Humboldt County, California. The Humboldt County Growers Alliance (HCGA) announces a campaign –#Ask4Humboldt– to collectively market Humboldt’s branded cannabis and innovative product lines within the local region.
Ask for Humboldt is a consumer education campaign designed to bring immediate attention to the benefits of supporting Humboldt’s cannabis industry from economic, environmental, and health standpoints through a series of event exhibitions and partnerships between participating local retailers and producers. The campaign’s first phase will run from Memorial Day to harvest season.
The campaign aims to bolster legal pot sales, support the local economy, and take advantage of summertime events and increased tourism. By focusing on events, social media, and partnerships, the campaign will lay the groundwork to educate potential local consumers about Humboldt cannabis products and put faces to the local industry.
Ask For Humboldt will host an informational booth at the Mateel Summer Arts and Music Festival on June 18 and 19th. The booth will display a broad diversity of Humboldt’s cannabis brands to show the breadth of product lines, innovation, and craftsmanship our community creates for all to see.
Campaign exhibitions are also scheduled for Humboldt Made’s Eureka’s Friday Night Markets during July, August, and September, with cannabis operators from throughout Humboldt County taking the stage to share their knowledge and experience with interested attendees.
The Ask For Humboldt campaign will support the development of farmer-direct events such as the recently held Westside Live Market. Additional events may include press tours and budtender education days. Finally, to support Humboldt’s wholesale producers, HCGA will continue to build partnerships with urban manufacturers and retailers, including equity operators, to increase direct sourcing from Humboldt to the Bay Area, Southern California, and elsewhere.
In tandem with the Ask For Humboldt campaign launch, on May 13, HCGA’s five Board of Directors approved the establishment of an elected Humboldt County Cannabis Marketing Committee to guide collective marketing efforts for Humboldt cannabis in the future.
Research on successful place-based craft producing regions such as Napa, Bordeaux, Colombia, and Kona, shows that the cornerstone of long-term successful collective marketing strategies centers on democratic control by the industry itself. Therefore, HCGA’s Marketing Committee will comprise six elected cultivators, two elected manufacturers, two elected distributors, and two elected retailers. All operators elected to the marketing committee must be locally-owned businesses. The Committee’s role is to help establish strategic plans, prioritize financial resources, approve contracts, and make decisions based on what is best for the industry moving forward into 2023 and beyond.
The Humboldt County Growers Alliance is the trade association representing Humboldt County’s cannabis industry. Founded in 2017, for the industry, by the industry, HCGA has demonstrated its commitment to a transparent, democratic process, financial accountability, professionalism, and efficacy. Best known for its robust Government Affairs Program, HCGA is building upon its existing Public Relations and Market Development Program to implement the Ask For Humboldt campaign. HCGA is governed by Chairperson Kaylie Saxon of Forbidden Fruit Farms, Stacia Eliason of Bear Humboldt, David Dickinson of Woody Ridge Farm, Dylan Mattole of Mattole Valley Sungrown, and Lucas Sanders of Terp Mansion.