HCN LIVE! CannaPitch Connects Women Founders With Investors at MJBizCon 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Six women entrepreneurs will pitch live to a nine-member judging panel Dec. 2 on the MJBizCon Innovation Stage, competing for a $10,000 prize package.

LAS VEGAS — Six women founders will pitch their companies directly to a panel of nine investors, operators and advisers during HCN LIVE! CannaPitch, a live competition in partnership with MJBizCon.

Taking place Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 2 to 5 p.m. PST on the Innovation Stage at MJBizCon, the event is designed to give women entrepreneurs candid business feedback, greater visibility and direct access to potential investors and partners.

Access to capital remains a persistent challenge for women entrepreneurs. Companies with all-women founding teams received 1.1% of total U.S. venture capital deal value in 2025, according to the Q4 2025 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. Within the cannabis industry, participants and industry representatives told the U.S. Government Accountability Office that businesses owned by women or minorities face greater difficulty securing funding, according to a 2026 GAO report.

Produced and promoted by HCN, the Cannabis Financial News Network, HCN LIVE! CannaPitch and HCN LIVE! CannabizCon virtual events are events of HCN Media Group. Since 2018, HCN (short for Highly Capitalized Network) has provided impartial financial news for investors and the C-suite in the global cannabis industry. HCN also offers sponsored content packages to help clients reach the industry.

“Women founders need meaningful opportunities to get their businesses in front of the people making investment decisions,” said Mark Collins, president and founder of HCN Media Group, who will produce and host the event. “CannaPitch gives them a place to make their case, answer serious questions and build relationships with people who understand what it takes to move a company forward. The value of that access can extend well beyond the stage.”

The participating founders

• Anea Bogue, CEO of CLEA Midlife, a company focused on supporting women through midlife, menopause and major life transitions.
• Erica Halverson, founder and CEO of TINY e TOILET PAPER, which develops hemp-based alternatives to conventional paper products.
• Tara J. Hopper, co-founder and general counsel of Bada Bloom!, a Massachusetts social equity craft cannabis company.
• Tiana Woodruff, founder and CEO of Queen Mary, a cannabis edibles brand creating products with women consumers in mind.
• Doreen Sullivan, founder of My Bud Vase, which makes luxury vase bongs hand-finished in porcelain and glass, designed to live out in the open.
• Mariana Larrea Arias, founder of XTIGMA, a luxury CBD cosmetics and spa brand that blends cannabinoid science with organic Mexican ingredients.

The chair, master of ceremonies and sharks

Jessica Ferranti, founder and CEO of The Mycelia Group, will chair the nine-member judging panel of sharks. The Mycelia Group specializes in helping scale purpose-driven, women-owned organizations through strategy and operations improvements. Jessica will lead and coordinate the panel as the sharks put the founders through their paces.

Joining Jessica as Master of Ceremonies is Jennifer Makris, MBA, widely known as the “Cannabis Cash Queen” and founder of Cannabis Cash Consultants, an advisory firm that helps dispensaries and cultivators optimize the physical movement and security of cash through automation and technology-driven solutions.

Peter Ingersoll, CEO of Safe Harbor Equity Inc., will serve as lead shark. Safe Harbor Equity specializes in capital raising for cannabis companies.

Other sharks include Marianne Cursetjee of Alibi; Jay Czarkowski of Canna Advisors; Bob Hoban of Hoban Law Group; Jamie Pearson of New Holland Group; Jeanne Sullivan of Arcview Ventures and the Arcview Collective Fund; Jordan Tritt of The Panther Group; and Rachel Wright of Verdant Strategies.

Each founder will present her company before fielding questions and feedback from the judges. In addition to the judges’ selection, attendees will have an opportunity to vote for the HCN LIVE! Audience Choice winner, giving the founders added visibility among the executives, investors and industry professionals attending MJBizCon.

The winner will receive a business support package valued at $10,000. The package includes a five-episode HCN LIVE! podcast series, MJBizCon conference passes, complimentary sponsored content placements with MJBizDaily and consulting support from Safe Harbor Equity Inc.

Event details

What: HCN LIVE! CannaPitch at MJBizCon 2026
When: Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2026, from 2 to 5 p.m. PST
Where: Innovation Stage, Las Vegas Convention Center, 3150 Paradise Road, Las Vegas

Read our full event preview for more on the founders, sharks and competition.

About HCN LIVE!

HCN LIVE! is a global cannabis business and financial news platform covering the companies, leaders, markets, policies and innovations shaping the industry. Through original reporting, executive interviews, video programming, newsletters, events and digital media, HCN connects cannabis professionals with industry intelligence and opportunities for meaningful conversation. Learn more at highlycapitalized.com.

Media contact: Ashley Feagins, Proven Media, 209-814-2689, [email protected].