CCC

The cannabis industry met itself in the mirror last week in Chicago and what it saw was a sector growing wiser, not just older. At the 2025 Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference, held June 8–10 at the Marriott Magnificent Mile, hundreds of investors, executives, advocates and analysts gathered to...

Genuine Marketing Group Inc. (OTC:GMGZ) announced the beta launch of its blockchain-based platform ZPTAG for the cannabis industry, partnering with Ignite Dispensary to pilot the technology across select locations in Wisconsin. The announcement was made Monday morning during the Benzinga Cannabis...

Germany imported a record 37.2 tons of medical cannabis in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 4.6x increase compared to the same period last year, according to the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM). Per publicly available data, the country is now the largest importer of...

Cristina Aranguiz did not inherit a legacy license or walk into cannabis with a Silicon Valley war chest. She started with just $10,000, money she saved from real estate side gigs. Today, she runs seven dispensaries and a cannabis manufacturing facility in three states via her companies, Cannabis...

This week's cannabis earnings highlighted a widening divergence between U.S. operators. LEEF Brands (OTCQB:LEEEF) saw its stock jump nearly 25% after striking a new dispensary management and supply deal with Glass House Brands (OTCQX:GLASF). Meanwhile, Glass House rose 4.5% on solid Q1 results,...

Carlos "Los" Arias spent years building one of California's most ambitious cannabis companies. But the moment that mattered most didn't happen under grow lights or in a boardroom. It happened at Cedars-Sinai Hospital, where Arias, then deep in Colorado's cannabis industry, begged a doctor to...

Editor's note: This article was originally published on Forbes in January 2025. It has been updated in May 2025 to reflect new developments, including Brittney Griner's canceled appearance at the Women Grow summit. "I believed in the plant, even when everyone told me I was throwing my life away,"...

The Bob Fireman Award for Entrepreneurship will once again take center stage at the 2025 Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference, which is taking place June 8-10 at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile. Nominations are now officially open, with the winner to be announced during the event....

“I’ve always been an adventure seeker,” says Cort Smith. Those words encapsulate the driving force behind a career that thrives on calculated risks and breakthrough developments. As the founder of Synergy Innovation, the parent company of DaVinci Vaporizers and Eyce, Smith has...

"My first legal joint burned like hell. It was hot, the material was dried out, and it canoed," recalls Kyle Loucks, founder and CEO of RollPros, as he describes the experience that led to his work in the cannabis pre-roll space. For Loucks, that moment wasn't just a personal disappointment, it...

At the recent Cannabis Market Spotlight: California event in Anaheim, Chelsea Kossower, Puffco's vice president of global expansion, emphasized the need for authenticity in the cannabis industry. Speaking to a crowd of industry peers and enthusiasts, Kossower addressed how brands can best connect...

Actor and cannabis advocate Jim Belushi took the stage at the recent Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference in Chicago to share his passionate views on the food and pharmaceutical industries, cannabis' healing potential and his frustration with media narratives around the plant. Belushi, well-known...

At the recent Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference, cultivation experts shared key strategies for building a profitable commercial cannabis cultivation operation. Moderated by Amy Larson, senior vice president at Rx Green Technologies, the panel offered key insights on essential strategies...

Cannabis brands looking to stand out in a competitive market need to focus on customer engagement, loyalty, and budtender partnerships, according to experts at the recent Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference. Moderated by Laurie Parfitt, founder of LKP Impact Consulting, the panel "Good Reviews...

In today's volatile cannabis industry, expansion can be a double-edged sword. For Dustin Milner, CEO of California's Talarya Brands, the question every cannabis operator should ask before growing is simple: “Why?” "There's always pressure to grow, especially from investors," Milner said...