Great weed is better with great packaging.

Why You Should Label Your Hobby Grown Cannabis (and how to do it on a super small scale)

If you're anything like me, packaging plays a crucial role in your consumer experience.

Whatever that may look like to you, to me, that has always looked like homemade labels and packaging that resembled something you'd see from any on-market consumer packaged good (CPG).

Let me back-up and explain the lens I'm looking through:

• I have 2 degrees in journalism and advertising (aka "Strategic Communication") which, while earning, the value of branding and packaging was engrained in me.

• I was an Apple fanatic in my late teens and 20s, obsessed with the attention to detail from innovation through the unboxing experience.

• I understand that labeling can hyper-inflate value beyond accuracy; but if it's a quality product, the experience will be that much better with proper presentation.

To date, the best weed I've ever smoked has come in ziplock baggies, unmarked containers, and sharpie-labeled jars.

But that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t have been better if it had come dressed to impress.

Why Bother Labeling Your Weed?

Without question, packaging is a luxury, not a necessity. And it's a luxury not all will invest in.

For some, "the weed speaks for itself."

For others, "the weed sells itself."

For hobby growers, who have no plans to sell their products, "why bother?"

But, for others like me, the packaging is the final touch, the wax-embossed seal on the envelope, the proper plating of a course crafted with care.

If you've ever had the privilege of enjoying a Michelin-star meal, you know what I mean. These days, if you've even seen a picture of one on instagram of pinterest, you understand what I mean.

Smoked Oysters Caviar from Chef Roilty (a featured course of his Dine With Roilty Events, the only cannabis meal I recommend attending - the next one is 4/19/23)

Meals that cost $100s and $1000s of dollars invest in the presentation of their immaculately prepared courses.

They don't spoon their mashed potatoes onto a plate and toss a steak on top with some salt & pepper; there's a presentation involved (Even when those potatoes are heavenly and worth cheating on dairy at a moment's notice). That final attention to detail is what elevates a great meal to a fine dining experience.

The same goes for any product cultivated with a passion for the plant; it begs for finishing touches.

At least, in my grow. And, quite honestly, even before I grew. Revisiting the lens discussed above, I've been labeling my own smokable products for years with no other intent than to enjoy the "unboxing" experience, even moments later.

From thai sticks and woven blunts to pre-rolls and hash jars, I've always found a small joy in seeing a label on the products I'm enjoying.

And, as a hobby grower, this joy has only been amplified when applying that lens to flower and extracts that I produced.

Yes, the weed is amazing whether it's in a Tupperware with a sticker, a mason jar with a sharpie'd lid, or a presentable jar with a label. Yes, the has tastes just as terpy in an unlabeled jar vs. a jar with a sticker on it.

Even the best hash tastes better side-by-side when that hashmaker has invested in the consumer's experience with proper packaging.

(And, on the off chance the product ISN'T the best, either because you had some issues, it was your first run, or you're still learning, labeling can definitely help compensate)

How To Make SUPER Small-Batch Labels For Hobby Growers