March 2023 marks the fifth anniversary since NJ Cannabis Insider launched with a weekly newsletter and seasonal conferences. With the market open for nearly a year, hundreds of companies permitted to open cannabis operations, and more to come, this will be our biggest business conference, yet.
For March 8, NJ Cannabis Insider’s all-day conferencewill be the state’s largest business networking event, featuring more than two dozen speakers and several new features to mirror what’s happenings in the industry.
Tickets are on sale now for the conference. A select number of discounted tickets also are available for social equity applicants.
The full line up, presentation topics, sponsors, vendors and special discovery areas:
Keynote
- Dianna Houenou, chairwoman of the N.J. Cannabis Regulatory Commission
CannaTalks & Presentations
Government Services
How State Agencies Want to Help You Succeed
- Jessica Gonzalez, an attorney and consultant representing the NJ Business Action Center’s Technical Assistance Program
- Kelly Whyman, a consultant representing the NJBAC’s Technical Assistance Program
Applications
I Have A Conditional or An Annual License, Now What?
- Ellie Siegel, CEO and founder of the cannabis consulting firm Longview Strategic
Legacy to licensed: How I Got Here
- Matha Figaro, founder and owner of But-A-Cake and Cannpowerment
Compliance
Operational Readiness: Developing Strategies to Prevent Fines and Production Delays
- Warren Harasz, VP of Regulatory Compliance at Cannaspire
Government Services and Social Equity
Understanding How The CRC Application Process Works
- Welsey McWhite III, director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the CRC
Contract Agreements
Ins and Outs of Management Service, Vendor and Financial Source Agreements
- Mollie Hartman Lustig, an attorney, is the chair of McLaughlin and Stern’s Cannabis Practice Group
Here’s How We Negotiated Lease Agreements
- Nathan Yanovitch, partner and CEO at Puffin Store NJ
- Gabriel Eustache, partner and VP of Legal and Operations at Puffin Store NJ
Next Steps
It’s Never Too Early To Think of Scale: How to Build and Grow Your Operation
- Julie Winter, VP of Retail Operations at AYR Wellness
Lunch & Learn Panel hosted by the New Jersey CannaBusiness Assn
Local and federal policy: What’s Next For N.J.’s Cannabis Marketplace?
- Edmund DeVeaux, president of the NJCBA
- Marianne Bays, the vice president of the NJCBA
- Scott Rudder, founder of the NJCBA, and owner of Township Green Dispensary
- Mike Turner, strategic advisor for the NJCBA
Municipalities
Everything You Need To Know About Municipal Approval
- Ronald Mondello, founder of NJ Municipal Cannabis
Raising Capital
How To Set Up Your Small Business For Investors
- Ekwutozia Nwabuzor, an investments manager attorney at Lowenstein Sandler
Pivoting
We Changed Our Business Plan, Then We Won Investment
- Tiyahnn Bryant, co-founder and CEO of Roll Up Life
- Precious Osagie-Erese, co-founder and COO of Roll Up Life
Why I Gave Back $10M in Investment Money
- Faye Coleman, CEO of Pure Genesis and Endo Dispensary and Consumption Lounge
Raising Capital
How To Be Profitable Without Breaking The Rules
- Todd Polyniak, partner at SAX, cannabis accounting
- David Cunic, founder of UCS Advisors, an investor relations specialist
Real Estate and Building
It’s Not A Buyer’s Market. Plan Your Build Now. Know The Costs and Timetables
- Darrin Chandler Jr., owner of Premium Genetics, and an executive at RIPCO real estate
- Art Hance, CEO of Hance Construction, NJ Cannabis Insider’s Founding Sponsor
Compliance
I’m Opening A Consumption Lounge, This Is How
- Faye Coleman, CEO of Pure Genesis and Endo Dispensary and Consumption Lounge
A Checklist of Everything You Need Before You Open Your Doors
- Rob Mejia, Stockton University Cannabis Studies teaching specialist and NJ Cannabis Insider columnist
The Speed Networking Session presented by Puffin Store NJ
NJ Cannabis Insider has partnered with The New Jersey CannaBusiness Association (NJCBA) to moderate the 40-minute, intense speed-networking session designed to help license-holders meet other license-holders and all the other businesses they need to build and grow their operations.
Sponsors and exhibitors
- Hance Construction, NJ Cannabis Insider Founding Sponsor, was selected to build one of the first cannabis grow facilities in New Jersey, and has since worked on other cannabis projects big and small, offering consulting and site-location services.
- Longview Strategic provides advisory services and industry insights to public, private and not-for-profit entities throughout the country. With years of active experience, Longview has been able to provide top quality counsel, secure hallmark resources and connections, and contribute writing services for client projects and developments. Longview is sponsor of The Women’s Discovery Area.
- AYR Dispensaries in Eatontown, Woodbridge and Union are a proud sponsor of The Social Equity Discovery Area — and dedicated to all medical patients and adult-use customers in the New Jersey communities it serves.
- Puffin Store NJ, a certified woman- and minority-owned company with a dispensary opening in downtown New Brunswick in 2023. Puffin is committed to transparency, safety and customer satisfaction every day. Puffin is sponsor of The Speed Networking Session.
- Cannaspire, NJ Cannabis Insider Spotlight Sponsor, a certified woman-owned business, was founded in 2018 by leading business, cannabis, and Wall Street veterans with over 80 years of combined experience. Starting as a cannabis security service, Cannaspire expanded its offerings and team to meet the growing needs of the market at large for dispensaries, process-manufacturers, grows, and state and local policymakers.
- Trichome Analytical, headquartered in Mount Laurel Township, offers the highest standard in accurate, compliant and comprehensive cannabis and industrial hemp testing and consulting services for cultivators, processors, retailers and regulatory agencies.
- Zenco, secure and cashless payment solutions for cannabis, offering a customizable transaction fee that allows merchants to decide what they want to charge their customers.
- Cova builds innovative retail software solutions specifically for dispensaries. Its POS & Inventory Management platform is designed to simplify compliance, streamline complex dispensary operations, and empower dispensaries to deliver the best possible shopping experience. Based in Denver, Cova is powering more than 1,800 retail locations across North America.
- Stender is a family owned, promotional products supplier to the cannabis industry. While Stender is a new company, its parent company SHC Holdings recently celebrated its 50th year in business. Stender’s global sourcing, along with its fun and creative SWAG aims to leave an impression on anyone who receives a branded product.
- Township Green, a dispensary opening in 2023 in Riverside Township in Burlington County, is built on a passion for sharing expertise and creating a positive impact in the community it serves.
- Valley Wellness, a woman-owned medical dispensary in Raritan, providing the highest quality service to our medical patients, is in the process of applying to convert to adult use sales.
- New Jersey Business Action Center, which was founded 40 years ago, has helped a range of businesses, from wineries, apparel manufacturers and medical device suppliers. With its new Cannabis Technical Assistance Program, it will now work on helping entrepreneurs in the space.
The Women’s Discovery Area presented by Longview Strategic
A spotlight on women-founded and owned by women:
- Elevated by The CannaBoss Lady, founded by Jill Cohen
- Blazin Bakery, founded by Tara Misu Sargente
- BestBüds, founded Amanda Terpstra and Laura Trujillo
- Miss Grass, co-founded by Kate Miller
- Pure Genesis, founded by Faye Coleman
The Social Equity Discovery Area presented by AYR Dispensary
A spotlight on businesses state-certified as social equity:
- But-A-Cake and Cannpowerment owned by Matha Figaro
- Simply Pure Trenton owned by Tahir Johnson
- Holistic Solutions owned by Suzan Nickelson
- Roll Up Life owned by Tiyahnn Bryant and Precious Osagie-Erese
- Noiré Dispensary owned Sharquana and Giovanni Paul
- Prolific Growhouse owned by David Nicolas
- The Library NJ owned by Corey Dishmen and Charles Penn
- Indigo Dispensary owned by Ivan Valencia
Our strategic partners
- New Jersey CannaBusiness Association, the Garden State’s largest trade group, operating as the state’s cannabis chamber of commerce.
- Stockton University, the interdisciplinary minor in Cannabis Studies offers students a foundation for understanding the burgeoning cannabis industry. Stockton recently opened The Cannabis & Hemp Research Institute, which will research hemp cultivation and develop lab testing.
- Women Grow the global leader in connecting, educating, inspiring, and empowering the next generation of women leaders in the cannabis and hemp industry.
- Cannabis Insider Jobs, in collaboration with NJ Cannabis Insider, is dedicated to helping individuals find a career in the cannabis industry, leveraging its digital presence through NJ.com’s parent company Advance Local.
To purchase tickets, visit NJ Cannabis Insider Live. A select number of discounted tickets also are available for social equity applicants. (Full Story)