Deathstar Nation (Formerly Death Star Lounge)
Instagram: @bubbasdeathstarnation
Cherry Street in Kent, OH
Closed indefinitely
Advertising disclosure: I do not have a material connection to this business. This is not a paid endorsement.
R.I.P. to Death Star Nation, which was located on Cherry Street in Kent next to the movie theatre in the shopping plaza. It was not only a modern headshop but also a place to hang out and meet like-minded stoners. There was even an onsite coffee and tea lounge in the store for a while.
Like Headies Hideout and Flower City, Death Star Lounge specialized in top-shelf glass from well-known artists. They opened in 2009 as a tattoo studio and glass shop and were years ahead of others when it came to dab rigs and extract accessories. They had dabbers, rigs, nails and handheld extract devices long before I saw them available anywhere else.
Every year on or around April 20th, the owner Bubba would throw a day-long party with free food and music. Anybody who walked into the store was welcome to join. Sometimes he’d hire a chef to cook for everybody. Sometimes he got pizza. These parties took place not only within the store but in the back lot as well.
The back lot seemed tailor-made for parties of this nature and hanging out in general. There were even a few times I found myself behind the shop for an impromptu secret session during normal business hours.
Bubba would always let me put my promotional flyers, stickers and CDs on his freebie table. When he got rid of the freebie table, he still made space on the counter to give out free “Hashlips” Harry Hughes CDs. What a great guy who truly cares about his customers. These are the types of headshops I like to support.
Last I heard after the store closed, Bubba from Death Star Lounge was looking to relocate the shop to somewhere in Akron, but I don’t think that ever came to be.
Before the place renamed from Death Star Lounge to Deathstar Nation, Bubba put out some collabo pipes with Good Stash Glass. If I remember correctly there were three of them available, all with similar graphics. I bought the one I thought had the best in-hand feel.
