Emerald Pays $120M for Cannabis Industry Platform MJBiz

The live events platform provider Emerald has paid $120 million to acquire MJBiz , which produces events and platforms content for companies in the 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,” Emerald said in a news release Tuesday (Jan. 4).

Founded in 2011, MJBiz produces MJBizCon, the U.S.’s longest-running B2B cannabis trade show, as well as media brands such as MJBizDaily and Hemp Industry Daily.

“This is a transformational acquisition for Emerald as it represents an important next step in the implementation of our strategic initiatives and underscores our commitment to evolve and grow our customers’ businesses 365 days a year,” said Hervé Sedky, Emerald’s president and CEO.

Sedky added that MJBiz’s platform, “which connects the entire cannabis supply chain,” will diversify both companies’ product offerings and help provide greater value to customers. In addition to its trade show, the company’s brand makes it a vital source of business intelligence for the cannabis industry, Emerald said.

MJBiz’s management team will continue to lead the company’s operations, Emerald said. The $120 million was paid as initial consideration upon closing of the deal, with the possibility of further payments contingent on MJBiz’s performance this year.

Last year, it logged revenues of around $27 million, close to pre-pandemic levels. It’s trade show also saw 27,000 attendees, 18,000 of which were paid registrations.

Read more: Emerald Debuts Streamlined B2B eCommerce Tech

In April of last year, Emerald debuted a new digital market tech platform, designed to offer a standardized, single-platform approach to B2B eCommerce.

The service, offered as part of Emerald’s Elastic Suite division, provides year-round access to product sourcing and ordering for a number of brands. The platform is also meant to give users a more streamlined experience at in-person industry events.