In a puff of smoke, cannabis has become a legitimate industry in Colorado, with the most telling sign yet emerging - a pot-centric job fair for over-21s bursting at the seams on Thursday.
The careers expo - called CannaSearch was sponsored by O.penVAPE, a vaporizer pen company with its roots in the Centennial State. It played host to 15 different companies, each of whom had at least three different jobs on offer - though was evidently outnumbered by more than 1,000 job seekers. Of course, each role will be garnished with a 'cannabis twist,' according to Calisa Griffin, O.penVAPE's spokesperson. In an email to the Huffington Post, Griffin elaborated on the spoils of the job fair just before it opened up shop.
"For example, here at O.penVAPE we are looking for a bookkeeper, customer service representatives and additions to our sales support team," she wrote. "Companies will be looking for copywriters, graphic designers, tour guides, Web developers, and a ton of other mainstream jobs. We also have a few dispensaries coming out that will be looking for budtenders and trimmers so there should be something for every kind of applicant."
Colorado, which recently legalized recreational use of marijuana, made more than $2 million in January, the first month of legal trade, with the number expected to escalate as more retailers obtain the required licensing.
Tim Cullen, founding partner of O.penVAPE, also spoke of the variety of jobs on offer and the economic boost brought about by the legalization. "We are actually hiring all across the board," he said. "We're looking for receptionists, front of the house people, bud tenders, managers... and there are new opportunities.There are lots of sales positions [as well as] marketing, the bookkeeping, the legal team, CPAs - there's a lot of behind the scenes that the public doesn't actually see."
However, chronic stoners need not apply. In keeping with the professionalism of a typical job fair, smoking or ingesting marijuana in any form was not permitted. Though legalization of the drug has been equated to relaxation of certain standards, O.penVAPE was quick to remind job seekers of the behavior expected of them.
