Alaskans voted to legalize recreational marijuana earlier this month, and entrepreneurs are already looking to cash in and are gearing up for the green rush. In Anchorage, three different trade shows are already in the works, beginning in March 2015. Here are the details:
The Rush is On
Business seminar and trade show The Rush is On will be bringing growers, dispensary owners, attorneys and other industry professionals to Anchorage, organizer Ben Adams said.
Adams said the event will be largely educational; the agenda notes seminars on business structure, regulation status, pot tourism, investment options, and advice on growing marijuana.
More than 100 vendors will be at the event from across the industry, "from dirt to lights to activists, you name it," Adams said.
Dates: March 16-17, 2015
Price: $299 early bird prices
Location: Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center
Information: www.therushison.com
Marijuana Industry Summit and AK 420 Fest
In April, John Woodbury, owner of Adventure Expos, plans to host the Marijuana Industry Summit, which is being billed as the "first official 420 Fest and Marijuana Festival" in Anchorage.
Woodbury said the event would be a mix of information for those seeking to get into the industry as well as a more relaxed atmosphere for casual recreational users. He plans to have speakers from both in-state and Outside, as well as any Alaska retailers that may have emerged by April. Woodbury described it as being a possible Great Alaska Beer and Barleywine Festival for marijuana, with a business component.
Woodbury acknowledged that it was unclear what the law would look like in April. While personal possession of up to one ounce will be legal for those 21 and over, using marijuana in public will not be allowed and it's unlikely sales will be permitted either.
"Whatever kind of animal emerges in April that we can adhere to, I'll adhere to it," he said.
Dates: April 19-20, 2015
Price: TBA
Location: TBA
Information: www.marijuanaindustrysummit.com or www.ak420fest.com
Northwest Cannabis Classic
Anchorage appears as though it will be the first stop of the inaugural Northwest Cannabis Classic. The competition and trade show will then travel to Tacoma, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, organizer Kendra Wray said.
A cannabis competition will judge Alaska's marijuana, and then pit Alaska against Washington and Oregon to see which state "really grows the best weed," Wray said. Entries will be judged and laboratory tested before May's event.
Sponsored by the Alaska Cannabis Institute -- which held a number of seminar events before Ballot Measure 2 passed -- May's event will feature upwards of 100 vendors, and "anything from glass products, hydro shops, soils, organic soils, (and) hemp clothing," Wray said.
Seminars on a variety of topics will include "niche products" like the production of edibles, Wray said.
There will be an "outdoor medicating area," organizer Cory Wray wrote in a message, where people can smoke outside, and out of public view, as smoking marijuana in public is against the law.
Dates: Tentatively May 15-17, 2015
Price: TBA
Location: TBA
Information: http://www.nwcannabisclassic.com/
Update: An earlier version of this story noted different early bird prices for The Rush is On trade show. Prices have since been modified and this piece has been updated to reflect current prices.