It’s not just a passion that will get you ahead.

Through the meteoric rise of Shango Cannabis, cultivators can learn what crucial moments made the brand into the one of the most sought after producers of commercially grown cannabis products across Oregon, Arizona, Washington, and Nevada. And they’re not done yet.”

A longtime grower before the market turned legal, Greg Stefanik, Cultivation Manager at Shango had a chance encounter at the San Bernardino Cannabis Cup that would alter the path of his career—and life—forever.

"Brandon Rexroad, one of the owners and founders of Shango, and I were childhood friends. We dabbled in cultivation way back then. And then life happened. We went our separate ways and I bumped into him in 2014 at the San Bernardino Cannabis Cup, we exchanged info. About six months later, he reached out to me and told me he had just taken a facility in Las Vegas and asked me if I wanted to run it … the next day I drove up here, took a look at it and drove home, told my girlfriend, we were moving to Vegas, packed clothes and moved up here."

Greg Stefanik,
Cultivation Manager, SHANGO

Singer and songwriter, Michael Mcdonald, famously once said, “Las Vegas is a city built on hopes, dreams, and a little bit of crazy.”

So when you pull up to the massive edifice that is Shango Las Vegas, remember that spirit. Because the team at this successful cannabiz has gone all in on their biggest bet so far. From their cultivation team to their leadership, everyone at this grow is looking toward the wins on the horizon. And a lot of that success is facilitated by their willingness to stay on the cutting edge with tech.

"I had dreams of this . . . I was telling myself, ‘Wow, they could graph this out.’ And I had history and I could always go back and see a crop that had absolutely smashed it on or one that I completely fell on my face on."

Greg Stefanik,
Cultivation Manager, SHANGO

With operations of this size and this amount of money on the line, there’s a lot of pressure. But much of that was relieved when the team at Shango started implementing cannabis sensor technology in their grow rooms.

Guided by data, they’re able to determine winning strains for their markets, both medical and recreational. And increase their grams per square foot to the tune of about 20% so far.

"I had dreams of this . . . I was telling myself, ‘Wow, they could graph this out.’ And I had history and I could always go back and see a crop that had absolutely smashed it on or one that I completely fell on my face on."

Greg Stefanik,
Cultivation Manager, SHANGO

"We do run AROYA in both [facilities]. There’s not a chance that I would ever be able to manage two facilities without [it]. There's just, that's just not possible. Not successfully, at least."

Greg Stefanik,
Cultivation Manager, SHANGO

Now that the team behind one of the biggest vertically-integrated canna-brands in the industry have scaled to these heights, they can go back and begin perfecting. Their cultivars. Their processes. And their facilities that they manage across state lines.

They’re not done growing yet. With expansion plans that include retail, manufacturing, and product distribution in states like California, Michigan, and New Jersey, one thing is for sure. What grows here gets smoked all over the country.

"The number one tool is AROYA, there's no doubt about it."

Greg Stefanik,
Cultivation Manager, SHANGO