Weed, but make it fashion: cannabis brands use fashion to stigmatize the plant
When Lana Van Brunt and Hayley Dineen founded cannabis accessory brand Sackville & Co. in 2018, there was a gap in the market.
At the time, cannabis companies were divided into two camps. They were targeting college-aged men. Think “Rick and Morty” branding with lots of tie-dye and potted leaves, or his Goop protégé designed with Californian wellness style in mind. No one has yet combined cannabis with a design-driven, high-fashion aesthetic. Sackville’s latest apparel collection, debuting this week, features hipster cannabis brands like Papers + Ink, Houseplant, and Flower by Edie Parker. Become part of the new wave of
Dineen, who studied fashion design at Central Saint Martins and worked for streetwear brands OVO and Yeezy, said she wanted Sackville to appeal to fashion-conscious men and women.
“We have tried not to treat cannabis as something in the shade or only in pharmacies,” Van Brandt said. “It had to be something stylish that I could proudly wear on my cloak. I knew design and fashion would be the gateway to that.”
Sackville sells cannabis accessories such as rolling papers, grinders and pipes, but apparel is a major part of its business. Twenty-five percent of their revenue comes from a relatively small number of apparel brands, and Van Brunt and Dineen want to grow that part of their business. On Thursday, Sackville will unveil its largest collection of apparel to date in the form of hoodies, t-shirts, sweatshirts and more under the banner Greetings from New York. The collection will be sold at his Sackville online store. Prices range from $45 to $125.
The fusion of cannabis and fashion isn’t just happening in Sackville.Smoking brand Zig-Zag transforms into fashion & lifestyle brand Through apparel drops. Edie Parker has opened a sub-brand, Flower by Edie Parker, focused on cannabis accessories such as pipes and grinders.
Papers + Ink, a company that makes rolling papers with printed patterns, is also starting out in fashion and beauty. its latest collaboration, Released in late August, “Scratch Nails” allows customers to match their own nails to the rolling paper.
Carolyn Chu, founder of Papers + Ink, said she has been approached by larger fashion brands, especially since cannabis was legalized in New York last year.
“A lot of the companies I talk to want to explore this world, but they don’t really know how,” said Chu, who worked at Rodarte and Odilon. “Buyers I spoke to got it right away and are very excited, but then they have to get approval from upper management and they can be more conservative. If the federal government legalizes it, I think we’ll see a big change and all the big fashion brands will be on board.”
But cannabis brands face unique challenges.The Patchwork Nature of Cannabis Legality in the United States This means that advertising methods for these brands are often limited. Marijuana is federally illegal, and recreational use is illegal in 31 states.
“There are many challenges in marketing,” says Van Brunt. “Basically, you can’t post what you post on TikTok without deleting it. Even Instagram is very limited in what we can say. In fact, one podcast lost other advertisers when they found out we advertised there too, which is a huge headache for us. ”
Ms. Chu shared the same sentiment, saying she has been shadowbanned from Instagram countless times. But as the legalization of cannabis grows in the United States, new enthusiasts and organic he traffic are born. The influx of new smokers is good for Sackville, who has increased by 200% in 2021 and by 185% so far in 2022.
“We made our website welcoming and inclusive to curious people,” says Dineen. “It won’t surprise you. If you’ve never smoked before, there are blogs and tutorials with lots of guidance. It opens the door for people to feel more comfortable.”