More than three years ago, two entrepreneurs from Ohio set out to revolutionize the modern understanding of herb grinders. Now, with the release of their PenSimple product just around the corner, that long wait looks to be finally coming to a close.
The PenSimple grinder lives up to its name: it’s not significantly bigger than most vape pens, and it is very user friendly. The grinder section at the top of the PenSimple functions exactly as anyone who is familiar with conventional, manual grinders would expect — though the chamber is perhaps longer and narrower than most conventional grinders.
Where the PenSimple surpasses the specifications of other grinders, however, is in its electronic herb dispenser, which allows users to dispense as much or as little of the PenSimple’s contents into a bowl, rolling paper, or dry flower vaporizer. The herb dispenser mechanism holds a battery charge for as many as 100 uses and can be easily recharged with any micro USB cable. Finally, at a $70 price point, the PenSimple is still cheaper than many of today’s top grinder brands.
The idea for PenSimple was born from founder and CEO Brian Seckel’s unfortunate mishap one windy day at the frisbee golf course.
“I was outside, I had all of my remaining nugs packed full in my grinder, getting ready to … have a nice smoke,” Seckel said. “I unscrew the grinder, and as I’m unscrewing it kind of flips a little bit — the top comes off, the bottom goes crashing to the ground, and I lost all my herbs to the ground.”
That was the tipping point for Seckel, and instead of his planned afternoon of relaxation and television, he spent the rest of that day making plans to prevent such a spill from ever happening to him again. “I wanted some way that I could smoke while playing frisbee golf … that wasn’t just a one-hitter and dugout. I wanted to be able to take a bowl and go out and smoke it outside,” he said.
Seckel contacted his friend and longtime college roommate Jesse Gruber, and the two started to spend evenings working on designs and prototyping their product using a 3D printer in the public library. The pair spent more than two years honing their design like this. “We went through probably hundreds of different iterations in terms of just 3D printing different dispenser mechanisms,” Seckel said.
When they had a prototype that was nearly finished, Seckel and Gruber applied to and were accepted by CanopyBoulder, a cannabis startup accelerator in Boulder, Colorado.
The PenSimple team relocated to Boulder and in recent months has focused on ramping up production to meet the level of demand their new product has drummed up. According to Seckel, “We’ve seen a lot of success with preorders.”
Although Seckel expects to ship their first wave of products sometime in early December, the entrepreneurial journey behind PenSimple is far from over, as its creators have also announced plans for a line of accessories and attachments that will allow users to customize their grinders. These accessories are likely to include options for increased herb storage, new grind pieces to make your grind especially fine, and even a joint roller attachment that would allow you to insert nugs and dispense a fully-rolled joint.
However, such PenSimple attachments are unlikely to be available until sometime next year, as its creators are still in the planning and prototyping processes.
To learn more about or to pre-order your own PenSimple, visit GetPenSimple.com.
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