In just three short months, 150 growers (owners, CEOs, cultivators) from throughout North America and beyond will gather in one room for Cannabis Conference's exclusive VIP Cultivation Roundtable on Aug. 15.
The all-day event, which is co-chaired by longtime cannabis cultivators David Holmes, founder and CEO of Clade9, and Scott Reach, owner of Rare Dankness and House of Dankness, will provide indoor, greenhouse and/or outdoor cultivators with the opportunity to network with like-minded individuals, forge new opportunities and potential partnerships, and share knowledge on a variety of topics including surviving the market downturn, pest management, breeding, genetic selection, employee retention, brand building and more.
"Having a chance to really speak grower to grower, owner to owner, it doesn't happen very often. ... To have a chance to really sit and discuss today's scope of what the industry looks like and what the landscape looks like, I think is going to [be] something that will be remarkable," Reach said on the "Beyond the Show" podcast, Episode 50.
The Cultivation Roundtable will provide growers with an open forum to discuss business pain points, as well as share solutions to the most persistent industry challenges they face today, including price compression, competition from the illicit market, over taxation and more.
Price compression has been an increasing challenge for operators in many markets throughout the past year, with legacy markets like California, Colorado, Massachusetts and Oregon getting hit the hardest.
For example, wholesale prices in Colorado have dropped from $1,876 per pound in Jan. 2014 to $658 per pound in Jan. 2023—that's a 65% dip. In California, wholesale prices have dipped from $1,359 per pound in Jan. 2018 to $654 per pound in Jan. 2023—a 52% decrease.
The industry downturn has caused several U.S. cannabis companies and multistate operators to cut a percentage of their workforce, close facilities and engage in other cutting-cost efforts.
At the Cultivation Roundtable, growers will address these challenges and share strategies they've implemented to compete in a lower-margin flower market and to lower the cost of production and the cost per gram.
The Agenda
The roundtable will begin at 10 a.m. Aug. 15, with opening remarks from Noelle Skodzinski, editorial director of Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Conference.
Following that, Reach and Holmes will share their most significant lessons learned in cultivation. Then, attendees will break out into six roundtable discussions. There will also be a roundtable lunch and a private networking reception directly following the event.
The agenda is as follows:
- 10 a.m. – 10:05 a.m. - Welcome Remarks from CBT and Cannabis Conference Editorial Director Noelle Skodzinski
- 10:05 a.m. - 10:25 a.m. - Co-Chairs Kickoff: Dave Holmes and Scott Reach Share Lessons From the Trenches
- 10:25 a.m. - 10:55 a.m. - Roundtable Discussion I: The Give & Get
- 11:05 a.m. – noon - Roundtable Discussion II: Surviving the Downturn (Speaker: Lindsey Renner, Owner, Native Humboldt Farms)
- Noon – 1 p.m. - Roundtable Networking Lunch
- 1 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. - Roundtable Discussion III: Integrated Pest Management Challenges & Strategies
- 1:55 p.m. – 2:40 p.m. - Roundtable Discussion IV: The Future of Genetic Selection & Breeding With a Purpose
- 2:40 p.m. – 3:10 p.m. - Refreshment Break
- 3:10 p.m. – 3:50 p.m. - Roundtable Discussion V: Avoiding Burnout & Labor/Hiring/Retention Challenges (Speaker: Kevin Kuethe, Chief Cultivation Officer, Lume Cannabis Co.)
- 4 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. - Roundtable Discussion VI: The Year of the Brand: How and Why It's Essential in Today's Cannabis Market to Build a Brand That Breeds Consumer Loyalty
- 4:45 p.m. – 5 p.m. - Closing Remarks & What We Are Most Excited About
- 5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. - Private Networking Reception
Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Conference created this roundtable in response to requests from cultivators to have a forum where they can meet with and learn from their peers, and take back actionable intelligence to apply to their businesses to help them navigate their biggest challenges.
"The cultivation roundtable is an invaluable opportunity for growers to expand their peer networks, find new opportunities and potential collaborations, and grow their knowledge of advanced cultivation techniques and practices," Skodzinski said. "As we have heard from Cannabis Conference attendees in previous years, you never know the impact one conversation can have on your business. In this forum, growers can have many conversations with an even bigger impact."
Visit cannabisconference.com to learn more about the event—and to sign up to win TWO passes to the VIP Cultivation Roundtable. Enter before June 5 for a chance to win!
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