Berkeley Church was the location of Toronto’s first Cannabis Wedding Expo. Philip Wolf, CEO of Cultivating Spirits and cofounder and CEO of the Cannabis Wedding Expo Cannabis Wedding Expo
The Canadian Cannabis Wedding Expo gives couples the chance to engage with traditional wedding vendors and specialty cannabis brands to learn how to incorporate cannabis into their wedding day in classy and tasteful ways.
In conversation with Bud Buffet
Bud Buffet is Ontario’s premier luxury cannabis bar and event planning service. We curate a custom cannabis bar for your big day complete with an arsenal of the world’s top smoking/vaping accessories, and a certified cannabis sommelier to serve your flower safely while guiding guests to their ideal stain and consumption method. We also provide pop up outdoor lounge areas, elegant signage, guest favors and catering services such as infused beverages and cuisine.
When did you first come up with the concept of crating your business where you create custom cannabis bar experiences?
As long-time cannabis aficionados we have a true passion for this amazing plant utilizing it for medicinal purposes, as our preferred method to unwind and serve whenever we threw our own events. In 2015 we became parents and began to envision what our wedding would look like. One thing we both agreed upon was that cannabis would be on the menu in some way and this sparked the idea of a buffet but with bud. I am a certified wedding planner and Clayton is a savvy businessman both with creative backgrounds in the arts and hospitality industry. We wanted to combine our talents to create an alternative option to serving alcohol, similar to what a mobile bartending service does, but with cannabis and pretty accessories. We decided to hold off planning our own wedding and start developing our business. Bud buffet was launched just as recreational cannabis became legal in Ontario on October 17, 2018 and we began our budtending journey dedicated to normalizing cannabis consumption in the events industry.
What is the current status for special events persists for cannabis and what do you think will change in the near future?
Bud Buffet is anticipating a brave new world that is more tolerant of cannabis as a recreational activity. Depending on the couple’s requests and the venue’s rules a cannabis themed event can be anything from a outdoor smoking lounge to a full service bud bar or a microdosed cotton candy station. As we start to slowly return to some form of normality Bud Buffet continues to find new and creative solutions for planners to incorporate cannabis into their events no matter how big or small while doing it in the safest way possible. Our new normal looks a little different, that old saying “puff puff pass” is on hold for now as we pivot our services to reflect the current times. Our mission has always been to ensure the safety of guests and our budtenders are trained to follow strict sanitary measures including proper sanitization of accessories as well as the use of gloves and individual mouthpeices for each guest. Going forward we are focused heavily on putting our clients minds at ease when choosing to serve cannabis knowing its done in the cleanest way.
What was your experience like participating is the Toronto Cannabis wedding Expo in Toronto?
The CWE was an extremely beneficial and enjoyable occasion for Bud Buffet as well as the other cannabis friendly businesses involved. We were are able to display our luxury mobile budtending experience and debut our most elegant and consumption accessories such as the BELLO vapor on tap, a device that allows your guest’s to sip vapor out of a glass cup and the STUNDENGLASS a contactless gravity pipe made famous by Seth Rogan. We met awesome like-minded individuals and couples, loved sharing laughs and explaining how they can serve flower on their big day.
How would you describe the curation of the show and what impact do you feel it had for the attendees and impact through it being shared online?
We have to congratulate CWE Founder Phillip Wolf and owner of cultivated spirits who curated this show. He is a very talented sommelier as well as a wonderful person and visionary. He and his team were an absolute pleasure to work with and they pulled off an amazing show. The historic Berkeley Church was the perfect venue, creating a gorgeous backdrop for the event and really gave the attendees the chance to picture what their wedding could look like infused with cannabis. At this time the stringent regulations that surround promoting and advertising a cannabis based business make it extremely difficult to get our brands in front of consumers, so the CWE was the perfect way to give us a platform to showcase our services. The event ended up being featured on CBC news, the Toronto Star and other publications which was fantastic coverage for all of the vendors involved. We couldn’t be happier as this was one step closer to normalizing cannabis.
The wedding industry has been moving in all areas to more customized personal experiences that reflect the couples interests. How does your business fit within this trend?
Our goal is to ultimately help plan and curate a cannabis infused wedding allowing couples to separate themselves and celebrate their individuality. Weddings truly allow us to display our elegance and creativity as we’ve partnered with some of the best vendors in the space to provide many ways to consume and serve your flower in style. If cannabis is part of your everyday lives now is the time to weave that into your event in a way that will won’t offend anyone and offer up something totally unique to your guests. Customizations can be anything from monogrammed pre-roll favors, serving up a signature CBD mocktail that plays into your theme or classy selection of bongs that are made to look like flower vases, every bud bar is a one of a kind creation.
You recently were included in a gift package sent out by photographer Alicia Thurston Photography to her booked couples. This was very fun and creative. What are some of the initiatives and steps local business owners are taking to collaborate in this challenging time.
Many businesses have been greatly effected by the emergency orders and more importantly many lives have been lost. The event industry was hit extremely hard as celebrations have been postponed or canceled however business owners have been coming together in amazing ways to promote each other and support our clients. Bud Buffet was so grateful to be included in some awesome care packages curated by Alicia Thurston Photography as well as Love by Lynzie Events. We gifted couples as well as vendors with a cannabis care bag that contained a designer pre-roll and other goodies to help them unwind and relax while stuck in quarantine. We hope it brought some joy to everyone and gave hope that tne day the show will go on and we can come to celebrate once again.
The Canadian Cannabis Wedding Expo gives couples the chance to engage with traditional wedding vendors and specialty cannabis brands to learn how to incorporate cannabis into their wedding day in classy and tasteful ways.
“From Budbars to small nods to cannabis culture, attendees can connect with every vendor they need to make their special day unique in their own way.” Cannabis Wedding Expo
The Berkeley Church was the perfect setting for guests to enjoy cannabis culture in the historic venue. Thyme Studio designed gorgeous floral installations.
In conversation with Thyme Studio about their gorgeous design at the show.
What was it like being a part of this Cannabis wedding show ?
It was great being a part of the Cannabis Show. The vendors were amazing and informative. The event saw great foot traffic, there was a combination of other wedding vendors and potential clients.
What is your experience with cannabis and weddings ?
We don’t have any experience with Cannabis but know that is an industry that will only grow and grow.
What informed your design for the wedding show?
We knew we wanted to stay through to the Thyme Studio’s design and just incorporated Cannabis to it. We felt that Cannabis Wedding doesn’t have to be its “own” category.
How is your biz currently pivoting and adapting in the covid environment ?
We had to adapt by finding unique ways to talk to our current customers but also find a way to engage with potential new customers. We have come up with a few products to engage with people during quarantatine. We also came up with packages for smaller weddings.
Jessica La Musician performed beautifully at the wedding Expo . Jessica La is an experienced Toronto-based multi-instrumentalist and music educator who has performed on nationally televised networks such as CBC, CityTV, TVO, Much Music and Omni .
“I had a great time performing at the Cannabis Wedding Expo in October. It was nice to see other vendors who were also cannabis friendly from around the GTA. The ambiance of the Berkeley Church creates a serene and romantic experience and it was a pleasure to be there.” Jessica La Music
The marrying Lady was at the Wedding Expo having conversations about her unique business.
“People are really utilizing cannabis, not only at weddings but events overall and so they want to get inspired on ways that they can do so,” said Wolf. http://bit.ly/2O26BKN
My Bud Vase has signature collections of one-of-a-kind artisan pieces, each My Bud Vase is elegantly crafted to bring art, expression, and discretion to your cannabis lifestyle. Make it a focal point or hide it in plain sight, the choice is yours.
Stereo flavour Live Entertainment presents versatile talented entertainment. The band is fun, professional, easy to get along with and incredible talented.
Toronto Electric Violinist, Harpist, Pianist – Corporate Event Entertainer & Wedding Musician Elena played gorgeous sweet songs in the Berkeley Church.
Got any advice for anyone new to cannabis?
A // Educate yourself. Focus on how certain terpene profiles and THC percentages affect you. Pay attention to the time of day you consume and how it makes you feel then and later in the day. Don’t smoke to just “get high”, smoke with an intention for cannabis to serve you. If it doesn’t serve you at that moment then don’t consume .http://bit.ly/33XgdvC
Photography: Branded By Hand
The lettuce Lady : Cannabis Advocate
Stereo flavour Live Entertainment
