In Canada, some of the buzz around cannabis has fizzled down since legalization here, but that certainly was not the case this past month in Las Vegas where the annual MJ Business Conference was held. While it is no surprise that the cannabis industry is all around booming – the sheer size of the event in both exhibitors and attendees was nearly overwhelming - but very exciting.
With nearly 30,000 cannabis business enthusiasts in attendance, it was great to see the Canadian public companies, both operating in Canada and/or the U.S., showcasing their assets.
Front and centre inside the show, the 1933 Industries Inc. (C.TGIF) booth was buzzing, which had the AMA, Canna-Infused and CannaHemp products displayed, among others. The company is said to be expanding in 2019, with the highly anticipated new and larger facility now nearing completion.
Weekend Unlimited Inc. (C.YOLO) was lit up with many eager investors looking to learn more about their recently acquired Canna Candys (CBD:cannabidiol) and Canna Medibles (THC: tetrahydrocannabinol) products to add to their expended portfolio of offerings.
The CEO of Flower One Holdings Inc. (C.FONE) was busy giving tours of its facility throughout the show, but that didn’t stop the buzz at their booth, where keen investors were hoping to book last-minute spots. In the same row, Chemesis International Inc. (C.CSI) and Isodiol International Inc. (C.ISOL), which are both listed in Canada and doing cannabis business in the United States, were lighting up the eyes of attendees.
There were many investor events hosted during the conference, but one not to be missed was Canadian-listed company Next Green Wave LLC (C.NGW), a seed-to-sale operator in California, whose event included great presentations by Leigh Hughes and Mike Jennings.
Famous rock and roller, Gene Simmons attended the show to support his cannabis company, Invictus MD Strategies Inc. (V.GENE) The crowd was excited to see him, so much so that it was difficult to get close to the booth at all. No surprise there as Mr. Simmons is great at drawing large crowds. Invictus’s new CEO, George Kveton, was also grabbing a lot of the attention at the booth conducting interviews – speaking on the many reasons Invictus is one to watch in the Cannabis sector currently and laying out his plans for growth in 2019.
Renee Gagnon, who is the world’s first federally licensed female cannabis public company CEO, had her new company, HollyWeed North Cannabis Inc., on display, which will soon be going public on the TSX Venture Exchange via RTO. She has a very unique approach and a winning team behind her – watch for this one to list in Canada in the coming month(s).
Other companies listed only in the US such as Freedom Leaf Inc. (FRLF) have so much going on that they had booths for each of their acquired brands under their umbrella. One wouldn’t be surprised to see companies like this list in Canada to leverage the federally legal Canadian market.
If you’re looking to get into the cannabis business or invest in the cannabis business – simply put, MJ Biz Con is the place to be to meet other like-minded professionals and investors. There is still so much learning, growing and technology opportunities out there in the cannabis industry, and considering the sheer size of the show, likely the show grow more and more over the next few years. Stockhouse will be sure to be there again next year to cover the growing number of cannabis companies listing publicly … Until next year!