A Look Forward At CHAMPS Denver
CHAMPS returns to the Rocky Mountain State
It was 2012 when CHAMPS staged its first trade show in Colorado. The medical cannabis industry was fully entrenched at that time, but the legalization of adult-use, recreational marijuana was still two years off. All the same, CHAMPS recognized this new, fertile territory and hosted its first show in Denver. On October 14th and 15th, CHAMPS returns to the Colorado Convention Center in Denver for its eighth trade show here.
Now, seven years later, Colorado counts more than 500 retail dispensaries selling cannabis grown by more than 700 cultivators. Furthermore, the state continues to set records in cannabis sales. After posting $1.55 billion in sales last year, it looks as though 2019 sales will top that.
According to the Denver Post: “Through the first three months of the year, combined recreational and medical cannabis sales have totaled a little less than $387 million, more than $21 million ahead of the end of March 2018, with the busy summer sales months ahead. March itself set a record for sales in a single month at more than $142 million. It beat out the previous mark of more than $141 million set in August.”
Colorado is on a roll (pun intended). New bills have passed in the legislature to expand the state’s cannabis economy. Cannabis companies operating in Colorado will now be allowed to become publicly traded and solicit investment from equity funds. New business licenses for tasting rooms and “hospitality” businesses are being issued, allowing adults 21 and older to use their own cannabis products outside their homes. Also, by 2021, both medical and recreational products will be available via delivery.
With a reputation as arguably the cannabis-friendliest state in the nation, as many as 420 exhibitors are expected—really!—which will include the top companies of the Rocky Mountain time zone and beyond. You’ll see the full gamut of CBD companies here. With CBD crops growing throughout the state and many entrepreneurs setting up shop in Colorado, the CBD industry is in full swing. It’s now commonplace for harvests across to be delivered across state lines for processing by CBD-infused product manufacturers.
CHAMPS debuted Dispensary+ in 2019, a new division of the trade show aimed at servicing the retail cannabis scene. The commodities that dispensaries move, and the products that consumers are apt to purchase there, demand special attention. Dispensaries have an entire different set of requirements than the traditional smoke shop. That’s why Dispensary+ was conceived: to address the very special needs of stores that deal in cannabis sales, from merchandise that sells to financial services and digital retail management.
But CHAMPS is always a retail buyer’s supershow, especially for smoke shops. Cool merchandise and industry innovations are always on display—the latest vape technology, new smoking devices and, of course, the most beautiful glass smokeware you can find on the planet.
At the Denver show, you can also see the fifth installment of the 2019 Glass Games. Four competitions have been held thus far, with winners qualifying for the Glass Games Master Final in February. In Denver, an actual “marbles” competition will take place, with artists competing against each other with the exquisite glass marbles they themselves design.
There’s also the Goblet Grab. Artists design glass goblets—minimum $200 wholesale value—which are then displayed in a raffle. When attendees purchase a raffle ticket, they’re guaranteed to win a goblet; they just don’t know which one it will be! Lastly, Focus V Products is inviting artists to create an attachment for the Carta Vape Rig, a contest that will definitely provide awesome demonstrations of glassblowing imagination.
If you haven’t sampled autumn in Colorado, then be sure to attend CHAMPS. You’re close to the mountains and a bit of high-altitude solitude is a short drive away. It’s a gorgeous state to explore. You’re also in America’s most vibrant atmosphere for cannabis commerce. And, as always, CHAMPS welcomes you!
