The idea for Zoa Rose came to me as I was shopping for my best friend’s birthday present. I desperately wanted to get her something to fix her “smoking problem.” The issue was not that she smoked weed, but rather, the accessories she used, all of which screamed, “Smoking weed is sketchy!” After failing to find anything suitable for my coffee table, I realized that the cannabis accessories market was missing something, something huge. No one was making products for people like me– of age college students and young professionals who don’t want to feel stigmatized for smoking weed to relax, relieve anxiety, or just enjoy the high.

However, Zoa Rose is more than just cannabis lifestyle accessories. It is a community, a platform in which cannabis is openly discussed, where users and non-users alike can teach and learn from each other, where it’s okay not to know. It is also a celebration﹣of beauty, empowerment, curiosity, joy. The way we see it, we should choose to celebrate the mundane, to be inspired by everyday things. We should slow down, pause for a moment, be open with ourselves, stop and smell the Rose. At Zoa Rose, we don’t have life all figured out. We’re just trying our best. But we also don’t want to preach. We want to listen, learn, and collaborate. And in that sense, we want to live beautifully.

Finally, I realize that as a young white woman, I come from a place of extreme privilege. The fact that I can start a cannabis accessories company while people of color have been (and are still being) unjustly and disproportionately incarcerated for marijuana offenses is inherently unfair. Because I cannot change who I am, nor can I speak on behalf of people of color, Zoa Rose hopes to serve as a platform for the Black and Brown voices that have been oppressed for the harmless act of smoking weed. I believe it is Zoa Rose’s duty to work toward creating a future where this and other systemic forms of racism cease to exist. To that end, a portion of our sales will always go to a non-profit that shares these values.

To be quite honest, here at Zoa Rose, we’re sick of the current narrative. We invite you to help us craft a new one, together.
We hope you will join us,

Sophia Siegel
CEO & Founder of Zoa Rose

P.S. You don’t have to smoke, either. Just be cool with those who do.