A piece in the perspective of Isabella DeChard

If this year’s MJBiz wasn't your first rodeo, you know how it goes: your days consist more of smoking than they do sleeping, your throat is constantly dry from the cold desert air; and by day 3, any moment you have to sit off your feet feels so relieving.

Whether it was your first time at a cannabis business convention in general or another feather in your cap, the 12th annual MJBiz Convention was all about the theme, Dare to Grow, as it brought the vast and ever-growing cannabis industry together for an eventful week in Las Vegas.

MJBiz Event High-Lights

Foggy from a long East Coast flight and edibles I ate before take off, I touched down in Vegas and hit the ground running – the Annual Blunt Brunch National event kicked off MJBiz Con, bringing together over 400 women involved in all sectors of the cannabis industry. The mindful group meditation by wellness activation speaker Sonia Singh was the kick-off to the busy week I didn’t know I needed, and the Chief Creative Director of MJBiz Con herself, Jess Tyler, spoke about the all-women-executive leadership team in her organization.

The Emjays’ Opportunity for the Industry 

The inaugural Emjays International Cannabis Awards was a red carpet event produced by Farechild Events in collaboration with MjBizCon. This awards show was created to celebrate the community and recognize businesses and individuals who have made significant impacts in various sectors of the cannabis industry. 

Hosted at the Pearl Theater in the Palms Resort Casino, the industry journalist and comedians Mary Jane Gibson and Mike Glazer set the tone for the night with entertainment and skits throughout awards – but the real humor was when they started off the show announcing there’s “no smoking allowed,” yet in the same, breath, joked warning about the winners being “too stoned” and taking their time during acceptance speeches.

I’ll be honest, it was really fun seeing everyone together for an awards show like that, especially after a whole week of networking as a community together. I understand every first try has wrinkles to iron out, and Farechild still knocked it out of the park per usual. 

In the impression that the Emjays will continue to happen as part of MJBiz Con tradition, I truly see a lot of potential for an extraordinary annual (and inclusive) event. Many of the categories and winners for the award show included, Cannabis Consulting Firm of the Year (won by Sapphire Risk Advisory Group), Packaging Company of the Year (Grove Bags), and even Seed Bank of the Year (Royal Queen Seeds) – but I think many brands missed the opportunity of being recognized by categories that didn’t exist. 

Industry categories like “Most Sustainable Product,” “Best Small Brand or Farm,” and even some type of “Innovative Industry Leader” award would have given the chance to highlight a wider reach of brands and ancillary spaces in the space, (quite frankly, the many more small brands and pioneers who have been around before legal market).

Whether the Emjays were noted as a promising potential for an inclusive celebration to end the conference week or a quick and senseless cash-grab for the year's big industry players, is up to where it goes from here. There is a lot of great opportunity to make it a truly honorary awards show, (I’m talking like the MTV Video Music Awards of weed), if everyone in the industry gets in on the fun and at an even playing field. 

Despite my high thoughts on it all, I genuinely enjoyed watching the pride and excitement from Emjay winners as they gathered on stage to accept their award, reflecting on how far they’ve come (and the industry) and how they stand for  “community over corporate.” 

Experiencing the Expo 

However, there still felt like there was this small divide in the annual trade show, one that’s pretty obvious if you focus in on it – it’s not just the cultivation vs. business expo halls, it’s the legacy and equity brands that are standing out separately from the disingenuous, corporate guys. 

For instance, 40 Tons is a social impact cannabis brand inspired by Corvain Cooper, who was unjustly incarcerated for his non-violent cannabis crime in 2014. Their booth at the MJBiz convention replicated a full prison cell impact, reminding industry leaders and expo-goers of those who remain behind bars for the plant. 

That’s when it hit me, walking past the 40 Tons booth marketing its campaign of writing letters to incarcerated people, that no other industry’s business convention has this. What other business convention would hold such space to write letters to those who are (wrongfully) incarcerated, let alone make it an incredibly emotional and inspiring campaign? 

That’s what I think is so twisted about this newly legal industry, but so motivating for me to keep working in it – we all truly have the power and impact to make the difference you want to see. It’s about finding the right people, community, and voices to help raise you up. I’m thankful for the brands, booths, and conversations I had during my week at MJBiz that reminded me of just this. 

Thank you! 

I proudly represented two brands I have worked closely with in the past year: the cannabis digital marketing agency Cannabis Creative Group, and of course, Fat Nugs Magazine. Thank you to both my teams! Shout out to WaxNax, Joint Venture & Co, Blunt Brunch, Farechild, the team behind MJBiz Con, Cannabis Now, KC Santana, and the many new friendly faces met along the way! 

The full list of winners for the Emjay Awards from MJBiz Con is as follows:

• Accounting Firm of the Year: Citrin Cooperman

• Advocacy Group of the Year: Last Prisoner Project

• Apparel / Lifestyle Brand of the Year: Jeeter

• Branding / Marketing Agency of the Year: PufCreativ

• Business Software of the Year: Jane Technologies

• Cannabis Business Insurance of the Year: HUB International

• Cannabis Consulting Firm of the Year: Sapphire Risk Advisory Group

• Cannabis Friendly Bank of the Year: Dama Financial

• Cannabis Law Firm of the Year: Clark Hill Law Firm

• Cannabis Podcast of the Year: MITA Unshackled

• Cannabis Training / Education Services of the Year: Green Flower

• Consumer Gear / Tech Product of the Year: Flower Mill Grinder

• Investment Firm of the Year: Merida Capital Holdings

• Lighting Company of the Year: Fluence

• Market Research / Data Firm of the Year: Cannabiz Media

• Packaging Company of the Year: Grove Bags

• Public Relations Agency of the Year: Grasslands

• Retail POS System of the Year: Dutchie

• Seed Bank of the Year: Royal Queen Seeds

• Social Content Creator of the Year: Roger Volodarsky @jollyroger

• Staffing & Recruiting Agency of the Year: Vangst

• Testing Lab of the Year: SC Labs

• Trade Association of the Year: Minority Cannabis Business Association

• Vaporizer Hardware Brand of the Year: Puffco