B&M etiquette question

[Tenor CS]

Originally Posted by Sauer Grapes

Do you give the owner or his wife cigars out of fivers you bought there? I'm wondering what they'd think about that. I'm sure they don't mind, but I'm trying to place myself in their shoes. I wonder what they'd think of you gifting cigars they don't carry as well. Would they be offended? I know I wouldn't. I have gifted a CC or two to one of my locals. That went over very well and he could tell they had a few years on them.

Every stick I've gifted them are sticks they don't carry. He had the 5 Vegas classic (red band), but he'd never smoked a Series A or Gold, so I gifted him one of each. His wife said she loved Gurkhas, and they have some of the higher end ones (Beast, Beauty, Shaggy, Titan, Warlord), so I gifted her some that I had in my humi that I got from a Thompson sampler. Some of the Gurkhas I gave her are Thompson-only blends. They have only been gracious, never offended.

Obviously, cigars are a large part of the conversation when I'm there. I've had several conversations that go like this:

Me: Hey Brian (the owner) have you ever heard of Taboo cigars out of Texas?
Brian: No
Me: Well, a lot of the guys on Cigar Asylum like them. I'll bring you in some, see if you like them. If you want to carry them, I can give you contact info of the guys to talk to.
Brian: Thanks, I'd appreciate that.

That grew out of another conversation where we were talking about CAO Americas and "barber pole/multiple wrapper" cigars. So I brought in a Sol Cubano Artisan, Taboo Twist, and ITC Split Decision Quad Toro.

The one thing I don't openly discuss is pricing or my Internet purchases. And I understand that the owner is there to run his shop first, and converse with me second. A few weeks ago, it was just me and Brian in the shop and his Vector rep came in. I was in the middle of a game of Wii bowling. I realized "Brian needs to take care of business now," so I quietly turned off the Wii and made myself scarce.

While I don't mention places like CI or Cbid by name, I will mention that I got these smokes "online" if he asks. I do mention Cigar Asylum by name A LOT though. In fact, the first time David (Catfish) came in, I heard the owner ask him how he found the place, and David told him that some guy from Cigar Asylum had mentioned the place.

Plus, I let him play with my accessories. I've shown him my Xikar and Palio cutters and Blazer lighter, in case he wants to think of carrying them. He does carry the 5-ct Cigar Caddy, and I've shown him my 10 and 18 count models. He does carry Vector lighters, and I totally want one that he has that can do soft flame and torch.