Meet Gyasi Weir | Serial Entrepreneur & Creative head

We had the good fortune of connecting with Gyasi Weir and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Gyasi, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Back in 2019, we noticed 3 major problems present in the roll your own segment of the tobacco market: 1. Lack of variety in the segment
2. Noticable lack of customer engagement affecting customer satisfaction
3. Lack of quality control and transparency

We noticed there are a few key players that dominate the market. Having dominated the market, the attention to quality control of these companies greatly diminished and we wanted to build on that. Out of those thoughts, the vision of K. Runnings Leaf formerly known as Kool Runnings Leaf.

Our motto is “bringing tobacco products to the 21st century.”

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Our umbrella company is Leaf Product Holdings LLC, a holding company. Ideally, we envision creating multiple companies with their own strategies, products, and services. Our operational trade name is K. Runnings Leaf, and our packaging subsidiary is Leaf Product Packaging LLC. We are bringing tobacco products to the 21st century with our proprietary products, K. Runnings whole leaf, K. Runnings half leaf, and Blazin’ Crushed Grabba.

What sets us apart is our unwavering commitment to high quality products, our strong customer engagement and service, and our unique approach to obtaining our inventory domestically. It is common place in the roll your own segment to obtain tobacco sourced from the DR, and have the packaging services also rendered in DR. Our tobacco leaf is domestically sourced as America has a rich history of high quality tobacco dating back to the 1780s. Many companies over look this aspect in order to obtain cheaper tobacco in places such as the Dominican Republic.

Dominican seed is in the lineage of Cuban seed, which are known to produce some of the richest and most flavorful cigar tobacco in the world. They impart a spicy, earthy smooth note, which is desired in cigar smoke. For individuals looking to get high with aims of better tasting their marijuana, K. Runnings Leaf is the best option. Our leaf has a more “clear” taste without the harshness of darker tobacco, that spicy note is gone, our leaf is cleaner and steamed to perfection allowing for a better consumption experience overall.

We are most proud of the fact that we have been able to reach audiences outside of Florida. We are slowly penetrating markets we never thought we would reach, and still have so much market share in Florida to capture.

Getting to where we have gotten to this far has not been easy. We have had founding members go on to pursue other endeavors, gone through a trademark dispute with Kool Cigarettes, hired and fired 2 key employees, lost close friends run out of packaging due to demand, and the fact that I run every aspect of the business now has been the easy stuff to deal with. Being in such a regulated industry like tobacco, the state of Florida, DPBR and ATF administer regular tax and inventory audits and conduct regular in person inventory verification audits. This industry is not for the faint of heart. It has been challenging, but patience, perseverance, and asking a lot of questions has helped us weather the storm to this point.

The biggest lesson learned a long the way is noone will believe in your vision as much as you do. I truly believe you must sacrifice it all to make your dreams a reality.

We want the world to know that our brand is based on the popular cultural revolutionary movie Cool Runnings based on an underdog Jamaican bobsled team that against all odds, qualified for the winter Olympics. Our story is an underdog story. We do not have the financial backing as the larger players in the segment, but our commitment to our customers, our clients, and our product will eventually prove to be crucial than just making money or being successful.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Thankfully our best friend would be coming down to South Florida, the most beautiful part of these United States. There are so many things to do down here so the options would be endless.
Monday – breakfast at the Little Hen. Really good spot on Wynwood miami
Haulover beach maybe nude beach if we are feeling up to it
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings Leaf as we see fit
Lunch at the Daily Creative Co., Great food also in midtown Miami
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings Leaf
Evening – have a drink or two at the Anderson, near Biscayne Ave. Awesome ambiance, and nice hipster-ish/kind of fancy vibe.

Tuesday – breakfast at Bistro Cafe in downtown Miami, best breakfast in the area in our humble opinion.
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings Leaf
Lunch – Top Golf in Miami Gardens and lunch double. Who can beat food, drinks and golf?
Evening – Lagniappe in midtown Miami. An awesome Wine bar that is always packed with people and wine, and everyone is beautiful.

Wednesday – breakfast/brunch at the Rusty Pelican in Key Biscayne, amazing seafood, good brunch.
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings leaf
K&K billiards, enjoy a few games of pool, drinks optional.
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings leaf
Shop, people watch, and potential wife hunting at Bayside marketplace, in downtown Miami.
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings leaf
Evening – Dub Wars behind Coyo Taco in Wynwood Miami, awesome Reggae music event every Wednesday.

Thursday – breakfast at Jack’s Hollywood diner, amazing all American breakfast in Hollywood
Hollywood beach to hit the boardwalk, beach, shop and people watch.
Lunch – The tipsy boar in Hollywood, it is really really really good stuff.
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings Leaf
Evening – Reggae night at the Anderson, live music

Friday – breakfast at Miam cafe, Wynwood
Enjoy samples of K. Runnings Leaf
Go to the Salty Donut for unique twists on donuts to satisfy our hunger for creativity.
Lunch – Steve’s pizza in North Miami
Evening – Bodega night club in Miami beach. Let the fun begin

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
This is an undoubtedly loaded question because we have seen many fall by the waist side on our pursuit of success. It has been a very difficult 4 years so far, but we could not have done this without the help from a few major key people:

We would like to shoutout: MacKenzy Pierre, a small business and financial wellness coach whom works with Operation Hope administered by the OLCDC. We took a business course with back in 2020, and he also helped us navigate a very difficult time when faced with trademark issues.

My parents, Shirlon Weir and Charmaine Anderson for helping me financially when things got tough, and I was fired from my job for pursuing my dreams. They have been instrumental in keeping me going.

A really good family friend, Winston Stoute, who also told me to believe in my skills and what I can do because he has always believed in my abilities. He also invested in the company at a time when outside funding was crucial in maintaining operations. Without those people in particular, I would have failed years ago.

They are the real MVPs and I am indebted to them all uniquely.

Website: www.grabtheleaf.com

Instagram: @koolrunningsleaf

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/gyasiweir