Houseplant, the stylish cannabis home goods and accessories brand cofounded by actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen, is revealing two new marbled colorways of its hand-poured Concrete Cat Ashtray in an exclusive first look with Maxim.com.
Each of the one-of-a-kind cannabis ashtrays—now available in Dragon Fruit and Dusk—are handmade in Montreal for Houseplant by Concrete Cat designers Shawna and Matt Heide. The couple’s brutalist-inspired ashtrays feature a deep, ash-catching well, a handy joint-holding notch, and will develop a unique patina over time.
“The Concrete Ashtray allows you to ash in a literal piece of art,” Rogen tells Maxim. “It was inspired by our All-in-One Rolling Tray, which is one of our most sought-after products. We created two new marbled color variations that we think people will be really excited to use and display. It’s elegant, sturdy, and unique.”
The colorful new ashtrays, which retail for $150 each, join Houseplant’s Concrete Cat collection of cannabis accessories that playfully bridge utilitarian and brutalist design. Each Concrete Cat piece is poured and mixed by hand, so no two pieces are alike and colors and patterns will vary.
Their distinctive look is developed by using mineral pigments from an expansive catalog of more than 100 base tones and 400 color combinations. Concrete Cat’s designers mix all their hues from primary colors and blend multiple batches of mineral-pigmented concrete based on specific color recipes.
Once the concrete has been mixed into an ideal consistency, the designers push the concrete into a mold, creating a smooth surface texture by carefully eliminating air voids. The joint-oriented artworks then sit in molds for a full day before being popped out, at which point the bottoms and edges are then grinded and polished to marbled perfection.
The new Concrete Cat ashtrays are just the latest release from Houseplant, which last week dropped the seventh colorway of its Rogen-designed Gloopy By Seth ashtray in a limited edition, multifacted black.
Houseplant, which Rogen founded with longtime business partner Evan Goldberg, is among a growing segment of celebrity-branded cannabis companies that cater to stoner sensibilities.
The celebrity weed industrial complex includes dozens of brands, including Snoop Dogg’s Leafs By Snoop, Jay-Z’s Monogram, Mike Tyson’s Tyson 2.0, Insane By B-Real, Peaches By Justin Bieber, Cookies by Berner, Wiz Khalifa’s Khalifa Kush, and Garcia Handpicked by Trixie Garcia, the daughter of Grateful Dead icon Jerry Garcia.
But Houseplant stands apart from celeb weed startups that focus on flower, edibles and pre-rolls by prioritizing arty cannabis housewares and design-savvy collabs with the likes of Airbnb and Architectural Digest, which recently toured the 1918-built Los Angeles bungalow that serves as the brand’s headquarters and showroom.
It also doesn’t hurt that Houseplant makes the absolute coolest concrete ashtrays in the game.
To check out Houseplant’s full Concrete Cat collection, tap here.
Presented by Tom White
At the tender age of just 26, Hassan Chowdhury, has already achieved more than many people do in a lifetime.
When Chowdhury graduated from Berkeley College in New York, he quickly made a name for himself in the hospitality industry by partnering with renowned nightclubs like Lavo and Fleur Room rooftop to host events. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he had to do a U-turn and apply his economic insight in a new context.
Chowdhury saw an opportunity to make money in Florida’s high-end real estate market, and he took it. He got his start in the rental business by purchasing real estate and then giving it his unique spin through interior design and the introduction of themed weekends.
Over the last year, Hassan has acquired over $10 million in the real estate field. He quickly expanded his portfolio of high-end real estate to include the properties in the Hamptons, Fort Lauderdale Beach, Tulum, Cartagena, Nashville and Dubai as his company enjoyed rapid expansion.
Additionally, Chowdhury collaborated with M2Jets to launch a private members club under MetaFly Club. Memberships payable in NFT will be made available for the first time by the corporation in the middle of 2023. The primary goal of MetaFly Club is to offer members and their guests’ first-class private air travel in addition to a wide range of hospitality perks.
Chowdhury has faced various obstacles throughout his career, but the pandemic has proven to be the most difficult. He recognized the pandemic as an opportunity to develop further and broaden his knowledge and abilities, and he made the most of it. Because of his persistent firmness and enterprising spirit, he is currently an industry leader in providing services related to luxury real estate villas and private aviation.
Chowdhury has accomplished a great deal in a relatively short time thanks to his relentless work ethic and the lofty objectives he has set for himself to transform the hotel sector. According to him, other individuals should try to accomplish what they set out to do. Even though he recognizes the destructive power of hardship, he also recognizes its potential to be the source of something constructive.
Chowdhury’s ultimate goal is to succeed in the hotel and private aviation businesses recognized worldwide. His online profiles offer interesting insights into his personal and professional life. He is frequently featured in renowned publications such as The New York Finance, The USA Reporter, and the New York Daily News. His online profiles also provide interesting insights into his personal and professional life.
Hassan Chowdhury is quickly becoming a prominent figure in the world of business. He is most well-known for his work in the industries of luxury real estate and private jets. Follow Hassan on Instagram (@hassanc.official) to keep up with his progress. His story of hard work and determination will inspire a new generation of business leaders to do the same.
Presented by Tom White
With around 1 million books self-published each year, indie authors need to find ways to market those books. Many of those authors turn to traditional methods of book marketing such as book signings, flyers, bookmarks, and print ads.
Others decide that they should at least have a presence on social media and maybe even an author website. But none of that is enough, says J.J. Hebert, the founder and owner of MindStir Media and a USA Today and Wall Street Journal best-selling author.
According to J.J., if self-published authors want to stand out, they must market their books uniquely. His marketing programs that he offers through MindStir Media, ranked the best book publisher in Los Angeles by International Business Times, have reinvented book marketing.
For example, J.J. Hebert and MindStir Media have partnered with celebrities Kevin Harrington from Shark Tank and Mariel Hemingway, the granddaughter of Ernest Hemingway, to help promote books. Those celebrities, and a host of others, are available to write forewords for certain books as well as promote the books through video marketing.
The process is straightforward: J.J. and his team at MindStir handle the vetting of books with the celebrities and, for a book that makes the cut, an appropriate celeb will become a paid spokesperson for the book, filming an endorsement video that is uploaded and promoted on YouTube and writing a foreword to insert at the beginning of the book.
This form of celebrity marketing or influencer marketing for books was mostly untapped when it came to self-published authors, until MindStir and J.J. Hebert created the opportunity.
Another example of a game-changing book marketing opportunity for self-published authors is the launch of Mariel Hemingway’s Book Club, a rare celebrity-named book club that is open to promoting self-published books along with traditionally published books.
Most big-name book clubs, such as Oprah’s Book Club or Reese’s Book Club, focus exclusively on traditionally published books, and within that segment primarily New York Times bestsellers. This sadly leaves self-published authors on the outside looking in.
When J.J. Hebert teamed up with Mariel Hemingway to create her book club together, they both agreed to make the club accessible to self-published authors, as there are many standout self-published authors who don’t get the credit they deserve.
A third example of MindStir and J.J.’s revolutionary marketing: bestseller campaigns. J.J. believes that a good self-published book should have the same chances as a good traditionally published book; therefore, J.J. runs bestseller campaigns for self-published books targeting Amazon, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists.
Through email marketing and pay-per-click ads on Facebook, J.J. and his experts at MindStir Media can drive traffic and sales to a book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo, making the book a bestseller. The results are staggering.
One MindStir client, Chris Masiello, landed on several bestseller lists recently – Wall Street Journal, Amazon and Barnes & Noble—with his book Change Short & Simple. The book was the No. 1 bestselling eBook available at Barnes & Noble, beating out all other eBooks at the major book chain.
What new book marketing opportunities will J.J. Hebert create in the future? Only time will tell. Those interested in book marketing should go to https://mindstirmedia.com.
Ferrari’s best daily driver is now available as a convertible in the new Roma Spider.
Much care was taken to not only retain the Roma’s ’60s-inspired, “La Nuova Dolce Vita” looks, but enhance them. The sophisticated new soft top features one of two special fabric weaves and deploys in 13.5 seconds at up to 37 mph.
The rear screen was incorporated into the soft top so both can folded below the tonneau cover. When the soft top is lowered beneath the body-colored tonneau cover, the Roma’s distinctly retro rear overhang still seamlessly connects with the rear bench and headrests.
Road & Track notes the significance of the Roma Spider as it pertains to Ferrari’s history and current lineup. It’s the first front-engined Ferrari designed with a soft top since 1969, and it serves as a replacement of the Portofino M hardtop—Ferrari’s less powerful, V8-propelled convertible GT.
Like the Roma coupe, the Roma Spider features a stretched “shark-nosed” front hood that flows into a sculpted body free of any inessential panels, cuts or vents. Even the requisite grille—flanked by two linear LED headlights—is minimal, with a unique new perforated form that’s color-matched to the car.
Behind the covert intake is Roma’s twin-turbo, 3.9-liter V8 that sends 612 horsepower to Ferrari’s F1 eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. Ferrari takes care to remind us that the same power plant that was voted “International Engine of the Year” by a panel of journalists from 2016 through 2019. In the Roma Spider, the revered V8 is good for a 3.4-second sprint to 62 mph, 124 mph in 9.7 seconds, and a max speed in excess of 298 mph.
Ferrari also didn’t deviate from the Roma coupe’s interior. The passenger and driver get their own spaces—a notion that the marque says has roots in its 70s-era vehicles. Each seat is enclosed in a wraparound volume that extends from the dashboard to the rear seats, creating a physical throughline from front to back.
The steering wheel has also been redesigned, with left-hand spoke has indents that correspond to touch controls. The track pad on the right-hand spoke also features an indent that makes it easier to swipe, and the Engine Start button is now backlit in red.
Prices haven’t been announced, but it’s estimated that the Ferrari Roma Spider will cost about as much as the $250,000 Roma coupe.
Presented by LUXC MEDIA
Banxso, the new South African financial powerhouse, is quickly becoming a top trading platform for tech-savvy traders, offering a fresh and innovative approach to online trading. With its reputation, story, and track record, Banxso is setting a new standard in the industry and changing how people think about investing.
It all started in 2021 when a group of young financial entrepreneurs purchased legacy firm Zenfin Financials and promised to change the online trading world in South Africa. They renamed the company Banxso, and carried the slogan, “Not your grandfather’s bank.” With its rebrand, Banxso prided itself on doing things differently and catering to traders of all experience levels.
Banxso is living up to that promise. The platform offers a variety of trading options, with the ability to trade thousands of assets in different sectors. In addition, they offer their own proprietary platforms, including a MetaTrader suite, making it easy for traders to access the tools they need. With the ability to trade thousands of different assets in a variety of sectors, Banxso offers a level of versatility that other platforms can’t match.
One of the standout features of Banxso is its 24/7 live customer service. Whether you are a seasoned trader or just starting your trading journey, Banxso’s support team is always available to help. In addition, the company is focused on making trading accessible to everyone, regardless of their level of experience. To top it off, Banxso offers free platform-integrated memberships to TipRanks, Trading Central, and Cooma Social Trader, giving traders access to valuable market insights and analysis.
In a world where technology is constantly evolving, Banxso is leading the charge and revolutionizing how people think about investing. They are breaking down the barriers to entry, making it easier for people to start trading and take control of their financial future.
Banxso is more than just a trading platform—it is a community. With its integrated social trading features, Banxso allows traders to connect and share their insights and strategies. This level of collaboration and community is unparalleled in the online trading world, allowing Banxso’s exponential growth in popularity.
Of course, no platform is perfect, and Banxso is no exception. Some traders have reported issues with the platform’s user interface, and others have had trouble with account verification. However, Banxso’s customer service team quickly addressed those issues and resolved them in a timely manner.
Banxso is changing the game in the online trading world. They are not your typical investment platform, which makes them different from other platforms. Their commitment to doing things differently is reflected in their customer-centric approach.
Banxso’s pipeline continues to grow and develop with innovative products and trading solutions. Banxso’s reputation, story, and track record are all strong indicators of why the platform is becoming so popular among tech-savvy traders. With its adaptive approach, versatile platform, and exceptional customer service, Banxso stands out among other investment platforms and brokers. If you are looking for a new platform to trade on, Banxso is definitely worth considering.
The 2022 Academy Awards ceremony spawned one of the most viral moments of the year when Best Actor nominee Will Smith slapped host Chris Rock for joking about hair loss suffered by Smith’s wife, Jada-Pinkett Smith.
But “The Slap Heard Around The World” is being completely reinterpreted by Dr. Alan J. Bauman, an internationally recognized, board-certified hair restoration surgeon and founder of the Bauman Medical Hair Transplant & Hair Loss Treatment Center.
For Bauman, the startling incident is an opportunity to educate people about Alopecia (the general term for hair loss) and how to treat the condition, which affects 80 million Americans.
This year, Jimmy Kimmel will host this year’s Oscars, airing on March 12 on ABC. Bauman Medical will be gifting a “Slap the $#%& Out of Alopecia/Everyone Wins Hair Gift Bag” valued at $7,000 to nominees in categories including Best Actor & Actress, Best Supporting Actor & Actress, Best Director and Kimmel himself.
No stranger to VIP clientele, the Bauman Medical Hair Transplant & Hair Loss Treatment Center has worked with countless A-list actors, politicians and high-profile individuals and adheres to a discreet “privacy is our policy” philosophy.
The “Slap The $#%& Out of Alopecia / Everyone Wins Hair Gift Bag” contains a comprehensive array of hair restoration tools to combat hair loss and grow hair thicker, stronger and healthier hair utilizing BaumanMD hair supplements, Dr. Alan J. Bauman’s In-Shower Trichology System for haircare, as well as PRP with PDOgro, Dr. Bauman’s proprietary hair restoration treatment, and more.
Each gift bag also includes a complimentary private one-on-one hair restoration consultation with Bauman, which can be done virtually or in person.
To help those who are adverse to thinning hair and balding, Bauman offers the most scientifically advanced, customized therapies that help people look good and exude confidence by restoring and maintaining their own living and growing hair.
“In Hollywood, celebrities such as The Rock, Jason Statham and John Travolta are celebrated as bald sex symbols,” comments Bauman.
“That is a strong and equally empowering statement upon society. However, for others wanting to break into the biz, hair loss can be the difference between landing the lead role in a rom com to being cast as an extra in a B-level horror flick. For those who long for a full head of hair, we have the expertise and technology to help patients hold onto the hair they have and restore what’s been lost.”
Dr. Alan J. Bauman MD is an internationally renowned full-time board-certified Hair Restoration Physician who has treated over 33,000 patients and has performed over 12,000 hair transplant procedures and over 12,000 PRPs since starting his medical hair loss practice, Bauman Medical, in 1997. He is consistently shortlisted as one of the top hair transplant surgeons in the world today and has been awarded #1 Top Hair Restoration Surgeon in North America by Aesthetic Everything for seven years running.
I want a road-registered Porsche 917 to blast through Europe. Stopping at every beach bar along the French and Italian Riviera, playing the hero à la Steve McQueen.
But some guys want even more than that. They want a Formula One car. That they can race. On a track. Against other fanatics who think they are Fangio, Hunt, Senna, Schumacher, Hamilton—rolled into one. So let’s take a look at this rarified sector of the car collecting community; because of course the truth is we all want one.
There was a time when buying and owning an F1 car was relatively inexpensive. Peter Haynes, a Consigning Specialist at the world’s top collector car auction house RM Sotheby’s, tells us that “the market for Formula One cars has traditionally been very niche, and a market where values haven’t always been commensurate with the historical significance of the cars.”
He points out that cars from the 1940s, ’50s and even the early ’60s are more commonly referred to as Grand Prix cars; technically the first Formula One race was at Silverstone in England in 1950.
“Although Formula One machines are exotic by any measure, cars from that earlier Grand Prix era have always been relatively easy to own and race because they are, at least by the standards of more modern machines, technologically simple,” he notes, “and there are many places where owners can race them.”
From the 1970s onwards however, “the cars became increasingly technical and aerodynamics began to play a significant part. By the late 1980s through to the modern day, these cars rapidly became computers on wheels with highly sophisticated engineering, electrical and hydraulic systems, sensors, and very advanced engines and transmissions.”
Hence, “cars of the past 30 years can be incredibly difficult to look after, maintain and run on a track,” he says, “so that has historically narrowed the buyer market. Add to that the fact that cars of the modern era have fewer grids in which they are eligible to compete in historic racing, and the market is further narrowed.
So, in short, earlier Grand Prix cars have had a wider market, and those cars which are widely regarded as beautiful to look at—a 1950s Maserati 250F for example—have historically commanded large sums. The big change in recent years is that modern-era F1 cars have begun to find their place in the market.”
This has come about thanks to collectors with very deep pockets who have the means to look after and maintain highly-technical modern cars, no matter the cost. In response to this, manufacturers like Ferrari, McLaren and Williams have all created divisions dedicated to offering the facilities and technical support necessary to look after F1 cars; think of this as the Ferrari FXX program on steroids.
There are also new racing grids and championships emerging where the cars are eligible. These factors have converged to make modern-era Formula One cars increasingly desirable, leading values in the past five years to increase significantly—possibly more than any other area of the car market.
So, what to buy? This depends as much upon your personal preferences as your investment advisor’s indication of future returns. Hence it comes down to who your heroes are, and which teams you support, both in the narrow sense of actual teams and the broader sense of lifetime affiliations.
Brits love Aston Martin, Williams, McLaren and all early tinkerers who made it from weekend warrior to serious business. As well as some who didn’t, like Lotus, Hesketh, Brabham and their ilk. Germans may prefer Mercedes. The French Renault. The Japanese Honda. If you were a smoker back in the day, perhaps anything with John Player Special, Marlboro, Gitanes or Gauloises livery.
Then of course you had the characters driving. From death-defying pilots of flimsy missiles like Juan Manuel Fangio and Jim Clarke, through the playboy era of James Hunt, to modern-day heroes like Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher and, latterly, Lewis Hamilton.
So what is it going to cost? RM Sotheby’s tells us that pricing depends on several factors: the manufacturer, with Ferrari leading the way; the driver, with Schumacher and Senna cars the holy grail; and finally, how many races the car has won and whether that was in a year in which the team or driver or both won the championship. And they tell us that things start to get interesting when you have somewhere between $1.5 million and $3 million to play with when acquiring your first F1 beauty.
Interestingly the most expensive Formula One car ever sold at auction is the 1954 Mercedes W196 (chassis #6) piloted to victory in Germany and Switzerland by Argentina’s Juan Manuel Fangio. Bonhams sold it at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2013 for a cool $29.7 million. Chasing that record are cars with impeccable pedigrees, constructed by the greatest manufacturers, and driven by the rockstars of their era.
Such jewels as the 1993 McLaren MP4/8A Ayrton Senna drove to his record sixth and final victory at the Monaco Grand Prix, the race which put this car into the history books. It was initially acquired by a collector directly from McLaren chief Ron Dennis in 2006 when it reportedly became the first-ever privately-owned McLaren MP4. By the time it changed hands again in 2018 at a Bonhams sale in Monaco it went for over $4 million.
Not to be outdone, in 2021 RM Sotheby’s was the first to ever auction an F1 car driven by Lewis Hamilton, a 2010 McLaren MP4- 25A, which carried him to victory at the Turkish Grand Prix in 2010. The Mercedes V8-powered machine, chassis #1, went for nearly $7 million.
A favorite in recent years is Nigel Mansell’s 1991 Williams FW14, chassis #5, which he piloted to five race wins that season, including the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. It was owned by Mansell until RM Sotheby’s auctioned it in Monaco in 2022—without its V10 Renault engine which was removed at the end of the 1991 season. And it still brought in nearly $4.5 million.
Most recently in Geneva, Switzerland in November 2022 RM Sotheby’s smashed all previous records for a modern Formula One car when Michael Schumacher’s 2003 Ferrari F2003-GA driven to five race wins, two podiums, three pole positions and a sixth world championship, sold for $14.9 million, almost doubling the previous record for a modern Formula One car when Schumacher’s F2001 fetched $7.5 million in 2017.
When all is said and done though, I think alongside the Porsche 917 in the garage I’d get my hands on James Hunt’s 1974 308C Hesketh, which Lord Hesketh himself said represented “a belief in a kind of English genius.” Most recently sold in 2021 by car dealer Duncan Hamilton for a “high six-figure” sum, it may still be the steal of the bunch for provenance and lunchtime stories the next time it surfaces.
I’m imagining the grin now as I whip her around the Paul Ricard circuit in the South of France, James Hunt style. Glass of champagne in one hand, cigarette hanging out of my mouth, with the badge on my race overalls proclaiming “Sex, Breakfast of Champions”— and everyone else eating my dust.
Presented by The Daily Buzz
The unparalleled sense of confidence, poise, and elegance that a well-tailored suit can impart to men is incomparable. But the cost of bespoke suits can be prohibitive.
Enter SUITABLEE, a pioneering AI-enabled custom suit brand that aims to revolutionize the suit-making industry. SUITABLEE seamlessly blends AI technology with years of hands-on expertise to produce top-quality suits that strike the perfect balance between fit, craftsmanship, and affordability.
Two engineer brothers, Jean-Sebastien and Jean-Jeremie Siow, driven by a desire to revolutionize the fashion industry, co-founded SUITABLEE with a primary focus on menswear. Combining artificial intelligence algorithms with traditional craftsmanship, the founders bootstrapped the business from the ground up, investing their savings and working diligently for years to make it the leading brand it is today.
The co-founders of SUITABLEE were well aware of the uniqueness of their concept, but the path to success was arduous. Lugging bulky samples around, even in the harsh Canadian winters, they pounded customer doors in pursuit of brand recognition.
This tireless effort also helped to cultivate an in-depth database of sizes, which eventually evolved to infrared body scans that established the basis for the AI technology (Automatic Sizing) at SUITABLEE. This AI allows the brand to generate perfect cuts for any customer after they’ve answered 12 simple questions.
This precision has resulted in only 10 percent of online orders requiring minor adjustments; thus, reducing operational costs and providing an affordable solution to achieving the perfect fit.
SUITABLEE revolutionizes the approach to custom-made suits, making them accessible to a broader range of consumers. This is further demonstrated by their efficient customer service and production and delivery process that is spearheaded by the use of AI. This allows diminished waste and environmental damage, as well as fewer returns of ill-fitting clothing.
SUITABLEE has established a pioneering position in the fashion industry through its utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI), crafting unique garments with unparalleled precision. SUITABLEE envisions expanding its AI to a comprehensive styling tool for custom suits for any special event, featuring AI-driven recommendations and personalized suggestions tailored to the individual user’s style. Their vision is to provide insights into the latest trends in suit design, revolutionizing the custom suit experience.
