Cannabis is a multibillion-dollar industry across much of the United States. Despite its legal progress, thousands of people remain in prison for nonviolent reasons related to the same plant. Every December, the industry gathers in Las Vegas for MJBizCon, the largest B2B cannabis and hemp event of the year. Each year, the three-day event fills with parties centered on networking and deals. PufCreativ’s Party. Play. Purify. series was built on keeping the root cause of the movement in mind while celebrating market progress. All three of Puf’s events served as a fundraiser for Freedom Grow, an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) supporting nonviolent cannabis prisoners and their families via commissary funds, books, family outreach, and re-entry support.
The 2025 Party. Play. Purify. series had several specific goals in mind:
PufCreativ produced the series through its newly launched philanthropic arm, PufCreativ Cares (August 2025). PufCreativ Cares marks the official formation of a nearly decade-long effort, where PufCreativ helped raise approximately $12 million for various organizations and endeavors.
The insight
During MJBizCon, events compete for attention and attendance. While those remained in prime focus, PufCreativ focused its intent on meaning and impact. We designed the series around how attendees truly want to experience conference week.
Through years of attending events, PufCreativ Co-Founder John Shute noted attendees wanting to connect and have a good time in a unique way that the cannabis community is known to love. By creating these events and attaching a cause to all three moments, Party. Play. Purify. came to life.
Three events, one goal
The partnership engine
A tiered sponsorship structure let more than 35 brands and partners underwrite production so ticket proceeds could benefit Freedom Grow. Hardware and packaging brand Rectitude Partners added a $10,000 pledge directly to the nonprofit.
"It's our honor to help support Freedom Grow, we're always happy to support great causes and even better people," said Heidi Schultz of Rectitude Partners.
That momentum showed up online as well. A pre-event Instagram reel from Co-Founder John Shute reached 1.52K people, generating a 6.62% engagement rate. An additional final sponsor-lineup announcement post reached 1.55K people, leading to 203 engagements. Media partners amplified the series further, and a press release earned pickups including Yahoo Finance and CharityAce.
Cause integration
Freedom Grow's story ran through every touchpoint, including a dedicated educational blog, on-site storytelling, donation activations and raffles, and event programming that included advocates with lived experience of cannabis incarceration.
The challenges
As a semi-legal sector, cannabis marketing operates under tight restrictions most industries don’t ever face. Hurdles include no paid advertising on major social or search platforms, strict venue and consumption compliance, and limited payment processing options.
As such, Party. Play. Purify. was promoted entirely through owned channels, partner amplification, and earned media. That approach led 1,215 users to the events landing page where direct and organic traffic accounted for the vast majority.
Main Objective Achieved: Raised over $10,000 for Freedom Grow. Across three events, we drew 445 checked-in guests from 676 total registrations.
Beyond attendance and dollars:
