As national liquor sales decline and alternative options are on the rise, the Colorado Springs community is buzzing with change.
If you’re of legal drinking age and need to pick up beer for the weekend, there is likely one place you’ll be going: Weber Street Liquor.
A stone’s throw from campus, this spot is the go-to for picking up a drink on a weekend night. The store has an arsenal of beer, seltzers, spirits and other products — they are likely to have what you need.
But Phil Chase, the store’s owner, said the love from CC students hasn’t meant that business is booming; sales have declined over the last few years, highlighting societal changes around drinking.
“I just think people are drinking less,” Chase said. “There’s alternatives to drinking… We sell THC sodas, we sell more non-alcoholic beer” for those who want to consume the same products for those who want to consume the same products with less alcohol.
Chase’s perspective points to a larger issue that is impacting the Colorado Springs liquor community.
Students and younger adults, for several reasons, are drinking less, which negatively affects liquor stores in the area. Stores that rely on business from college students and younger adults are particularly at risk, forcing some to change their business model and introduce more alternatives to alcohol, such as THC and CBD beverages—an industry that has seen a recent boom nationwide.
According to the data firm Future Markets Insight, THC beverage sales were around $850 million in 2025 and are expected to reach around $4 billion by 2028, highlighting the fast-growing nature of the industry.
The industry has even attracted celebrities such as Willie Nelson, the 92-year-old Grammy Award-winning American singer and songwriter, to invest in the emerging market. Willie’s Remedy+, which has a wide range of THC beverages—including spirits, shots and seltzers—claims it has hit an $80 million run rate as of February of this year. They currently ship to 36 states and can be found in a few select retailers across multiple states, according to their website.
While Willie’s Remedy+ suggests that the THC beverage industry may be thriving, Chase’s comments show a growing issue and shift in the liquor industry: young people are drinking less. A 2023 Gallup survey, for example, found that the share of adults under age 35 who say they drink dropped 10 percentage points over two decades, from 72% in 2001-2003 to 62% in 2021-2023.
However, the changes in demographic behavior are not affecting all liquor stores in the same way.
Staff members Kathy and Glenn at Lots A Liquor, a five-minute drive north of campus, said that the store’s alcohol sales have remained consistent over the last few years. They added that they have not seen an increase in THC and CBD-infused beverages, questioning the success of the drinks.
“It kinda does the same thing as alcohol. What’s the point?” Kathy said. She’s skeptical, as Lots A Liquor has not seen a consistent demand for these products. When asked why the demand for these products has not mirrored other nearby stores, they pointed to their customer demographic.
“It’s because we don’t have a college program,” said Glenn, who believes that these products are far more popular for those younger than their customer base. “If we had a demand for it, we would certainly put it in,” added Glenn, who remains open to the emerging market. Despite the growing popularity of these products, the shelves at Lots A Liquor remain stocked with booze.
Since THC-infused beverages may not appeal to everyone, non-alcoholic (NA) drinks are shaping how some individuals unwind. A Market Insight Report expects the NA market to grow from $22.1 billion in 2026 to $43.9 billion by 2036. The surge in demand is modeled locally, as stores are already designating shelf space to this new product.
Other stores, such as Platte Ave Liquor, emphasized that NA beer sales are rising, but the store has not seen a decrease in overall alcohol sales. This remains consistent with national trends, as the International Wine & Spirits Record reports that sales of NA beer grew by 9% in 2024.
The shift in consumer preferences may be linked to recent research exposing alcohol’s poor health outcomes. A 2025 U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory reports alcohol “as a leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States, contributing to nearly 100,000 cancer cases and about 20,000 cancer deaths each year.” Despite current research, alcohol was once reported as beneficial, as cited in the French paradox for coronary heart disease.
This theory, developed in the ‘90s, attributed red wine to France’s low coronary heart disease rates, despite a diet rich in saturated fats. S. Renaud and M. de Lorgeril write in Wine, alcohol, platelets and the French paradox for coronary heart disease that “epidemiological studies indicate that consumption of alcohol at the level of intake in France (20-30 g per day) can reduce risk of CHD by at least 40%.” The contrast represents a growing shift towards NA options, as health experts warn of alcohol’s risks.
But while the recent trend away from drinking may be hurting Colorado Springs liquor businesses, it is welcomed by adjacent industries like recreational marijuana, which was just recently legalized in the city.
Jullien Romero, an employee at Star Buds Dispensary, a medical and recreational marijuana shop in downtown Colorado Springs, shared the wide range of customers their dispensary has seen recently.
“We’ll get people from Texas, Kansas, other people that have never necessarily tried cannabis,” Romero said. “You get a lot of people that are switching [from] alcohol to cannabis.”
Romero continued, “You’ll have everybody from professionals, like teachers, executives, [to] companies staying at the Broadmoor coming in here. I think cannabis is more widely accepted than it was before.”
Recent data support what Romero said. According to a 2022 poll, the percentage of adults aged 35-50 who have used marijuana within the last year has nearly doubled from 12.6% in 2011 to 24.9% in 2022.
Even though THC beverages are on the rise nationwide, Colorado College students will continue to buy alcoholic beverages from Weber’s.
“[We sell] twenty-five 30 racks [of Genesee] per week,” Chase said.
When asked what percent of these 30 racks of Genesee, priced at around $15, go to people aged 21-28, his answer was clear: “Ninety-seven percent.”