Jason Erkes Email Address

Media Authority Strategic Advisor Crisis Manager Speaker

Illinois leading medical cannabis cultivator and processor. Had the highest scores of any applicant during the approval process.

Jason Erkes is the Chief Communications Officer at Cresco Labs. A seasoned communications strategist, he joined Cresco’s leadership team in 2018 after serving as a consultant since the company’s inception in 2013. He is responsible for directing the company’s internal and external communications and strategy. As the Company’s spokesperson, Mr. Erkes has been instrumental in helping craft and share Cresco’s narrative through the management of the company’s media relations, employee relations and investor communications as well as through his cross-functional role assisting various departments with their external communications initiatives. Most recently, he developed and executed Cresco’s communications strategy for the start of adult-use sales in Illinois and achieved a record one billion earned media impressions during launch week for its Sunnyside* dispensaries. Mr. Erkes has been a journalist, political advisor, entrepreneur, influencer, turnaround expert and philanthropist. In 2020, he was named one of the Top 10 Most Influential Communications Professionals to Watch in Cannabis by Green Market Report. He also has been recognized as a Rising Star in the 40 under 40 feature from Crain’s Chicago Business; has won Emmy Awards for excellence in journalism for his reporting for ABC News and FOX News; and has received national political recognition as a recipient of the prestigious Reed Award from Campaigns & Elections Magazine. Mr. Erkes has spoken at a wide variety of community meetings for the Illinois cannabis industry as well as industry events including Cannabis Business Times’ Risk Mitigation Virtual Conference. He graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing Communications & Journalism.