Marijuana Business Magazine January 2020

Marijuana Business Magazine | January 2020 6 From the Editor | Kate Lavin H appy new year—and new decade—from the staff of Marijuana Business Magazine! 2020 brings some notable changes to these pages as well as the leadership at Marijuana Business Daily . Starting Jan. 1, MJBizDaily founder Cassandra Farrington is handing the reins she has held as CEO to founding editor Chris Walsh and stepping into her new role as chair of the MJBizDaily board of directors. Cannabis business founders exiting the day-to-day operations of their companies was a trend we covered in these pages in 2019. This month, our cover package (page 40) takes an in-depth look at even more key developments we expect to see in the cannabis industry this year. Other changes you’ll notice in this issue include a handful of new departments sprinkled throughout the magazine. We launched these features to offer readers even more information about market trends. These new elements include: Investor Intelligence Snapshot: One of the biggest endeavors the Marijuana Business Daily team launched in 2019 was Investor Intelligence, a subscription-based product catering to investors active in the cannabis industry. To that end, MJBizDaily hired two veteran financial analysts, Craig Behnke and Mike Regan, to take a deep dive into the market and serve as thought leaders on the sector’s publicly traded companies. The all-new Investor Intelligence Snapshot debuts on page 20 to give magazine readers a peek into the kind of premium content MJBizDaily is providing Investor Intelligence subscribers. This month, the Investor Intelligence team looks at the expansion plans of publicly traded Canadian cannabis companies and finds that their expected inventory will exceed current sales numbers more than 20 times over. To subscribe to Investor Intelligence, visit mjbizdaily.com/investing . Packaging Corner: The adage says not to judge a book by its cover, but nearly everyone has purchased a bottle of wine based on the label. When it comes to the importance of design in consumer packaged goods sales, cannabis is no exception. In this new department, we’ll explore the ways cannabis companies are presenting their products to consumers. Turn to page 12 to see before-and-after photos of how Redondo Beach, California-based Island cannabis company redesigned its Pax pods to fit the vendor’s new packaging specifications. Question of the Month: Our editorial team loves to hear from readers in the cannabis industry, so this new department offers a space to sound off about issues affecting your business. On page 104, we asked cannabis lobbyists as well as legal, finance and insurance professionals what trends they expect in 2020 and beyond. Please share your thoughts about the new magazine departments at magazine@mjbizdaily.com . We look forward to hearing from you and wish you success in this new decade! Sincerely, Embracing a New Decade Kate Lavin Marijuana Business Magazine Editor