An idea cooked up by two friends sharing a joint that turned into a 275,000+ member social networking app, Massroots calls itself the Instagram for cannabis users.
Headquartered in Denver, Massroots allows semi-anonymous users to post pictures smoking weed or of the substance itself without any possible social repercussions or landing themselves in the joint.
The social networking cannabis app made noise this past April 20 when it sponsored a 4/20 Rally in Civic Center Park in Denver. The Rally hosted hip-hop artists like Rick Ross and Trev Rich to celebrate the legalization of weed.
While Massroots began as an app to allow users to show off his or her blunt, the app can also be used for business.
Co-founder Isaac Dietrich said, “Currently, Google, Twitter, and Facebook ban most marijuana-related advertising. Dispensaries are solely relying on specific magazines and newspapers, so we are one of the only places businesses can access active smokers.”
Twenty-two-year-old cofounders Isaac Dietrich and Tyler Knight hashed it out with Apple’s App Store to make Massroots available in the 23 states where marijuana is legal.
The company mobilized its user to send emails to Apple declaring that Apple’s policy violated free speech and prevented those with medical problems from learning about their medication.
ArcView Group and the National Cannabis Industry Association supported Massroots and sent letters to Tim Cook detailing Apple’s role in stifling the cannabis industry.
“The whole point is that we don’t want our grandmothers to see us taking bong rips on Facebook,” says Dietrich.
With the 2016 presidential campaign coming up, the co-founders plan on rallying members to vote and helping states pass laws for recreational marijuana use.
But no success story comes without its troubles. Massroots’ former bank declined to provide them services. Fortunately, this was only a ‘hemporary’ problem.
Dietrich said, “Cannabis gives us a moment to relax and remind ourselves that we are here to empower and connect the cannabis community; we’re not here to make money or conquer an industry. Our goal is to serve our users and businesses using our app. Really, it’s cannabis and the love of cannabis that keeps our culture intact.”
Smokers, tokers, and bong blowers, thank co-founders Isaac Dietrich and Tyler Knight for their wonderful creation that Massroots members enjoy highly.
