Last week’s New Jersey Cannabis Convention 2026 at the Atlantic City Convention Center shined a spotlight on just how far the state’s cannabis industry has come in the five short years since voters approved its legalization.
Over the course of the Friday/Saturday event, thousands of people with stakes in the still-burgeoning legal-weed realm thronged the expo center to network, sell goods and services, peruse the offerings of almost 200 vendors and catch up with the latest technology. Also offered were expert presentations, live podcasts and even appearances by hip-hop legend Redman and actor Jim Belushi, both of whom were there to hype their weed-related businesses to those who operate dispensaries.
Saturday’s schedule included the NECANN Cup competition at which a panel of judges named winners in 10 categories including sativa, indica and hybrid flower, vape cartridges and various forms of edibles.
“We do local-market, B2B cannabis industry shows,” explained Marc Shepard, co-founder and president of Boston-based NECANN (New England Cannabis Convention), the event’s producer. “This one is focused on the New Jersey industry. All the speaker sessions are focused on this market — the opportunities, regulations. Our goal is to get the entire cannabis industry and community into one room, to just kind of help grow and expand the industry.”
At first glance, the show looked just like any the Convention Center tends to host: Friendly, engaging folks, eager to extol the benefits and advantages of their products and services, manned booths just as they do at plumbing-supply or waste-management expos. But here, the various forms of marijuana commercially available in the (appropriately named) Garden State were the focus, as were numerous delivery systems like disposable vaporizers and the Stündenglass Gravity Infuser, which looks like something out of a mad scientist’s laboratory.
Not all of the exhibitors were hawking pot-specific products and services. There were also vendors representing companies that deal in graphic design and printing, security systems, banking software, logistical support and other more mundane aspects of modern industry.
And like any trade show, “swag” — promotional items designed to keep brands in front of potential customers — filled the branded bags carried by many — if not most — of the attendees. Logically, lighters appeared to be, far and away, the most common freebie offered, with logoed stickers, “roach” clips, rolling papers and T-shirts also available, depending on the vendor.
However, not distributed to attendees were cannabis samples (save for the small portions of infused beverages that some exhibitors offered). That the exhibition hall didn’t smell like Woody Harrleson’s rec room was a function of the state’s laws governing where cannabis consumption can and can’t take place and the distribution of weed and weed-containing products. But growers and distributors were permitted to display their consumables, and visitors were able to sample the aromas of various “flower” types of weed.
“In New Jersey,” explained Shepard, “it is legal for one adult to gift [pot] to another, but if you’re a licensed dispensary, you can’t just go around giving out your product.”
Among the businesses represented at NECANN was Brute’s Roots, which operates dispensaries in Egg Harbor Township and Paulsboro (Gloucester County) as well as a grow facility in Winslow Township. This year’s event was the third in which the company had a presence.
“It’s right in our backyard,” offered Josh Dinatale, Brute’s Roots CFO. “We have our flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, so having a cannabis-industry event in our backyard, we have to be there. But it’s like we come here with a different goal every year.
“The first time was for getting our name out. Second year was helping expand the business and to look for new equipment. This third year, we’re expanding our wholesale team. So, for us, it’s about how can we get into more dispensaries, but also how can we buy from other people to get a solid menu?
“Our reasons for coming keep changing every year, which just shows the growth in the business.”
One thing that was noticeable throughout the expo was the palpable vibe of friendliness and cooperation that permeated the hall. That, suggested Dinatale, is a hallmark of the cannabis business.
“It’s a very different industry, not cutthroat at all,” he said. “Everyone will tell you their secrets. Everyone will try and set you up with the right people. No one’s looking for a cut.
“Sure, at the end of the day, everyone has to look out for themselves business-wise. But we connect people all the time, and we’re not expecting anything in return. I think this industry is so different in that way.”
That aspect of the gathering certainly made an impression on Hammonton’s Savannah Delguercio, who was working at the booth sponsored by Mercer County-based Justice Cannabis Co., which makes and markets various marijuana products. She was enthusiastic about her experience at the show and described NECANN as “a wonderful event full of wonderful people who share a common interest in wanting to grow the New Jersey cannabis industry.”
Chuck Darrow has spent more than 40 years writing about Atlantic City casinos.
