UK cannabis trade show Product Earth was forced to cancel its second day this weekend, following concerns around attendees consuming cannabis inside the venue.
The event, which has been running since 2015, was held in London’s Drumsheds venue for the first time this year, which, according to its organisers, ultimately shut down the conference due to fears their licence would be threatened.
While Product Earth has stated that they are working with Eventbrite to ensure refunds are issued to attendees, it remains unclear whether exhibitors, which include major brands like Curaleaf and Cookies, alongside a swathe of independent businesses, will be compensated.
Attendees were reportedly asked to refrain from smoking inside, and a medical cannabis prescription was required to be able to bring medical cannabis onto the premises.
However, numerous attendees reported the open sale of cannabis on site, alongside the open consumption of cannabis indoors by both attendees and exhibitors, despite requests from the organisers and Drumsheds staff.
Product Earth 2024 was due to take place at Drumsheds in North London, a venue able to house 15,000 attendees, on Saturday, September 07, and Sunday, September 08.
It was the first time the event had been held in the capital, having been held in Stoneleigh a year earlier and similar more remote destinations in years prior.
Business of Cannabis understands that the venue, which is run and operated by Nine Point Eight and owned by Broadwick Group, the same company behind iconic venues like Printworks London and Depot Mayfield in Manchester, requested that Product Earth use their security contractors for the event.
Drumsheds recently signed a deal with crowd management and event security specialist Showsec, but also has contracts with other firms like FGH Security. This is standard practice for Drumsheds, an employee told us.
The first day of the event, was largely well received by exhibitors and attendees alike, with many reporting a vibrant and friendly atmosphere throughout the day.
Furthermore, reports have also suggested large crowd sizes, with some attendees suggesting it took up to two hours to make it through the queue on Saturday morning.
However, throughout the day, there was widespread cannabis consumption inside on the exhibition floor, both by attendees and those exhibiting.
Numerous reports also suggest that the onsite security did little to deter this behavior throughout the day, seeing it continue unabated. The open sale of cannabis was also understood to be taking place, though these reports are unconfirmed.
At around 2am on Saturday evening, following ‘hours of discussions’ with Drumsheds staff, Product Earth informed exhibitors that the event would not be taking place the following day.
In a later statement on social media, Product Earth said: “Unfortunately on Saturday a minority of people decided that they would smoke inside the building. UK law dictates that smoking is not permitted in any enclosed workplace or public building.
“This triggered pre-fire alarms, which would have set off sprinklers, putting the safety of people at risk. We worked into the early hours of the morning with the venue to come to a resolution, offering multiple solutions, however the venue made the decision that the show could not continue on Sunday due to the risk on their license. This decision was entirely out of our hands.
“We are heartbroken that this has been the outcome and continue to work tirelessly to resolve this unfortunate situation that has affected so many of you.”
Business of Cannabis has reached out to both Product Earth and Drumsheds for comment, but has recieved no response at the time of writing.
The Cannabis Trades Association (CTA), who attended the event on Saturday, told Business of Cannabis: “This was not a show about personal use of cannabis; it was a show for the natural products industry.
“The organisers and venue acted correctly and swiftly to ensure public safety. This response demonstrates the growing maturity of the industry and its commitment to being recognised as a legitimate and regulated sector.
“While Product Earth has been held successfully for many years, this was the first time at this venue. Both the venue and organisers will need to reflect and learn lessons from this weekend’s events.
“Smoking and vaping indoors is illegal, and any illegal matter should be investigated by the police and dealt with appropriately.
“Patients who had been legitimately prescribed medicinal cannabis were facilitated appropriately at the event.”
With thousands of attendees having purchased tickets for Sunday’s event or for the entire weekend, Product Earth has confirmed that the price of their tickets will be reimbursed.
“Our first line of action is to ensure those that did not get to attend on Sunday are refunded their tickets. We will also be addressing those with weekend tickets and VIP tickets that were not able to get the full value of their tickets as well. We are speaking with Eventbrite on how best to get this done as quickly as possible. We appreciate your patience as we work through this unfortunate process.”
Exhibitors, many of whom have now taken to social media to call for compensation, were not mentioned in Product Earth’s statement.
In its terms and conditions for the event, Product Earth states that in the event of the cancellation of the show, ‘all invoices paid in full by their respective exhibitors or advertisers, prior to the inception of the confirmation of the cancellation of the show, shall be entitled to an apportioned refund.’
Crucially, however, it states in clear terms that ‘Product Earth Expo UK Ltd. shall not be held liable for any cancellations of any part of the show from the venue, other parties or resultant from force majeure, including but not limited to disaster, fire, flood, earthquake, war, insurrection strikes, COVID, labour disputes or other related acts.”
The post Product Earth ‘Heartbroken’ as it is Forced to Cancel 2nd Day at 11th Hour Amid Threat to Venue’s Licence appeared first on Business of Cannabis.
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The event, which has been running since 2015, was held in London’s Drumsheds venue for the first time this year, which, according to its organisers, ultimately shut down the conference due to fears their licence would be threatened.
While Product Earth has stated that they are working with Eventbrite to ensure refunds are issued to attendees, it remains unclear whether exhibitors, which include major brands like Curaleaf and Cookies, alongside a swathe of independent businesses, will be compensated.
Attendees were reportedly asked to refrain from smoking inside, and a medical cannabis prescription was required to be able to bring medical cannabis onto the premises.
However, numerous attendees reported the open sale of cannabis on site, alongside the open consumption of cannabis indoors by both attendees and exhibitors, despite requests from the organisers and Drumsheds staff.
What happened?
Product Earth 2024 was due to take place at Drumsheds in North London, a venue able to house 15,000 attendees, on Saturday, September 07, and Sunday, September 08.
It was the first time the event had been held in the capital, having been held in Stoneleigh a year earlier and similar more remote destinations in years prior.
Business of Cannabis understands that the venue, which is run and operated by Nine Point Eight and owned by Broadwick Group, the same company behind iconic venues like Printworks London and Depot Mayfield in Manchester, requested that Product Earth use their security contractors for the event.
Drumsheds recently signed a deal with crowd management and event security specialist Showsec, but also has contracts with other firms like FGH Security. This is standard practice for Drumsheds, an employee told us.
The first day of the event, was largely well received by exhibitors and attendees alike, with many reporting a vibrant and friendly atmosphere throughout the day.
Furthermore, reports have also suggested large crowd sizes, with some attendees suggesting it took up to two hours to make it through the queue on Saturday morning.
However, throughout the day, there was widespread cannabis consumption inside on the exhibition floor, both by attendees and those exhibiting.
Numerous reports also suggest that the onsite security did little to deter this behavior throughout the day, seeing it continue unabated. The open sale of cannabis was also understood to be taking place, though these reports are unconfirmed.
At around 2am on Saturday evening, following ‘hours of discussions’ with Drumsheds staff, Product Earth informed exhibitors that the event would not be taking place the following day.
‘Not a show about personal use’
In a later statement on social media, Product Earth said: “Unfortunately on Saturday a minority of people decided that they would smoke inside the building. UK law dictates that smoking is not permitted in any enclosed workplace or public building.
“This triggered pre-fire alarms, which would have set off sprinklers, putting the safety of people at risk. We worked into the early hours of the morning with the venue to come to a resolution, offering multiple solutions, however the venue made the decision that the show could not continue on Sunday due to the risk on their license. This decision was entirely out of our hands.
“We are heartbroken that this has been the outcome and continue to work tirelessly to resolve this unfortunate situation that has affected so many of you.”
Business of Cannabis has reached out to both Product Earth and Drumsheds for comment, but has recieved no response at the time of writing.
The Cannabis Trades Association (CTA), who attended the event on Saturday, told Business of Cannabis: “This was not a show about personal use of cannabis; it was a show for the natural products industry.
“The organisers and venue acted correctly and swiftly to ensure public safety. This response demonstrates the growing maturity of the industry and its commitment to being recognised as a legitimate and regulated sector.
“While Product Earth has been held successfully for many years, this was the first time at this venue. Both the venue and organisers will need to reflect and learn lessons from this weekend’s events.
“Smoking and vaping indoors is illegal, and any illegal matter should be investigated by the police and dealt with appropriately.
“Patients who had been legitimately prescribed medicinal cannabis were facilitated appropriately at the event.”
With thousands of attendees having purchased tickets for Sunday’s event or for the entire weekend, Product Earth has confirmed that the price of their tickets will be reimbursed.
“Our first line of action is to ensure those that did not get to attend on Sunday are refunded their tickets. We will also be addressing those with weekend tickets and VIP tickets that were not able to get the full value of their tickets as well. We are speaking with Eventbrite on how best to get this done as quickly as possible. We appreciate your patience as we work through this unfortunate process.”
Exhibitors, many of whom have now taken to social media to call for compensation, were not mentioned in Product Earth’s statement.
In its terms and conditions for the event, Product Earth states that in the event of the cancellation of the show, ‘all invoices paid in full by their respective exhibitors or advertisers, prior to the inception of the confirmation of the cancellation of the show, shall be entitled to an apportioned refund.’
Crucially, however, it states in clear terms that ‘Product Earth Expo UK Ltd. shall not be held liable for any cancellations of any part of the show from the venue, other parties or resultant from force majeure, including but not limited to disaster, fire, flood, earthquake, war, insurrection strikes, COVID, labour disputes or other related acts.”
The post Product Earth ‘Heartbroken’ as it is Forced to Cancel 2nd Day at 11th Hour Amid Threat to Venue’s Licence appeared first on Business of Cannabis.
Continue reading...