CHAMPS Winter Show Makes History!
CHAMPS celebrates its largest show to date
Las Vegas has always been a city with a reputation for making things colossally big. This year’s CHAMPS Winter Trade Show was no exception. Over the course of three days, CHAMPS not only celebrated its twentieth anniversary, it made history as the largest and most comprehensive B2B trade show the cannabis industry has ever seen!
Jeff Hirschfeld, co-founder of CHAMPS Trade Shows, was gratified by the global representation of attendees. “We welcomed businesspeople people from Europe, Africa, Asia and beyond,” he said. “CHAMPS continues to demonstrate the global surge of the counter-culture economy.
Retail buyers who entered the Las Vegas Convention Center were greeted by a giant TV screen featuring a sexy 8-minute promotional video produced by Futurola. Its superior production qualities definitely raise the bar for cannabis advertising.
Attendees were further awed by a convention floor that spanned eight and a half football fields, populated by virtually every major company in existence that serves the cannabis industry. With 1,100 vendor booths and well over 4,000 retail buyers, the three-day trade show stood as an inspirational touchstone for veteran and would-be entrepreneurs, a demonstration of the power of present-day cannabis commerce.
Wallace Patterson, VP of Sales at Ghost Vapes was pleased with their return to the CHAMPS show floor. “Our second year at CHAMPS was an absolute success. We were able to nurture the relationships we built last year, as well as create new ones. Our friends have grown in number and we are really excited for what’s to come. Additionally, exceeding our goals was a great accomplishment and I’m extremely proud of our team here. We are thankful to the CHAMPS team for the unwavering support!”
CHAMPS has always been a venue where old friends, industry colleagues and eager newcomers convene to further the economic reach of the industry. Twenty years ago, CHAMPS was a far smaller affair that catered exclusively to the glass artist community and the smoke shops seeking to stock their shelves with the latest innovations in smoke ware. But today CHAMPS features far more than just smoke shop related items.
Hap Kent, CCO of CHAMPS was ecstatic about the show’s success: “It exceeded all my expectations. I’m so excited about what the future of CHAMPS holds as the industry expands!”
CHAMPS was thrilled to showcase the largest display of CBD products seen at any trade show. Whether it was gummies, pet products, balms, salves, creams, lotions, tinctures or simple water, the explosion of the CBD marketplace was on display for the world.
Further extending its reach within the industry, CHAMPS introduced and promoted Dispensary+, a new division of the show dedicated to addressing the unique requirements of managing a store in the retail cannabis space.
Also prominently featured among the vendors were kratom wholesalers and distributors. For those who may not know, natural kratom is derived from a tropical evergreen tree in the coffee family native to Southeast Asia. Its leaves have been used for centuries as an herbal supplement in traditional medicines for pain management and relaxation. It’s not a drug or opiate.
Apparel companies, health supplement distributors, banking services, point of sale systems, insurance groups and credit card processors were also among the vendors.
CHAMPS’ roots have been nurtured by its continuous promotion of functional glass art. Since 2010, CHAMPS has hosted glass artist competitions with cash prizes awarded to winners. At this event, the Glass Games Masters Final pitted 40 elite glass artists against each other in a contest of ultra-creativity. Glassblowers were given two days to create their pieces, which resulted in a mesmerizing display of craftsmanship.
Jeff explained: “We’ve always been strong supporters of the glass industry. We want our retail buyers to understand the tremendous skill that’s required to create these pieces. They’ll take the experience of being a spectator at the Glass Games back to their customers and convey the actual value of functional glass art.”
The Glass Games winners are as follows:
As cannabis legalization sweeps the nation—and the globe itself—CHAMPS is poised to continue its growth and influence as the world’s top cannabis industry trade show. Thousands of businesspeople who have dedicated themselves to success in the cannabis business space are relying on CHAMPS to guide the way.
Take a look at this years top photos from the show floor!
Make sure to register for CHAMPS Atlantic City, coming this May 21st – 23rd!
Register today at www.CHAMPSTradeShows.com
