
In this issue, several articles discuss the importance of the cannabis community uniting to accomplish industry-wide goals, gain legitimacy and improve communities. (See Debby Talks and this month's cover story). With that in mind, I invite you to mark your calendars for April 1-3, 2019, for the third annual Cannabis Conference, which is produced by the Cannabis Dispensary and Cannabis Business Times (CBT) staffs and a conference advisory board made up of leading cannabis retail and cultivation experts. This year’s conference will be hosted in Las Vegas and will bring together the industry’s retail and cultivation factions to discuss and advance this ever-changing industry.
At Cannabis Conference 2019, you will have the opportunity to learn from and talk with other leading dispensary owners and management, legal and regulatory experts, technology and solutions providers (in an expo hall that has tripled in size since the show’s launch in 2017), investors and cultivators. Together we will address the most pressing issues facing your businesses and help you navigate this wonderful, but challenging industry.
How We Got Here
To understand how this event evolved, it may help to know where we’ve come from. Four years ago, I co-launched CBT as a website and newsletter. The years that have followed truly have made my head spin as we have experienced exponential growth.
- CBT was acquired by GIE Media, Inc. in 2015, and we started publishing a bimonthly (2016), then monthly (starting in 2017), print magazine geared specifically toward cultivation.
- In 2017, we launched the Cannabis Cultivation Conference (now known as the Cannabis Conference) to provide a forum for face-to-face education and networking among cultivation professionals.
- In the fall of 2017, we launched Cannabis Dispensary as a bimonthly print magazine focused on dispensary operations, along with a website, social media channels and e-newsletter.
What’s to Come
Now, we are excited to bring together both our audiences under one roof for Cannabis Conference 2019. In addition to our cultivation education sessions, we are including extensive dispensary education tracks, as well as featuring suppliers and technology companies that provide services and solutions specifically focused on dispensaries.
These audiences—the cultivators and you, the medical and adult-use dispensaries—are the heart and soul of this industry. You create the products and bring them to market. To best serve you, we have developed a conference worthy of your time and respectful of your expertise.
This industry is not easy, but I have experienced firsthand the impact in-person events can have on businesses. You will leave with ideas, solutions to problems, a new burst of motivation, and new contacts and friends.
We are excited to open this event to you and your dispensary teams, and look forward to seeing you in Vegas! Remember: What happens in Vegas betters your business!
Noelle Skodzinski, Editorial Director | [email protected]