Cannabis money to be made
Kirk Penton - Sep 21, 2018 - Biz Releases

Photo: Proactive Investors
Ascent’s Philip Campbell will be a keynote speaker on Tuesday.

It is almost time for the legalization of retail marijuana in Canada, and Pretium Group realizes there is plenty of opportunity on the business side of the industry.

That’s why the Vernon-based business firm will be hosting the Okanagan Cannabis Business Symposium on Tuesday at the Delta Grand Okanagan Conference Centre in downtown Kelowna. It is nearly sold out.

Pretium president Sherman Dahl knew something needed to be done when he noticed one recent morning that more shares of Canopy Growth, a cannabis industry leader from Smiths Falls, Ont., had been traded than those of Canada’s five major banks combined.

“The cannabis sector has exploded,” Dahl said. “The investor interest in this is stunning, and we sort of recognized there was no event of its kind in the Okanagan.

“We just thought there was an opportunity to get investors together with the individual companies, both public and private.”

Pretium has tried to cover every angle of the cannabis industry for Tuesday’s symposium, and it has a long list of distinguished and respected players lined up to attend. Some of the participants include Philip Campbell, the co-founder of Ascent Industries, Darcy Bamford, the CEO of True Leaf Medicine, and Cintas, a global player in the uniform and laundry business.

“The addition of Cintas highlights the economic impact legalization is going to bring to not only cannabis producers but also the broad spectrum of cannabis-related suppliers across a range of services and sectors of the economy,” conference director and Pretium marketing vice-president Paula Harned said.

The symposium will feature keynote speakers like Campbell and business exhibits. The goal is to bring investors and businesses together as the cannabis industry gets set to enter a new era.

Campbell has a 45-minute time slot for his keynote speech in the afternoon, and it is expected he will examine the global cannabis opportunities as well as Ascent’s rise in the industry. Campbell is also slated to take part in a panel discussion with other experts in the field, like Imre Kovacs of Quintet Ventures and Adrian Robinson of Quality Green.

The Canadian Cannabis Chamber of Commerce will also be on hand to conduct a question-and-answer session.

“If you’ve got a company that’s looking to do business with cannabis companies or you’re a growing cannabis company,” Dahl said, “this is a great place to exhibit.”

The doors open at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, and the event will kick off at 9 a.m. with featured speakers and exhibit fair. Lunch will be provided from noon to 1 p.m., and the symposium will continue until 5 p.m. A wine and cheese reception will start at 5 p.m.

Tickets are $25, and more information can be found here.

“The demand for the event is exciting but not surprising given the global interest in the cannabis sector,” Harned said.


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