Longtime Edibles Brand Calls It Quits in Colorado

Coda Signature, a multi-state edibles manufacturer founded in Boulder, has ended operations in Colorado.

Known for appealing to the higher end of cannabis users, Coda co-founder Lauren Gockley's infused chocolate truffles launched to high acclaim in 2015. Coda then moved on to making chocolate bars with rare flavor combinations such as coffee and doughnuts, maple and pecan, and lemon cream and cheesecake crumble, as well as fruit chews and topical products, including bath bombs infused with CBD and THC.

Coda will continue to make and sell products in other states. While there are still a handful of Coda products for sale in Colorado dispensaries, the company's presence in its home state has ended after eight years.

According to a statement from Coda, Colorado's cannabis market decline was too difficult to endure, even with products that performed well.

"Coda Signature has remained the number-one selling chocolate in Colorado for years," a company statement reads. "However, Colorado’s cannabis market declines in recent years combined with the significant oversupply has caused the company to make the difficult decision to close operations in Colorado."

After years of successive growth and record-breaking performances during the pandemic, Colorado's marijuana industry experienced an oversupply of product, decreasing prices and plummeting dispensary sales in 2021 and 2022, which in turn led to a 30 percent cut in the state's marijuana labor force. Wholesale prices have increased slightly as surplus product dried up, but reports of unpaid vendor contracts and dispensary closures continue.
Colorado marijuana sales are on track to break $1.5 billion this year, according to the latest figures released by the state Department of Revenue. That would be around 12 to 15 percent less than the $1.77 billion Colorado dispensaries collected in 2022, and almost 40 percent less than the record $2.2 billion in marijuana sales in 2021.

Coda isn't the first major cannabis business to exit Colorado as the market declines, and it likely won't be the last. Marijuana industry giant Curaleaf ended operations in Colorado earlier this year, including a handful of dispensary product brands and Colorado's largest outdoor cannabis cultivation.

But few cannabis brands have chased a reputation for quality products like Coda. The brand won multiple Westword Best of Denver awards over the years for edibles and topicals, as well as more than thirty other cannabis cup and media awards. Chocolate bar flavors such as caramel and popcorn or coffee and doughnuts provided a tasty THC snack for specific situations at the movies or in the morning for the non-smoking crowd, and fruit-chew varieties like cherry and sarsaparilla or lychee and cucumber provided a much-needed vacation from cheaper, boring gummy flavors like sour apple.

In a statement to Westword, Gockley calls Colorado's cannabis community "instrumental" for Coda.

“As I reflect on the remarkable journey of the past eight years in Colorado, I am filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude and humility. Today, I want to extend my sincerest thanks to the entire Colorado cannabis industry, a community that has played an instrumental role in our growth and success,” she says. “To our fellow producers, suppliers, and retailers, thank you for your unwavering commitment to collaboration and shared success. The relationships we have built within this community have been instrumental in overcoming challenges and celebrating triumphs together. The dynamic landscape of the industry has pushed us to continuously raise the bar, and your collective dedication to excellence has served as a guiding light."