Welcome July 2020

Happy July, fellow fringe entrepreneurs! If you’re reading this, that likely means we’re not all in bunkers yet, so let’s just take a moment to celebrate that thought. For a second there, the evening news was starting to look like the prequel for The Handmaid’s Tale. Over here, we’re still praying to our deities of choice that it really only lasts a few seconds and things will return to a semblance of normal soon. Here’s to hoping. But there is good news on the horizon, albeit, nothing that can dwarf the senseless death and destruction we’ve witnessed in these chaotic weeks, but in terms of the smoke shop world, it’s a pretty damn big deal. HQ Magazine, your authority on all things cannabis and counter-cultural for two decades and counting, is teaming up with Smoke Shop Events to create the first official HQ trade show. What will it be like? Exactly what you’d expect from the merging of the most innovative show and the longest running publication in the space; a one-of-a-kind experience that brings our industry into the new decade with state-of-the-art technology and high-tech advancement to significantly increase your return on investment and reinvent what a trade show is supposed to be. This is evolution, folks—and not the slow kind. We’re talking punctuated equilibrium. Are you ready? We hope so. Be well and be safe, one and all. We’ll catch you on the flipside.

Recent Articles

There’s a lot that AI can do for your shop. With the right inputs, you can use AI tools to develop marketing materials and more.
At HQ, we don’t shy away from controversy, but we also don’t exist to tear down legitimate players in the industry. We chose instead to invite both perspectives to weigh in.
Attorney, professor, entrepreneur, and plant healer, Laury Lucien wears many hats. No matter her role, it’s immediately evident that Laury brings her intentionality, spirituality, and deep love of the natural world into everything she does.
The cannabis and hemp industry can be considered chaotic. No two states are the same. The regulations and compliance framework can be confusing because of the differences between full legalization and outright bans. There is also a gap between client expectations and state laws, which further complicates business operations and marketing.
We’re talking about the new workplace epidemic: vanishing without a trace in the middle of a business conversation. Yes, it's somehow a thing.
When Steph Sherer founded the ASA in 2002, she never expected she’d still be doing this work more than 20 years later. A recent college graduate living in Southern California, she was also taking a high dose of anti-inflammatories every day for a painful chronic injury. And despite her young age, she was experiencing early onset kidney failure because of it.
Given the popularity of its products, it’s odd that America’s cannabis industry feels so brittle. Smoke shops seem to teeter on the edge of annihilation due to a constellation of government and societal pressures.
Explore the art of flirtatious sales, discover how charm and confidence can close deals successfully, all using the C-Word!