Fashion meets cannabis: This KS-engineered, on-the-go rolling station blocks odors, makes smoking prep safer

February 16, 2023  |  Matthew Gwin

Gopack Station x Fresh Karma collaboration

Missouri voters legalized it; now cannabis accessories can cleanup in a newly de-stigmatized market

A Kansas City cannabis lifestyle brand hopes this month’s legalization of recreational marijuana sales in Missouri will spark new interest in its products designed for on-the-go cannabis users, said Mohamed Dia.

Gopack Station markets itself as “fashion meets cannabis,” said Dia, founder of the emerging brand. It’s anchored by a flagship product, the Gopack rolling station, a smell-proof travel case that holds all the materials needed to roll easily and safely from anywhere.

Mohamed Dia, Gopack Station

​​”I can sit on my lap, I can be in a car, I can be at a park, I can be on the beach, and it’s just a perfect kind of thing where it provides that ease of access and convenience,” Dia said.

The rolling station — which now also comes in a miniature size — features an odor-deterrent exterior, ample storage pockets, custom rolling tray storage, rolling paper holders, and lockable zippers.

All the features were hand-selected, Dia said, with the goal of “making people’s lives a little bit easier.”

Gopack Station recently launched a collaboration with Fresh Karma, a dispensary with three locations in the Kansas City area, Dia said.

The licensing deal allowed Fresh Karma to create Gopack rolling stations branded with the dispensary’s colors that are now available for purchase in their stores.

“It was just really a great collaboration to serve their customer base and to expose the Gopack brand to the Kansas City cannabis market,” Dia said. “Having your product in a dispensary, you can see how things are taken more seriously.”

Wrapping its development

Dia, whose family immigrated to Kansas City from Senegal, identified the need for a portable and fashionable storage case while completing his engineering degree at Wichita State University, where he was first introduced to cannabis culture.

“I noticed that was a problem in the [cannabis] community,” Dia said. “You’d spend all this money on good flower, but you’d be rolling it on a dirty car manual in the backseat or you’d be breaking it down on the kitchen table.”

Initially, Dia visited smoke shops and searched various online retailers looking for a product that would fit his needs. His market research, however, only uncovered options that were “clunky” and served solely for storage purposes.

Unsatisfied, Dia decided to put his engineering skills to use during his final two years of college, spending hours in the campus engineering building conducting research and taking advantage of the laminating and screen printing capabilities to create a prototype.

“So now whenever I would meet up with my friends, I was able to roll up my flower and zip it up and be done,” Dia said. “Everybody’s wondering, ‘Dang, he didn’t even move an inch. He just finished, closed everything. He had every piece of material that he needed — from his wraps to his flower to his scissors to his tray — in a small, little convenient pouch, and he was able to tuck it away like it wasn’t there.’”

After getting the legal and financial aspects of the business settled, Gopack Station began selling products online in spring 2021, just before Dia graduated and moved home to Kansas City, he said.

“I was really adamant about taking my time and making sure that I could provide quality over quantity, not just trying to get something out there, but making something that’s going to be long-lasting, and something that people will actually enjoy,” Dia said.

Gopack Station

Rooted in KC, shipped beyond

Now that Gopack Station has broken into the Kansas City dispensary market, Dia wants to build on that momentum and add to the company’s product line.

Gopack Station already offers such apparel and accessories as stem cutting scissors and packing sticks, he said, with plans to add rolling paper dispensers soon.

The brand will also be oriented toward art and community events, Dia added, noting that Gopack Station plans to partner with local artists in Kansas City and showcase new designs.

“There are a few different things that we’re trying to do, but all in all, just trying to make sure people have ways to express themselves in whatever they’re doing and wherever they’re going,” Dia said.

Although the company’s roots are firmly established in Kansas City, Gopack Station does most of its e-commerce business outside of the region, according to Dia, who said he’s shipped travel cases to customers in at least 46 different states.

Gopack Station also partnered with Luxury Leaf, Missouri’s first Black and woman-owned dispensary, to sell Gopack rolling stations at its St. Louis location.

Close to home, Dia feels like the buzz generated by upcoming events like the NFL Draft in April and 2026 World Cup will vault Kansas City — and small businesses like Gopack Station — to another level.

“There’s a lot of different creative businesses and unique businesses relating to cannabis coming to Kansas City, and I feel like it’s just gonna keep getting bigger with all the events that we have coming to the city and actually being able to showcase how Kansas City is to the rest of the world,” Dia said. “I want to hopefully be a part of telling the cannabis story in Kansas City.”

startland-tip-jar

TIP JAR

Did you enjoy this post? Show your support by becoming a member or buying us a coffee.

Tagged , ,
Featured Business
    Featured Founder

      2023 Startups to Watch

        stats here

        Related Posts on Startland News

        Ballerina-turned-entrepreneur’s second act moves older adults to embrace vitality through dance

        By Tommy Felts | September 8, 2023

        Dot Burner spent her younger years dancing, taking modern dance classes in college and swaying the evenings away with her late husband. At 93, Burner still loves to dance. She takes part in bi-weekly ballet classes, hosted by Vitality In Motion. “It’s very relaxing,” said Bruner, a Shawnee Hills community member who has been taking Vitality…

        KC entrepreneurs tapped to team up with top-tier Kansas enterprise businesses

        By Tommy Felts | September 7, 2023

        A trio of emerging Kansas City startups are among 20 cohort members selected to forge new strategic connections with big-name Kansas enterprise partners like Koch, Evergy, Cargill and Spirit AeroSystems. Wichita-based NXTUS this week announced the latest program participants for the NXTSTAGE Enterprise Engagement Series — a diverse array of growth-minded entrepreneurs offering innovative tech…

        From childhood friend to Chief’s personal chef: ‘Whatever he’s feeding me is keeping me young,’ says Travis Kelce

        By Tommy Felts | September 7, 2023

        Kumar Ferguson has a meaty behind-the-scenes role in the Kansas City Chiefs coming season: fueling professional athletes, the personal chef to Travis Kelce shared. Since 2016, Ferguson’s full-time job is to worry about what’s for dinner, so Kansas City Chiefs tight end Kelce doesn’t have to. He prepares three fresh meals a day, so his…

        Access all in one room: KC Black Owned bringing Black business summit to KC Convention Center

        By Tommy Felts | September 7, 2023

        It’s easy to get caught up in the daily hustle and forget to step back and reflect when building a business, said Chelsey M., announcing a fall summit meant to help minority entrepreneurs strategically gain insights, network, and plan for growth and success. The Infinity & Beyond Black Business Summit — set for Oct. 7 at…