September Welcome

Happy September everyone! As we head into Fall, HQ has some big news…are you ready for the holiday season? If you haven’t started stocking up for the holiday rush, it’s time to get on it. According to a survey of Black Friday shoppers, holiday shopping begins not after Thanksgiving, but in October with more than half of those eager consumers beginning their gift buying right after they put their Halloween decorations away. Get a sneak peek at what’s Hot with holiday shoppers in this month’s special feature…plus, we have tons of prizes involved. Don’t miss it!

Up next, Decades Psychedelic, was born in South Buffalo. But this ain’t your normal shop, nor is it run by your typical shop owner. Meet Ryan, owner of Decades Psychedelic for 25 years, who is also a licensed and certified firefighter and paramedic. Don’t miss this incredible story about how Ryan and his team share a passion and mission to help the less fortunate!

Lastly, the cannabis and smoke shop industry is saturated with products and packaging reflecting the latest pop culture icons and cartoon characters, but artist Sean Dietrich is bringing a dose of originality to the table — or the canvas, to be more precise. Take a peek behind the curtain as HQ goes behind the scenes with one of the most talented artists in our industry.

  • CannaAid and Peak: Something new for everyone.

Recent Articles

ile Mike Wittenberg sat in a Dominican Republic prison, a thought occurred to him. “I could appreciate flushing the toilet,” he said. “When you’re in a third-world jail without running water 23.5 hours a day, you learn to appreciate the little things.”
When it comes to marketing, cannabis is different from every other consumer good available today. If sales start to dip in traditional retail, you can simply increase ad spending. However, with companies like Google, Meta, and even traditional broadcasters placing strict bans or severe limitations on cannabis advertising, the standard “pay-to-play” system just doesn’t work.
It feels impossible sometimes to escape the more ridiculousness aspects of pop culture—like pickleball, whatever a Labubu is, and the inevitable media frenzy surrounding Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's upcoming wedding. Thankfully, there’s at least one trend that’s still on the rise that I can get behind, which is kratom.
When Adelia Carrillo (Fakhri) and Parisa Rad first sat down for brunch in Phoenix, AZ, with a few other women in the cannabis industry, they had no idea how that moment would change the trajectory of their lives. “The energy in that room was transformative,” Adelia says.
On its face, it makes sense: an anti-establishment asset in a counterculture shop. But the ethical ramifications of cryptocurrency ATMs have divided smoke shop owners, who are increasingly asked to host them.
Cannabis and comedy go hand-in-hand. After all, who hasn’t smoked a joint and immediately caught a case of the giggles? Who hasn’t taken a huge bong rip, only to have your best smoking buddy crack a joke as soon as you inhale?
How Aaron Pavloff made Field Tryp an exclusive luxury event for big-time buyers and vendors.
For Asia Cannario, the War on Drugs is especially personal. Like many people, she started using cannabis as a teenager and got into selling cannabis in her 20s in Baltimore, Maryland, long before any legalization efforts grew teeth.