CHAMPS Trade Shows, the longest running and largest counter-culture trade show in the world, returned to the Las Vegas Convention Center for their annual Winter Show and Glass Games Masters Finals event earlier this month. It was an emotional return for the annual conference which normally holds two shows per year in the silver state, the first dating back to more than 2 decades ago.
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With over 1800 booths on the show floor, CHAMPS Winter Show marks the premiere event for the smoke shop, c-store, and dispensary buyers by highlighting the top brands across the industry with the latest product releases available. Celebrities were spotted all over throughout the 4 days of the event ranging from Zxibit and Paul Wall, to legendary boxers Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather Sr.
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The future looks good
When asked about the future of the industry, Jeff Hirschfeld, Founder and President of CHAMPS Trade Shows, said “The industry is bright and seems to be expanding every single day. Our next show, CHAMPS Atlantic City, is celebrating the passage of adult-use legalization in the state of New Jersey last year. We hope to be celebrating the same for our Florida event in the near future.” He went on to talk about the incredible direction the industry has taken over the past few years, “It’s honestly unbelievable when you stop and take a look at it all. Some of these brands have literally grown up with the industry, and that speaks to the passion these brands have for what they do.”
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The Glass Games!
While CHAMPS is well known as the ‘premier counter-culture trade show’ it’s also known as a pillar of the functional art community. The Glass Games, a series of competitive glass blowing events where artists square off against each other in thematic based competition with cash and accessory prizes. The winners of reach regional competition then move on to the Masters Finals held every year during CHAMPS Winter Show in Las Vegas.
This year the Masters Finals was judged by Libby, N8 Miers, and Rob Morrison and featured some of the top glass artists in the world. Check out the lineup of judges and the outcome of the competition here.
