Every July 10th, the cannabis industry celebrates “710,” the concentrates holiday. “710” is “OIL” spelled backward and upside down. For enthusiasts who spend weekends at hash tastings, hunting craft rosin drops, comparing terpene profiles, and debating cultivation and processing techniques, 710 celebrates cannabis at its highest level.
For everyone else, it can feel overwhelming.
Concentrates are premium cannabis oils that deliver many of the qualities consumers value most about cannabis. Small amounts provide rich experiences with pronounced aroma, complex flavor, and distinct effects. They allow consumers to experience a refined expression of the plant’s most important compounds—terpenes and cannabinoids—through forms including dabs, vape pens, edibles, tinctures, and added to flower.
Increasingly, concentrates are compared to wine. A concentrate isn’t necessarily stronger in the same way a fine wine isn’t necessarily more alcoholic. The appeal lies in preservation and expression. Just as wine enthusiasts discuss grape varietals, terroir, and production methods, concentrate enthusiasts discuss genetics, cultivation, extraction, terpenes, and flavor profiles.
Despite this premium promise, the category feels like a foreign language. Consumers struggle with terms like “Live Rosin,” “Live Resin,” “Hash,” “Full Spectrum Oil,” and “RSO.” Consumption methods vary, dosing is intimidating, and consumers don’t know what a dab is—or are afraid to try one.
These challenges are measurable. Higher Function, an East Coast cannabis education and experiences company, surveyed more than 500 consumers about concentrates. The findings are clear: the biggest barrier to adoption isn’t potency, devices, or price—it’s knowledge. Consumers often don’t know what concentrates are, how to consume them, or why they should consider them.
A Small, Growing Market Wide Open for Brands
This helps explain why concentrates remain a small category on the East Coast. According to industry analytics platform Lit Alerts, concentrates account for 3.7% of cannabis sales in New Jersey and 3.3% in New York.
By comparison, some Western markets tell a different story. Headset data from 2022 shows concentrates capturing 10–12% of sales in Oregon, Colorado, and Washington, and roughly 7% in California, Michigan, and Illinois. As markets mature, consumers become educated and adoption increases.
The category also remains fragmented. In New York, only two brands exceed 10% market share: MFNY (14.5%) and Rythm (10.6%). Jetpacks (8.9%), Umami (7.5%), and NYCE (6%) round out the top five. In New Jersey, Rythm leads with 12.6%, followed by Kind Tree (6.2%), Black Label (5.5%), 710 Labs (5%), and Grassroots (4.8%).
With no dominant players and substantial room for category growth, brands have an opportunity to expand revenue by 2-3x through both natural market maturation and deliberate consumer education.
A Small Category with a Cult Following
Beneath the market data is one of cannabis’s most passionate communities.
Attend a hash event, rosin competition, tasting experience, or online forum and you’ll find consumers discussing concentrates with the enthusiasm wine lovers reserve for Burgundy or coffee enthusiasts have for single-origin beans.
Gen Z males are the largest concentrate consumers, allocating 14.4% of their cannabis spending to the category, compared with just 4.8% among Boomers (Headset, 2022). Higher Function survey data also found that 92% of concentrate-curious consumers use cannabis daily.
Concentrate consumers also maintain a strong appreciation for flower. The community’s mantra of “Fire In, Fire Out” reflects the belief that oil quality begins with the plant material. Data shows flower is the next most-consumed category among concentrate users, while a sample Headset basket analysis of a Washington State Dispensary found that 26% of flower purchases also included a concentrate product, showing concentrates and flower can exist as a strong category cross-sell in retail.
If Concentrates Are So Great, Why Aren’t More People Using Them?
The answer is surprisingly simple: consumers don’t understand them. Higher Function survey results establish Lack of Knowledge as the #1 barrier.
Price is the second most common reason consumers avoid concentrates. Lit Alerts data shows premium rosin can exceed $60 per gram in New Jersey and averages more than $71 per gram in New York. Those prices are difficult to justify when consumers don’t understand the basics.
Wine drinkers pay more because they understand the differences between grapes, terroir and producers.
Concentrates ask consumers to make a similar leap without providing the education needed to understand the value.
An Industry Call to Action to Create More Confident Concentrates Consumers
Concentrates require more context than flower, vapes, pre-rolls, or edibles. Consumers need to understand what these products are, how to consume them, and why they might fit their preferences.
Much of that responsibility falls to budtenders.
Yet concentrates knowledge varies dramatically across retail teams. Training evaluations show budtender scores averaging in the low 70% range, with results spanning from 40% to 90%. The most frequently missed questions cover fundamentals: What is a dab? What differentiates live rosin from live resin? Why is “sip it like wine” an appropriate analogy?
How those questions are answered determine whether a customer becomes a concentrate consumer or walks away.
The industry must make concentrates more approachable. Consumers need to understand they don’t have to take large dabs. They should know premium rosin and resin vapes exist for those who prefer vape pens, and that products like RSO may better support certain goals than their current edible products.
For brands, that means simplifying communication, focusing less on jargon and more on the consumer experience. It means creating opportunities for experiential learning through tastings, demonstrations, sensory experiences, and guided education.
For retailers, it means investing in consultation skills alongside category knowledge. Consumers don’t need a technical lesson on extraction methods, but they do need basic answers from trusted budtenders.
We believe premium concentrates like Rosin, Resin, and RSO are for everyone – not just the heavy cannabis user or heady enthusiast.
For everyone on 710 and beyond, it means bridging the knowledge gap and welcoming curious consumers with confidence, guidance, and accessibility. The category depends on it.
