Emerald Holding Buys MJBiz for $120 Million Cash

Emerald Holding, Inc has acquired MJBiz, the leading event producer and content platform serving the wide range of companies operating in the large and rapidly growing cannabis industry. The addition of MJBiz further accelerates Emerald’s strategy of delivering 365-day customer engagement while also enhancing its portfolio optimization efforts by providing a preeminent platform to expand into one of the highest growth business sectors in North America.  The deal includes MJBizCon as well as related media and event brands such as MJBizDaily, Hemp Industry Daily, MJBizMagazine, and The Emerald Conference. 

MJBiz management, including CEO Chris Walsh, Senior Vice President of Events and Sales, Jess Tyler, and Senior Vice President of Content and Audience Development, Pam Moore, will continue to lead the day-to-day operations of the business utilizing their exceptional knowledge and experience in the event and content platforms.

 “MJBiz’s leading event and content portfolio coupled with their 365-day engagement platform, which connects the entire cannabis supply chain, will diversify our collective product offerings, enhance our growth profile and enable us to deliver even greater value to our customers over the long term,” said Hervé Sedky, Emerald’s President and CEO.

Founded in 2011, MJBiz produces MJBizCon, the oldest and leading B2B cannabis trade show in America, the Emerald Conference and related media brands including MJBizDaily, Hemp Industry Daily and MJBiz Magazine.

In 2021, MJBiz’s revenues were approximately $27 million, which were near pre-pandemic levels.

MJBizCon is a top trade show in the cannabis industry having featured more than 1,200 exhibiting companies and 27,000 attendees, including over 18,000 paid registrations, at the October 2021 event, rivalling pre-pandemic levels.

The MJBiz platform delivered 38% compound annual revenue growth in the three years prior to the pandemic (2017-2019). In addition to operating the leading cannabis industry trade show, the MJBiz brand is the leading source for actionable business intelligence in the cannabis industry.