SF Space Walk 2026 – Impact Report
SF Space Walk hit nearly 2,200 RSVPs, drew guests from across the world, advanced the narrative of California cannabis
Contact: SF Space Walk creator David Downs | (415) 240-2742 | [email protected]
How did SF Space Walk 2026 go? Let’s get into it.
First off, special thanks to the growers, brands, stores, attendees, volunteers, staff, media, venues, and everyone that made SF Space Walk possible. Extra special thanks to Keith Woody, Eric Lister, Conor Buckley, Ben Grambergu, Jackie Simion, Matt Blach, Bram Goodwin, and Eli Melrod.
Key stats:
- Number of events: 14
- Amount of media hits: 21+ (total media reach: 1 million-plus)
- Instagram views (@sfhashweek): 192,442 (90-day period)
- IG views (@daviddowns): 252,134 (90-day period)
- IG Accounts reached: 49,134 (@daviddowns) l 15,164 (@sfhashweek)
- Website page views: 32,193
- Website active users: 11,040
- Email newsletter: 3,263 subscribed; 29,821 emails sent; 15.69% open rate; 2.26% click rate
- Number of RSVPs: 2,184
- Number of units pre-ordered: 211+ units (85% pickup rate)
- Total value of weed pre-ordered: $8,101
- Biggest sales day: Sunday 4/19 at 7 Stars
- Most pre-orders: Huckleberry Hill Farms, 78
- Number of posters printed, distributed: 150+
- Number of flyers printer/distributed: 1,000+
- Number of mylar bags hung: 440
Website
Rapid Year-over-Year Growth
The 2026 festival cycle has seen unprecedented growth compared to 2025. Not only has the total audience expanded by 32%, but high-intent actions—such as form registrations and guide downloads—have increased by over 300%. This proves that sfspacewalk.com is not just a traffic hub, but a primary conversion engine for the local community.
| Key Metric | 2025 Performance | 2026 Performance | YoY Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active Users | 8,350 | 11,040 | +32.2% |
| Page Views | 25,111 | 32,193 | +28.2% |
| Form Submissions (Attendee Interest) | 127 | 540 | +325.2% |
The flower
At the center of our endeavor is the flower, and it was phenomenal. It included:
- Huckleberry Hill Farms – Whitethorn Rose
- Snowtill – Screamberry, Galactic
- Alpenglow – Bolinas
- Sense – Yuzu Sour
- Wood Wide – 4X4Z, LANTZ
- Bosky – Gumosa, Happy Hour
- Life is Not Grape – Delizia Al Limone
- Fig Farms – Fig OG
- Moon Valley – Blue Andeze, Garlic Juice
- First Cut Farms – Vietnamese
- The Pairist – Whitethorn Rose infused
Also in the mix: Arcana, Awesome Dope, Cannabiotix, Dr. Dabber, Emerald Sky, Hash Engineers, James Loud, Kanha, Luci Hash Co, PAX, Purple Caper, Purple City Genetics, Skypack, Storz & Bickel, That Good Good, The Bryantist, Uncle Arnie’s, Vitae Glass, Xeno Seed Co, Zeed Vault.
Over 60 brands participated in some form.
Umma Sonoma’s Giancarlo Di Fede will remember all the excitement from the audience previewing Pink Lobster and Lobster OG.
“It’s great as a cultivator to see the beauty in the flower come through and for the audience to appreciate that. It’s no different than making a really nice meal or playing a really nice meal and the audience going wild. It gives us a lot of confidence for what we’re working on and that emotion carries us into the next chapter of what we’re trying to accomplish.”
The audience
Up next is the audience, also phenomenal. The goal of SF Space Walk is to bring together the state’s best growers with their current and future fans.
We had 2,184 RSVPs. Visitors came from Japan, Mexico, Texas, Illinois, Florida, and all across the state. A few folks attended all seven days of events, and the beach cleanup, and the art opening.
Over 200 attended our Saturday night Club gathering.
The most RSVP’d event was our B2B Sneak preview at 283 RSVPs. Nearly 25 store buyers attended that event. And nearly 50 budtenders came to the Thank You Party.
Former High Times editor Ellen Holland said, “What I really like about it is combining the adventure of going to the cannabis lounges with seeing different parts of San Francisco I haven’t seen before. I went to a lot of restaurants I had never been to, I saw the murals in the Mission, I took the cable car, and explored the city.
“I recommend you stand on the first car and hang off the side and when you go over the California Street line it feels like you’re surfing the streets. You got to be high,” Holland said.
The sales
Next let’s talk about sales. SF Space Walk pioneered pre-ordering in cannabis in 2024 with an online RSVP and pre-order form system that funneled engaged shoppers to stores. Pre-orders totaled: $8,101 this year. And pre-orders don’t fully capture walk-up sales and the “halo effect” on sales before, during, and after.
Biggest pre-order: 78 units – Huckleberry Hill Farm Whitethorn Rose.
Eli Melrod at Solful said: “Definitely the most popping year yet! We had a crackin’ Thursday on Irving St, and it extended 4/20 beyond just a day of deals on Monday. We got to tell the story of a great grower and strain. And we sold out of our promo packs. Just in general, SF Space Walk layers a new story on top of the City’s April 20 offerings. And people loved the SF Space Walk shirts, commemorative Grove Bags, and collectible art books.”
Alpenglow Farms said, “Thank you David Downs. SF Space Walk was a huge success. Absolutely epic release party.”
7 Stars in Richmond hosted over 200 guests on Sunday, lengthening their 4/20 sales cycle.
“4/20 is a state of mind. It’s a season. It 100% did. We were able to beat metrics from last year, which is always hard to do with increased competition in the industry,” said Ben Grambergu at 7 Stars.
“It allowed us to extend 4/20 and our 4/20 actually beat last year’s 4/20 by 30%—in the rain.”
“Nothing will ever match the day. The community is still here. If it’s raining and it’s Monday, people are still going to show up. And it’s for the community.”
Sam Gabel at Moe Greens said they were busy from their Friday event through Monday 4/20: “It was great, there was even more customers this year. It was new faces that were coming for the product. Not only just regulars. SF Space Walk hit it on the head with the brands this year.
It was a really successful weekend.”
Xeno Seed Co breederJamie was elated with his appearance Saturday, April 18.
“We legitimately had one of the best times. That event really killed. It was bustling. It’s one of the best events I’ve done in a long time. Basically, everything sold out.”
Jamie, Xeno Seed Co.
The community
- We wanted more community tie-ins in this year, and we got them.
- We added our first Union Square hotel partner in Hotel Emblem, who ran a 20% off room code and hosted Uncensored Hour.
- We did our first-ever beach cleanup out of Hyrba and got more than 100 pounds of trash off Judah St. and the Ocean Beach dunes.
- We had our first film screening, “Join the Club” with Brownie Mary Democratic Club at Meadow HQ
- We gave away 300 collectible postcard art books from San Francisco’s Last Gasp Publishing.
- Kushology and Ocean Ale House ran a last-minute Terp Crawl.
- Rosamunde Sausage Bar & Grill added a Stoner Meal Deal.
- SFOG North Beach collaborated with us on limited-edition t-shirts.
- Sonoma Hills Farm collabed with Hot Cookie and Humphrey Slocombe.
The media
We got tremendous media coverage from USA Today, ABC, KRON, KQED, San Francisco Chronicle and many more worth over a million impressions.
Select earned media clips
- USA Today
- ABC7
- Chuy Gomez 102.1JAMS
- Do the Bay
- Dr. Greenthumb Show
- GreenState
- High Times
- KRON 4 News
- KQED
- KTVU2
- Leaf Mag
- Leafly – Top 420 events
- MSN
- SF Chronicle
- SF Fun+ Cheap Top 420 pick
- SF Standard 20 Best Things This Week
- SF Travel
- Shop+Dine SF
“I can’t think of a single cannabis event or brand that has gotten as much earned media, ever. And if there is one I’m all ears,” said organizer David Downs.
Event highlights
- San Francisco’s Office of Economic Workforce Development came to two events and covered us on Shop+Dine SF.
- San Francisco Travel Association covered us heavily.
- Huckleberry Hill Farms’ John Casali gave out Amalfi seedlings to a thrilled crowd.
- Xeno Seed Co sold out of Gumosa clones.
- Umma Sonoma previewed Lobster OG, and Pink Lobster.
- Venues like Moe Greens enjoyed packed lounges with standing room only.
- Brands like Huckleberry Hill Farms and Wood Wide enjoyed meeting their fans and celebrating their herb.
- Solful on Irving was thrilled with a packed store on the Thursday before 4/20.
Ben also celebrated how SF Space Walk helped knit the community back together after legalization and COVID.
“It’s a sign of health. I’m seeing all the people I want to see. I got to meet all these people I’ve wanted to meet,” said Grambergu at 7 Stars.
BASA on Divisadero also saw a large bump on 4/20 despite historic rains.
“Promotion was excellent. We had a lot of new people come in. It was pleasant,” said Tariq Alazarie, BASA owner.
A lot of folks said, ‘SF Space Walk just keeps getting bigger and better.’
Our vision and mission is a thriving and exemplary San Francisco cannabis culture, and we lived that mission.
Broadcasters beamed out images of packed lounges with happy folks having fun across the entire state and country.
More performance details
SF Space Walk Instagram
Top performing
- Schedule; 12,000 views
- Fig+Thistle gallery; 9,400 views
- Hyrba beach cleanup gallery; 8,600 views
- 7 Stars gallery; 7,800 views
- IG Live interviews: 9
- IG grid posts: 69 (IG reels: 22)
Social audience
Top Cities: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, Santa Rosa
Age ranges:
- 25-34 – 36.6%
- 35-44 – 31.9%
- 45-54 – 16.8%
Gender:
- 79.5% male, 20.5% female (@daviddowns)
- 66.9% men, 33.1% women (@sfhashweek)
Doubling Interest in Web Guides
The demand for festival-specific information has more than doubled. The website Festival Guide continues to be the most critical asset for attendees, providing high-visibility opportunities for sponsors.
- Festival Guide Views: Increased from 1,866 in 2025 to 3,947 in 2026 (+111.5%).
- Avg. Engagement Time (SF): Local SF users are highly attentive, averaging nearly 2 minutes per session on key landing pages.
Traffic Authority
We have significantly improved our SEO and partnership referral network compared to last year, resulting in more stable and high-quality visitor traffic.
- Google Organic Growth: High organic search volume proves that sfspacewalk.com is the definitive source for this festival cycle.
- Partner Referrals: Significant growth in referrals from SF Travel and social channels confirms our expanding cultural footprint.
Sponsor Value Proposition
“Growth + Intent.” This year’s data shows that SF Space Walk is scaling rapidly. For sponsors, this means your brand is associated with an event that is growing its audience by 32% and tripling its direct engagement year-over-year. The platform provides a unique, high-growth environment to reach the most active community members in San Francisco.
Merch production
- 250 grinders
- 30 shirts (Sonny Wong collab)
Event headwinds
We battled through headwinds both literal and figurative.
- San Francisco just had its wettest 4/20 ever recorded with 0.93 inches of rain in 24 hours. That broke the 2001 record of 0.91 inches.
- CalTrans closed a section of the Interstate 80 freeway for 4/20 weekend, and local media panicked folks with stories of a ‘carmageddon.’ Folks thought the Bay Bridge had closed, and we had to explain that it was just a section of the freeway.
- Cannabis events continue to face censorship and shadowbans on social media.
- Despite the weather, road work, and censorship, a crush of traffic to the website from USA Today, and Google’s Gemini AI chat bot crashed the sfspacewalk.com website twice.
What’s next?
- Clonetopia May 16-17
- SF Hash Week July 7 to July 13
- Terpnami seed show Dec. 5-6, 2026
- SF Space Walk 2027: April 14 to 20
Future improvements
- Build on a flagship event people feel they cannot miss.
- Add real urgency through exclusives, scarcity, or limited-time offers.
- Create a citywide pass / unified consumer incentive.
- Improve production consistency, venue coordination, and communication.
- Broaden beyond the same insider audience and focus more on consumer turnout at scale.
- More tie-ins with food, art, music, and culture
Thank you to the growers, venues, sponsors, guests, vendors, staff, media and everyone who made SF Space Walk possible.
More thanks goes to Matt Cote, Angelo at Bay Care Delivery, DJ Sep, and DJ Stefan.
Email us your feedback, tips, suggestions, and wants/needs to: [email protected]. Let us know how we can do better!
