Culture Council: 5 Tips For Your First Time At A Cannabis Convention

March 14, 2025

Conventions are a must. The networking, education and bridge-building that goes down at industry trade shows is unparalleled. A staple for most industries, it’s still a relatively new experience for cannabis. Everything is new for this trailblazing industry, really. 

Many of the great weed trade shows — Spannabis, MJBizCon, NECANN, Champs, the National Cannabis Festival — are frequented by industry veterans every single year. If you’re not on the floor, then you aren’t in the industry. It’s a lot, I know. You do have to focus in on several main shows each year in which to dedicate your valuable time, staff and resources.

Working for conference companies and embedded in the conference circuit for the better part of a decade, as the weed industry invented itself, I have distilled five tips for you. Why they’re worth attending, how to get the most out of them, plus the benefits to having your community all in one place.

Here’s what you can expect at weed conferences both in America and abroad:

On the trade show floor, companies that find the most success are focused on community. I know, this is a buzzword, but the actual feeling of it? Necessary. It must be embedded in your company’s ethos. How can your booth and your floor presence call people in? Highlight community members in ways they feel seen, give back to them and your brand can go far.

Many shows pay for themselves through the valuable business connections you make. Tapping into the community and having cohorts stationed across the world is invaluable. In the cannabis industry, decades-long oppression from government regulatory bodies meant there were no structures for businesses to exist in a real CPG world. Relying on those who you are “in the trenches with” has propelled the legalization movement forward. If you go simply to network, that’s reason enough for me. 

Put yourself in positions to connect. Enter your brand in the running. Celebrate and give thanks to those working hardest, like the growers and sales people on the front lines. For me, cannabis competitions are where I’ve met some of the most innovative entrepreneurs in the space. Yes, accolades are wonderful for brand recognition. But simply being in the presence of the best of the best drives ingenuity and collaboration.