David Beckham Blames CBD Company’s Failure on Cannabis Censorship in Media
British football star David Beckham is among the many global celebrities who have taken notice of the growing public interest in CBD, launching their own cannabis product brands. Beckham owns Cellular Goods, a company that produces various cosmetic and therapeutic products containing CBD. However, according to Beckham himself, the brand he founded a year ago has failed in the market, as reflected by the company’s continuing decline in revenue.
Beckham attributes his brand’s failure to the fact that administrators of various social platforms, such as Facebook, are actively censoring information related to cannabis, making it impossible for him to effectively advertise his products.
Cellular Goods’ stock price on the London Stock Exchange has dropped to a record low of 5 pence per share. For comparison, just a year ago, the company’s shares were worth about 20.50 pence each when they were first released to the market in early February 2021.
“Google and Meta, in the form of Facebook and Instagram, continue to completely block any cannabis-related content. For this reason, the brand was unable to organize an effective advertising campaign that would have allowed consumers worldwide to learn about its products,” reads the company’s official press release. “With no other available channels to communicate with potential customers, the company was left almost completely isolated from buyers in terms of information.”
While Facebook does indeed censor cannabis-related content, critics of the company note that its failure is more likely due to questionable business practices rather than a lack of advertising. Some critics point out that the company doesn’t actually work with natural cannabis, instead producing its CBD in a lab from non-psychoactive raw materials. Additionally, they note that Beckham is more of a promotional figurehead than the actual head of the company, as he only owns 5% of its shares despite his formal position.
Despite these setbacks, it’s worth noting that Cellular Goods is currently the only homegrown cannabis brand in the UK that is also formally listed on the stock exchange. According to market analysts, the company still has hope for survival and growth, especially after its recent launch on Amazon, the e-commerce platform that has welcomed legal cannabis products since last summer. This move could help the brand get back on track toward its projected $3.5 billion in profits by the end of 2025.
In any case, despite a disappointing first year of sales, the company is not giving up and has announced the release of four new products by the end of the current year.