Head shops, born during the counterculture movement of the 1960s, were legally mandated to only sell products for use with legal substances. This influenced a tradition of delightfully surreptitious shop names and bright, far-out signage welcoming potential customers to a safe space, while staying within the law. From the cartoon apple with marijuana leaves as stems gracing the sign at Adam’s Apple in Chicago, to the simple block-lettered neon sign at The Fitter in Boulder, the tradition of odd, cool, freeform, blocky, colorful lettering spelling out fun and hardly clandestine shop names has offered sanctuary for those searching for the sub- and counterculture for half a century.
