Dutchie Reaches $3.75 Billion Valuation After Latest Funding Round

Cannabis tech startup Dutchie recently announced its latest $350 million funding round, bringing the company’s total valuation to $3.75 billion. This is a staggering growth from the company’s Series C funding at $1.7 billion earlier this year, especially since the company has only been around since 2017. 

The Series D funding round announced on October 14, 2021, was led by D1 Capital Partners with participation from previous investors, including Tiger Global, Dragoneer, DFJ Growth, Thrive Capital, Gron Ventures, and Casa Verde Capital, and new investors, including Willoughby Capital, Glynn Capital, and Park West Asset Management.

The grass is looking greener

Headquartered in Bend, Oregon, Dutchie partners with over 5,000 dispensaries to provide a combination of e-commerce software and services that helps these businesses market and sell their products more effectively. Over $14 billion in cannabis sales occur annually through Dutchie’s platform.

Dutchie is one of many cannabis tech companies riding the recent wave of marijuana legalization in North America. So far in 2021, more than a dozen companies have either gone public or announced their intent to do so, and while Dutchie’s co-founder and CEO Ross Lipson had no explicit comments about IPO ambitions, the writing seems to be on the wall when looking at the company’s skyrocketing success thus far. Their recent acquisition of LeafLogix and GreenBits only furthers the company’s future potential.

As pro-marijuana sentiment continues to grow, more venture capital firms are looking to invest, despite the complications and risks that come with a lack of federal legalization. Start-ups like Dutchie have largely taken the lead on building the tech infrastructure needed to support this growing industry. By 2026, the cannabis industry is projected to reach $90.4 billion in value. 

Cannabis tech needs continue to rise

Alongside investment booms, G2’s own Cannabis Industry software categories have seen tremendous surges in traffic over the last year. Created only a couple of years ago, both the Dispensary POS Systems and Seed to Sale Software categories have, so far, more than doubled their monthly traffic in 2021 compared to 2020.

G2 traffic data reflects monthly category traffic growth compared to 2020.

The staggering growth in G2 category traffic compared to last year shows that more cannabis businesses are relying on tech companies like Dutchie to access the tools and support they need to operate efficiently. This will only continue to rise as pro-marijuana sentiment across the country translates to more states legalizing medical and recreational marijuana, with the ultimate goal of course being federal legalization. Cannabis tech has been vital to this boom, helping businesses navigate the complicated regulatory compliance process that goes into operating a dispensary.

What’s next for Dutchie?

Dutchie plans to use this latest funding round to support staffing and operations (the company has reached over 500 employees so far), expansion into markets beyond North America, and continued R&D efforts to drive product innovation. The cannabis tech space will certainly be one to keep an eye on over the next few years, as more products and service partners like Dutchie develop and grow to support cannabis retailers.