The cancellation of NECANN’s inaugural Rochester, New York cannabis trade show in earlier in September, is another sign of the changing times in the industry, even in emerging growth markets.  

Consider it a wake-up call for cannabis event organizers and operators nationwide aiming to fill showroom floors with brands, retailers, manufacturers and ancillary businesses — many of whom are still seeking traction in a rapidly changing economic landscape with constrained budgets.

“Obviously it's not an easy decision to make less than two weeks prior to the event, but forecasting has become more challenging for events post-COVID,” NECANN cofounder Marc Shepard told Cultivated via email.

The run-up to NECANN shows are experiencing a much higher percentage of potential exhibitors and attendees waiting until the last minute to commit, similar to other industry conventions.

The company’s last two shows in New York, Syracuse in 2024 and Albany in 2023, had roughly 10% of attendees registered three weeks out, and less than 25% registered two weeks out, according to Shepard.    

Attendance metrics for the company’s recently concluded show in New Jersey also set a similar pace.

“Unfortunately what we had seen in the past, a huge influx of people signing up to exhibit and attend in the wake of the New Jersey convention, just didn't materialize this year,” he said. “So refunding everyone in full and rescheduling the event was the only real option.”

Of course, many exhibitors and attendees had already secured flights, travel and other accommodations. Some opted to continue their post-show events and support the local industry and community. Next year the event will be held in Albany October 2 and 3.

Trifecta Natural Solutions was a platinum sponsor last year at NECANN Syracuse but opted to skip this year’s show altogether in Rochester, scheduled for September 19 and 20.

Traveling to Upstate New York from north-central Pennsylvania, combined with related costs of an exhibitor booth, was untenable this year, according to owner John Mussare. 

The Williamsport, Pennsylvania-based manufacturer of biodegradable mold and pest prevention products typically hands out $30,000 in samples and schwag per show. Add in freight costs, payroll, packaging, booth setup, hotel rooms and other expenses, overhead can easily surpass $50,000 per event.

“All of that comes into play,” Mussare told Cultivated.

His company has been diversifying away from the cannabis space too, opting for more traditional home and garden customers.

“We saw a decline just like everybody else in the cannabis industry,” Mussare said.

He would rather see the NECANN event held in New York City, though that market has been saturated with several cannabis events clustered together.

“New York City is the epicenter of cannabis in New York,” Mussare said.

NECANN, for its part, has their own strategy in place but that may change with recent developments.

“Our original plan was to move the New York show around the upstate markets,” Shepard, NECANN’s cofounder, said.

Some event partners, including Beard Bros. Pharms, opted to continue activations last weekend in Rochester despite the event cancellation.

The Los Angeles-based brand and media company partnered with New York-based cannabis minority business advocate Bloom ROC, Good Life Gang, famed grower Dr. Dankenstein, and others, to host several events, including a roof top party, industry-insider meetup at a speak-easy consumption lounge and golf tournament.

“The easy thing would have been to cancel everything and walk away, but that’s not what this community deserves,” cofounder Bill Levers told Cultivated a few days before the events. 

“We believe in showing up for each other, and that’s why we’re making the ROC and ROLL Weekend Takeover happen with NECANN’s support and alongside some incredible partners.”

The NECANN cancellation may underscore some larger operational challenges facing regional B2B trade show operators in the emerging cannabis sector, particularly in regards to scheduling and location of competing events.

This type of dilemma played out on the East and West coasts this month. NECANN’s Rochester event was scheduled two weeks after its New Jersey show in Atlantic City and one week after Revelry held their annual flagship conference and trade show in New York City.

Hall of Flowers will also make its debut next month in New York City.

In California, some brands had to choose between exhibiting September 10 and 11 at Hall of Flowers’ flagship event in Northern California at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa or September 17 and 18 at Network Cannabis Trade Show, the industry’s premier B2B gathering in Los Angeles.

Harvesting prevented DenCob Farms from attending Hall of Flowers, so the Northern California cultivator and brand made the road trip to Southern California for its first show at Network. At its booth, the small, family-operated farm located about 60 miles north of Sacramento showcased its single-source, sun grown flower and various organic and living soil certificates to amplify its message.

“We have to get awareness of clean products,” co-owner Juan Paniagua told Cultivated. “The cleaner the product is, the better it is for the consumer.”

Vape and hardware brand Bloom opted to stay closer to home, hosting a booth at Network to showcase two new strains for its all-in-one Surf product. Company executive Kendra Stocking told Cultivated Hall of Flowers wasn’t worth the bang for the buck this year.

“We’re an L.A. brand primarily,” she said. “If we’re going to pick a place to do this, it’s a little more easier and cost effective to do it in our backyard.”

Network, which occupied a massive berth in San Pedro at the Port of Los Angeles, sold out 300 exhibitor booths and expected some 4,000 attendees from licensed businesses, show founder Nam Tram told Cultivated.

Exhibitor costs, which include everything from accommodations to shipping inventory, can escalate quickly. And because Bloom competes in 10 markets, it attends or showcases products at several events across the country.

In September alone, Bloom sent representatives to NECANN New Jersey, MJ Unpacked in St. Louis and will have a presence at Flower Expo September 22-24 in Chicago. The brand decided to forgo booths at these events, opting to attend with samples and a small sales team.

“We can’t spend $10,000 at minimum at every one of these shows,” Stocking said. “We’re a small brand.”