Grassroots California embraces unique styles as they weave together counterculture fashion and streetwear. Featuring sustainable materials, artistic designs and comfort, these limited-edition pieces are sported by musicians, artists, festival goers and grass enthusiasts alike.
When this cannabis apparel company entered the scene, something was brewing, burning, waxing (you get it) in the air of Venice Beach, Calif., an epicenter of counterculture since the 60s. Picture this: It’s the early 2000s in Venice Beach. Prop 215 has been in place for over a decade now, allowing for the buying and selling of medical marijuana in California. People are starting to realize what cannabis can do and having thoughts like, “Wow, you’re telling me this stuff is good for a whole lot more than getting the kids high?!” This growing realization was huge. Grass was making its way into the mainstream as a medicine and beyond.
The explorative, radical, celebratory atmosphere created by the grass movement was the perfect backdrop for the birth of Grassroots California. Founded in 2009, this sustainable hat and apparel company touts custom creations, in-house designs, detailed embroidery and unique approaches to streetwear. With a legendary roster of artists, both local and international, and an eclectic, energetic team of creatives, entrepreneurs and cannabis enthusiasts, this Venice-beach-born, Denver-based company is more relevant than ever.
What Is The Movement?
Company founders Ryan Connolly and Max Urquhart first put the Grassroots California team together for a documentary they were making about California’s own Grass Movement. It aimed to shine a light on a community of people who were coming together to promote the use of medical and recreational marijuana in the state. While their plans for a documentary curbed, it left them in possession of 100 custom hemp hats that they had made to promote the forthcoming film. On the famous Venice Beach Boardwalk, these snapback hats sold faster than you can say, “Smoke weed errrrrday!” This was it—the lightbulb moment. Instead of video production, Connolly and Urquhart shifted the team’s focus to making environmentally friendly hats designed by talented artists and crafted with quality materials like hemp to bring counterculture and cannabis enthusiasts together through fashion.
Grassroots California soon became a reputable brand amongst musicians, music lovers and cannabis connoisseurs. Their high-quality, limited-edition merchandise, echoes that of their unique, spirited team.
Limited-Edition Apparel
Grassroots California celebrated its 15th anniversary on April 20 with the launch of an anniversary line. In addition to this, the company has done several collaborations with artists like Stanley Mouse, the powerhouse who once pumped out posters and merch for The Grateful Dead; Jimbo Phillips, the mastermind artist behind Santa Cruz Skateboard Company; and Chris Dyer, Peruvian-Canadian psychedelic artist and author. Not to mention the countless collaborations with musicians that have defined counterculture movements like Jerry Garcia, Method Man and Pink Floyd. With over 500 collabs and counting, it’s safe to say Grassroots California has been around the block.
There’s a dynamic effect that takes hold after working with so many different artists who all have their own styles. Grassroots California makes room for crazy hat designs, tie dye hoodies and heady bucket and boonie hats. What truly sets this inspiring clothing and hat brand apart comes from the production side of things. Everything is designed 100% in house and there are only about 100-200 items in each batch, which means that every single hat, t-shirt and accessory is limited-edition.
What Exactly Is A Cannabis Clothing Company?
Grassroots California started doing the whole hand-crafted, well-cared-for, conscious-creation thing before it became trendy. They’ve worked hard to perfect their craft, and they continue to take chances and push the limits of what’s possible in embroidery, design, comfort and quality.
As Urquhart says, “We’re a bunch of friendly guys and gals who work our asses off to push the envelope with our clothing company.”
Some examples of cannabis companies that Grassroots California works with to create mind-bending, artistic, cannabis-related merch include Canna France and UK, Dutch Lighting Innovations, Green Dot and Rocky Road, among others.
Here’s an overview of some unique headwear and one-of-a-kind streetwear in the Grassroots California lineup that caught our eye over at Cannabis Now.
The 15th Anniversary Collection: This collection showcases a little bit of everything, with backpacks, snap-back hats, button-downs, hoodies and shorts. The trippy blue and green patterns with maroon and black additions are quirky, cool and sleek all at once. The hats come with a classic inner stash pocket and detailed embroidery.
The Cartoon Gumbo Collection: Vincent Gordon outdid himself with this Grassroots collab. Each piece in this collection features the artist’s goofy cartoons and detailed drawings. The reversible jacket has two sides, one heady side and one grayscale side with a hidden stash pocket on the shoulder. The hydration pack comes with a 2L bladder and hose to prevent cottonmouth.
The LSD Nebula Collection: This collection has some super spacey designs from boonie hats to pins and even a handheld fan for those concerts where you just can’t stop grooving and need a little airflow to the face.
The Athletic Liner Shorts: This brings us to the many patterns available in this collection. The Athletic Liner Shorts are light, breathable and feature a double zipper for all your goods. They’re perfect for concert-going, couch-lounging or heading out for a casual meal with friends. These comfy shorts are available in multiple color and pattern combinations.
More Reasons to Love Grassroots California
Perhaps the dopest thing about this cannabis apparel and hat company is that they give a percentage of their revenue to local and national charities. They’re cultivating a community of people thinking outside of the box, letting their creativity fly, and embracing their unique qualities through fashion. These apparel gurus recently released an app where you can shop, catch sales and read the blog. Find it on Google Play and in the App Store.
Grassroots California is based out of Denver. They make a point to stay connected with the community by attending local events such as concerts, pop-ups and cannabis conferences. If you’re in the Mile High City, you should probably go to one of these events because there’s a high chance you’ll leave with some of the hottest cannabis-themed threads out there. If you don’t live there, fear not! You can find them at cannabis and music events nationwide and in dispensaries and smoke shops like The Karma Korner, Lionheart, Flora, High Desert Relief and many more. If in-store shopping isn’t your thing, browse online at any time of day at grassrootscalifornia.com.
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