Back in 2014 the cannabis community was going through a change. Oregon was going from medical to recreational cannabis. I was working at a dispensary during this time. Some of the concerns that I shared with others is that cannabis sold at dispensaries would no longer be regulated and that testing for quality and mold was no longer going to be necessary. As a person with serious health issues, I wondered how this was going to affect me and if the OMMP was going to continue on for medical patients. Some of the other concerns around recreational was that original cannabis strains would disappear and if certain strains were going to get lost in cross pollination or if potency standards and quality would change. I was both concerned and excited. There was a lot of excitement from the public I experienced people coming into the shop to learn more about cannabis. I had experience with growers, I had my OMMP card for years at this point and I was working in the industry. I began to see that this is going to be a very good revenue stream for Oregon not only local business but for our economy as a whole. I started to see the benefits of the recreational cannabis.
I come from using cannabis as medicine and the stigma of just a bunch of stoners everywhere was actually what society needed. For the people who need access to cannabis or didn’t know they needed access to cannabis. The fact that we could take this taboo thing and break down barriers of stigmatized communities. Cannabis is our friend and society would start to realize that cannabis does not hurt the community it enhances it. Plus, the revenue from the cannabis industry would go to Portland Public Schools and that excited me a lot. A good education system is so important to a thriving economy and community. If cannabis was going to bridge that gap, I was all for it. I thought positively that we would be able to help make repairs, remodel schools, pay teachers a better wage and upgrade class curriculum. I feel like this would improve the community in so many ways.
I leaned into how I could be a part of this movement. The problem was that I wanted to provide a product that was healthy, and a product that could be used by every cannabis consumer. But healthy and smoking didn’t really go together.
I had to think about how I could really be an ally and revolutionize the rolling paper industry. I never liked the other brands and using bongs or pipes is not common in the black community and I respect the art of rolling. For myself I wanted a cleaner, better smelling smoking experience and pitched the idea before I had a prototype. My main goal was to have a product that represented my city and give recognition double fold. I believe we have the best cannabis in the country and rose wraps were naturally a perfect combination.
Pre rolls are the easiest and most convenient way to sell to customers. I thought I could infuse my hometown organic goodness with that healthy revolutionary product. I discovered that rose petals offer a lot of benefits, so they not only are healthy for your lungs, but they burn cleaner and slower, enhancing the smoking experience. Becoming a more sustainable and healthier community starts with experimenting with alternative and healthier options.
CHECK OUT ROYAL ROSE PDX HERE