Tobacco Plus Expo

Written by David Hernandez

This past month the fully vaccinated Happy Munkey crew took a trip out West to our favorite desert oasis Las Vegas for the Tobacco Plus Expo, Vegas’ first trade show since the pandemic. TPE started as a B2B trade show focused on tobacco distributors, but over the years the convention has expanded to include vaping, smoke shop accessories, CBD, and the hotly discussed Delta 8! We had the pleasure of hitting the show floor with our media passes and seeing what was cooking in the world of tobacco and non-THC cannabis products. In addition to being media for the conference, the Munkey team had a side mission. We hit the show floor with Happy Munkey goodies in hand with high hopes of getting stores and distributors interested in carrying them nationally.

Walking onto the show floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center, I was immediately bombarded with the smell of cigar smoke, since TPE is one of the only trade shows where open tobacco consumption indoors is welcomed. Once getting my badge I quickly B-lined past all the cigar booths and smoking sections and made my way to where the tobacco alternative products were being showcased. Unlike consumer-focused conventions, the B2B vibe of the show made everything more streamlined and relaxed. No long lines, crowded venues, or any of the annoyance of consumer shows. It did feel surreal to be back in a convention post-Covid but everyone seemed excited to just be outside. When we were in town Nevada officials lifted the mask mandate and I know I said it was dead a few issues ago but, VEGAS IS BACK BABY!

My favorite setup during the show was done by Greenlane Distributors, who created a nextlevel campus seamlessly incorporating all the companies in their distribution ecosystem. Including companies like Gpen, Pax, Santa Cruz Crushers, The Otto, and Davinci vapes to name a few. My favorite part of the Greenlane setup was the Vibes Rolling Papers installation of a two-floor deconstructed shipping container decked out branded merch. I even ran into Cookies founder, Berner just hanging in front of the booth! Not to brag but I also got to meet Dan Brazerian founder of Ignite Cannabis, and I even gave him a couple of Happy Munkey ashtrays!

Leaving the convention every day I had a full bag of nicotine and delta-8 vapes ranging in quality, from premier to essentially snake oil. On the tobacco side, the latest trend in vaping is “tobacco-free nicotine” which I wasn’t touching with a 10-foot pole. While I wasn’t as dogmatic towards Delta 8 cannabis products, before arriving at TPE I was a little skeptical. For me, I almost exclusively consume solventless extracts so isolated and refined Delta-8 didn’t appetize me. But when in Rome (or more specifically a Delta-8 show), I tried my fair share of vapes and I can confirm not all vapes are built the same. Most left me with a harsh scratchy feeling in the back of my throat, and I even saw some companies using MCT oil and even Vitamin E in their cartridges. Which is a big no-no in the world of vaping, especially post 2019’s VapeGate. The clear standout Delta-8 product I tried was from the folks over at DD8 Vapes. Their vape was sleek, tasty, and the onset feel was clean and euphoric. The entire DD8 team was DOPE, much love to Yazmine, Kylie, Anna, and Martin! We even kicked it after hours, not to mention also getting stuck and rescued by the fire department in a Bellagio Hotel elevator together (but that is a story for another time).

On the last day of the convention, Happy Munkey fam and Las Vegas legend Domo linked up with the squad! Before heading to the show, like a true stoner Domo took us all to Jardin, a popping dispensary right off the strip killing it with their sexy and fun lifestyle branding and live ambiance once you walk in through the doors. With our goodies in hand, we had a case of the munchies that the convention would not have helped, so we made a pit stop at In-N-Out. After a much-needed grubbing, we went to the convention and started making our rounds with Domo. BIG shoutouts to the amazing people at Blazy Susan who laced us all up with shirts, fanny packs, papers, paper tips, and a fly-ass backpack to carry it all in. In my opinion, they were the convention floor MVP with their impromptu cannabis-friendly smoking section inside the convention hall! No guts no glory, just like how Happy Munkey likes it! After burning a couple of joints we called it a day and ended our journey at TPE 2021. But our day was not over, we went from TPE straight to the Bally’s Hotel and casino for the Glass Vegas Expo!

Oh, y’all thought we were done with Vegas?? Come back next month to hear about the rest of the West Coast trip and our heady excursion to Glass Vegas!