For the better part of the last 11 years, CBE Press LLC (AKA Cannabis Business Executive or simply CBE!) has published nearly 12,000 articles, well over a thousand newsletters, multiple ranking lists, and produced numerous webcasts. CBE has also carried a few million dollars of advertising and sponsored messages targeting industry leaders as they have pursued their dreams and ambitions to build a legal, regulated Cannabis Industry at home in the United States and abroad.
When I launched CBE in 2014, that industry was just getting underway. Colorado on January 1st and Washington on July 1st had launched the first two regulated adult-use programs in the country and there were only 12 or so medical marijuana programs in operation at that time. I believed that the door to a great opportunity to work for myself had opened, and I began diligently pursuing the opportunity and our mission to chronicle the young industry’s development and struggles, and doing my best to provide utilitarian content and share best practices that would help the newly established industry grow and evolve.
Whether you work for or own a licensed operation or an ancillary business, are part of a regulatory agency, or even a consumer trying to sort through and understand the variety of innovative options and solutions that the industry has developed to help you decide the best options for your medical or personal consumption needs, you have probably come across CBE content.
At CBE’s peak, we delivered content via our weekly newsletters to over 55,000 subscribers (in total, our list has accumulated over 100,000, predominately Cannabis Business Executive, subscribers over the years) and thousands of other interested readers through our website and social media channels.
Unfortunately, the industry downturn that followed the COVID pandemic has taken a heavy toll on both plant touching and non-plant touching industry operators that have been hindered by excessive taxes at federal, state and local levels since legalization began. The drying up of access to the capital required to serve the increasing base of cannabis consumers who have opted for products from the regulated market, as well as fierce competition within the legal ranks of licensees and the illicit cannabis market, have limited the profitability of plant-touching companies.
The downturn has also severely impacted the ancillary business community, which has seen its earnings decrease. CBE and other media companies covering the cannabis industry have also felt the pinch, and it has been increasingly difficult to attract advertising and sponsorship dollars from a shrinking pool of ancillary business prospects as many vendors and suppliers have either merged with other companies or left the industry for good. As well, the nature of the media we consume has changed dramatically over the past decade as the line between paid content and independently reported content has become increasingly blurred in the digital landscape that most consumers navigate for information.
From day one, CBE has been self-financed and has solely relied on advertising and sponsorship revenue to deliver on our mission. A lot of hard work has gone into delivering best practice-based company profiles from the hundreds of interviews we have conducted with industry movers-and-shakers, as well as contributed articles from industry experts and curated, aggregated content from some of the preeminent news services in the world.
The commitment we have made at CBE has been rewarding on both a professional and personal level, but it has also taken its toll. It is time to take a much needed break, step back, and enjoy family and friends before taking the next step forward in the game of life!
With this in mind, CBE Press is taking a pause and today will be the last issue of CBE News and Insights unless someone steps forward to carry the torch. We will continue to the publish the cannabisbusinessexecutive.com website through January as we wind down the operation.
If you or anyone that you know would be interested in following in our footsteps publishing CBE News and Insights or the website and taking the company to the next level or in acquiring our assets (library of content, intellectual property, and mailing list), you can reach me at robm@cbepress.com.
I would like to thank our readers and all of those that have played a part in CBE’s success over the years (you know who you are), and I am especially grateful to have had the opportunity to get to know so many of the dedicated professionals who are responsible for establishing and developing a legal cannabis industry that will continue to evolve and grow as legalization expands across the globe.
Gratefully yours!
Rob Meagher
Founder & Publisher
CBE Press LLC
