely to purchase something after reading a trusted review. Blogging and reviewing are powerful ways of strengthening SEO, boosting online visibility, and amplifying conversions.
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Start a CBD Subscription Box Service
A lot of CBD sellers prefer subscription services as a way of pulling in recurring revenue. Since you are in charge of pricing CBD subscription boxes, you can forecast your monthly revenue based on who subscribes. Note that with a predictable monthly income, managing cash flow and retaining customers will be a breeze. Indeed, as you look at returning customers, you can learn how to assess customer retention; the larger your subscriber base, the more attractive you will be to investors.
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CBD-Infused Food and Snacks
When ingested, CBD’s therapeutic effects are released slowly and steadily. Have it in mind that once an infused edible travels down the esophagus, it is digested by acids and enzymes before the primary cannabinoids — in this case, CBD — are absorbed through the stomach lining.
Making CBD edibles requires an initial extraction of the cannabinoids in oil form. This oil is then infused into a carrier oil before being whipped up into a digestible delight. The cost of production depends on how many milligrams of CBD your edible goods contain. If you invest in an extraction device, creating in bulk will be worth the effort and provide a healthy return on investment.
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CBD Distributor
If you are capable of turning inventory over quickly by selling directly to retail stores, why not become a CBD distributor? You can also launch a distributor wholesale company. Wholesale or distributor mark-up prices are usually set at around 20 percent to 40 percent, and a license is required with this method of profiting from CBD. Mastering the art of becoming a CBD distributor requires you to communicate with manufacturers to arrange the all-important distribution deals.
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CBD Marketer
If you love learning new things and want to diversify your income earned through CBD products, venture into CBD marketing. Some popular examples of ways to market products that contain CBD include affiliate marketing, content marketing, internet marketing, and social media marketing. When attracting an interested audience with marketing, popular methods of earning include advertising/sponsorship, conferences and events, donations, exclusive content offerings, and subscriptions.
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Start a CBD Courier Business
If you are searching for a great way to enjoy freedom and get out onto the open road while making money, then you should consider this opportunity and you will be guaranteed to enjoy the flexible hours, social aspect, and opportunity to see new things when you get involved in the CBD courier business. Always remember that the taxes you pay depend on whether your CBD courier business is a sole proprietorship, partnership, or limited liability company.
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Run a CBD Podcast
Note that attracting leads become second nature when you share your opinion and the opinions of others with a CBD podcast. This is your opportunity to step out and become an authority in this attractive field. Notably, it can boost your credibility and influence over other sellers in the CBD niche.
CBD podcasts provide a fantastic platform to promote products and services, earn money through sponsorships, attract crowdfunding opportunities, and build your bank balance with affiliate marketing, virtual summits, and books/audiobooks.
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Make and Sell CBD Bottles and Containers
The packaging is important. After all, the government is always looking to clamp down on companies with unsubstantiated claims about CBD. Since as many as 5 million bottles can be produced within 24 hours at a well-equipped production facility, this CBD business opportunity is a smart way of boosting profit and reducing overhead. Typically, product suppliers purchase products for £1-£2 per bottle. However, you could charge more, depending on the product information featured on the bottle or its design.
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Form CBD Cooperatives
Note that many first-time CBD sellers form a CBD cooperative as a way of saving on taxation, raising capital through investors, minimizing outgoing costs, with the goal of maintaining a long-standing existence in the industry. Any 10 adults can volunteer to create an association that nurtures self-help and mutual aid for the CBD industry. This is a perfect opportunity to integrate moral values into your CBD cooperative business, which should be registered with the Registrar of Co-operatives.
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CBD-Infused Pet Food and Treats
A detailed report has it that 20 percent — one in five — dogs signify that they are experiencing some kind of pain. This information is useful if you intend on developing new products for pets, including dog treats, capsules, and various other ingestible.
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CBD Tinctures and Topical
As a cannabinoid that may possess anti-inflammatory effects, it is not new that CBD tinctures and topical are rapidly replacing conventional skincare products and treatments. Since tinctures boast of uses that could potentially extend beyond their topical convenience, you could even market these products to a broader audience.
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CBD-Infused Beverages
You can entice your target market to rise and shine with a CBD-infused morning coffee or reel them in with an infused mojito at the end of a busy day. Owing to CBD’s supposed anti-inflammatory effects, CBD-infused drinks are also an appealing choice for post-workout recovery. Nonetheless, since cannabinoids are insoluble in water, CBD-infused snacks are expected to be produced using an emulsifier to enhance bioavailability.
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CBD Topical for Pets
Reports have it that pets always want the same thing as their owners. Therefore, this category of CBD products can be targeted toward everyday people who have four-legged pet friends. CBD topical for pets can be vegan products that are 100 percent plant-based.
Since the cannabinoids trigger a normal anti-inflammatory response and dogs also have an endocannabinoid system, some people believe these products hold promise for treating animals with physiological and neurological conditions.
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CBD Spa
Irrespective of the circumstances, the appeal that a CBD spa provides is sure to keep enticing customers. For instance, when given in a luxurious setting, a CBD massage is believed by some to minimize post-workout soreness, muscle discomfort, and tiredness; ease joint inflammation and arthritis pain; ease back, shoulder, and neck pain; and decrease inflammation caused by strain or injury. You may even want to cater some of your CBD spa products to athletes.
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CBD-Infused Clothing
Since CBD can penetrate layers of skin to provide localized relief, individuals who don CBD-infused garments can seamlessly dose. A lot of product manufacturers infuse droplets of CBD concealed in a protective polymer coating. Experts believe these CBD-infused fabrics are able to focus on major muscle groups and when worn, create friction as the wearer moves. You can sell these products at a brick-and-mortar or online eCommerce store.
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CBD-Infused Pet Vests and Blankets
Just like CBD-infused fashion products, CBD-infused blankets can be manufactured with micro-encapsulated beads that gradually release CBD’s effects through friction. In order to make CBD bioavailable in this way, it must be coated in a microencapsulated package.
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CBD Cosmetics
Owing to its supposed anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, CBD is believed by some to be the perfect aid for relieving pain, soreness, redness, dryness, and skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. You could partner with a store that places impulse-buy products, such as CBD cosmetics, near the checkout counter. Alternatively, give samples away on the street and provide the buyer with a business card so they can recommend and follow your website or social media page.
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CBD Bath Lotions and Soaps
Some experts believe that receptors in the skin are reactive to the effects of CBD, which can be infused into topically applied solutions like CBD bath lotions and soaps. Best of all, they can be developed to include a specific dosage of CBD per product, for example, 20 mg per bar. Combine the infusion of terpene-rich CBD extracts with other dermatologically enhancing ingredients, like goat milk, and your products are sure to satisfy.
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Sell CBD Supplements and Medication
A handful of CBD proponents have explored the therapeutic benefits of CBD, which they believe provide analgesic, anxiolytic, and pain-relieving properties. However, it should be noted that the CMC doesn’t regulate the safety and purity of CBD products sold as dietary supplements. Uncertainty also remains regarding dosage and risk interactions with other drugs.
Conclusion
Anyone looking to enter the UK CBD market really needs to understand the regulations that affect CBD and how these might change in 2023. Currently, CBD is an under-regulated sector and research from the Centre for Medicinal Cannabis (CMC) indicates that this is already having some concerning impacts.
Therefore, while the industry at large agrees that ensuring the quality and credibility of CBD products is paramount, there is no agreement yet on how to go about this. Many producers are already acting unilaterally, conducting lab tests, and publishing the results to reassure anxious consumers. This arguably reflects the direction in which the industry is heading and should be carefully considered by new entrants.