Chain store rant

fhrblig · 08-02-2010, 11:14 AM

Ok, time for a cranky rant.

I've checked out a couple locations of a cigarette store chain that is trying to add cigars to their stores. I won't name which one; there are a couple of different chains here in CO that are doing this, and if I'm the only one who gets irritated about these things then I don't want to smear them specifically in the minds of others who haven't been there yet.

I've been apprehensive to go to these places, because their primary business is cigarettes. I feared that their attempt to sell cigars would lack the proper commitment to the product, and after I went to two of their shops it seems I was right.

The first one I went to had a very large humidor, good selection, and decent prices. I went into the humidor, and as always I knew what I was looking for. When I need help, I will ask for it; otherwise I prefer to be left alone. The first 20-year-old associate there came in to the humidor after I went in, asked me politely if I needed help; I told him "No thanks" and he let me know he was there if I needed anything. That's exactly right, no complaints there. However, another 20-year-old working there came in as well, made a beeline toward me, and without any context just started rambling about 'plume' to me, pretending to know what he was talking about. I really wanted to look at him and tell him what he could do with his 'plume', but as I'm trying to cut back on flare-ups of my cranky-old-man disease, I just ignored him and went on looking for what I wanted. I think he realized he did something stupid, because it seemed to dawn on him that hey, the other guy that works here is also in the humidor; maybe he already asked this guy if he wanted help. He shut up and wandered off. I grabbed a couple of sticks that I wanted, paid for them and left. I figured that since the first guy wasn't a complete douche, I could forgive them for a minor transgression.

The second one really irritated me, though. I went in, and though this store was smaller, it did have a small smoking area next to the humidor. Dude behind the counter couldn't have been more than 18. Two other 18/19-year-olds (clearly the counter dude's friends) were hanging out in the cigar area smoking cigarettes. I went into the humidor, and it had a pretty varied selection of brands for a small store; however, a lot of the boxes were empty. They were out of a LOT of the brands. They did have Flor de Oliva Maduros, and I've been wanting to try those for a while so I grabbed a couple of them. I went to the counter to pay for them, and could feel the dirty looks from the guys in the smoking area; I guess they didn't like their conversation with the counter rep interrupted. For his part, the rep's attitude was fine; it was his friends that were giving me the stink-eye. He came over, rung me up and I paid for what I had, then asked me if I wanted a piece of cedar in the ziploc bag I bought. I said sure, and then dude proceeds to put a SOAKING WET strip of cedar in the bag. WTF!? Honest, the thing was dripping wet. I'm sure glad the cigars I bought were wrapped in cellophane. I took the bag home, quickly got a paper towel and dried out the bag and the few drops on the cello of the cigars and threw the cedar away.

Even though the first one wasn't as bad as the second, I don't think I will go back to either. Neither of the places had staff I would call professional; nobody was dressed like they were at work, it was all t-shirt & jeans or tank top, etc. The second place just gave off a really trashy vibe, and that was before the cedar BS. None of the kids they have working at any of them seem to know the first thing about cigars. The prices were good, but at this point I'll pay more to an independent B&M because you get what you pay for. And before anyone thinks I'm automatically prejudiced toward the youngins, I should tell you that one of the B&Ms I like has young dudes working there also. The difference is they are knowledgeable about the product, dressed like they want to make a good impression on the customer, and even when they do have their friends hanging out (actually smoking cigars they bought there) everyone is friendly and respectful to the other people there.

Sorry if that was long, but has anyone else run into this sort of thing?

08-02-2010, 11:14 AM	#1
fhrblig Real cars have 3 pedals Join Date: May 2010 First Name: Bob Location: Aurora, CO Posts: 211 Trading: (0)	Chain store rant Ok, time for a cranky rant. I've checked out a couple locations of a cigarette store chain that is trying to add cigars to their stores. I won't name which one; there are a couple of different chains here in CO that are doing this, and if I'm the only one who gets irritated about these things then I don't want to smear them specifically in the minds of others who haven't been there yet. I've been apprehensive to go to these places, because their primary business is cigarettes. I feared that their attempt to sell cigars would lack the proper commitment to the product, and after I went to two of their shops it seems I was right. The first one I went to had a very large humidor, good selection, and decent prices. I went into the humidor, and as always I knew what I was looking for. When I need help, I will ask for it; otherwise I prefer to be left alone. The first 20-year-old associate there came in to the humidor after I went in, asked me politely if I needed help; I told him "No thanks" and he let me know he was there if I needed anything. That's exactly right, no complaints there. However, another 20-year-old working there came in as well, made a beeline toward me, and without any context just started rambling about 'plume' to me, pretending to know what he was talking about. I really wanted to look at him and tell him what he could do with his 'plume', but as I'm trying to cut back on flare-ups of my cranky-old-man disease, I just ignored him and went on looking for what I wanted. I think he realized he did something stupid, because it seemed to dawn on him that hey, the other guy that works here is also in the humidor; maybe he already asked this guy if he wanted help. He shut up and wandered off. I grabbed a couple of sticks that I wanted, paid for them and left. I figured that since the first guy wasn't a complete douche, I could forgive them for a minor transgression. The second one really irritated me, though. I went in, and though this store was smaller, it did have a small smoking area next to the humidor. Dude behind the counter couldn't have been more than 18. Two other 18/19-year-olds (clearly the counter dude's friends) were hanging out in the cigar area smoking cigarettes. I went into the humidor, and it had a pretty varied selection of brands for a small store; however, a lot of the boxes were empty. They were out of a LOT of the brands. They did have Flor de Oliva Maduros, and I've been wanting to try those for a while so I grabbed a couple of them. I went to the counter to pay for them, and could feel the dirty looks from the guys in the smoking area; I guess they didn't like their conversation with the counter rep interrupted. For his part, the rep's attitude was fine; it was his friends that were giving me the stink-eye. He came over, rung me up and I paid for what I had, then asked me if I wanted a piece of cedar in the ziploc bag I bought. I said sure, and then dude proceeds to put a SOAKING WET strip of cedar in the bag. WTF!? Honest, the thing was dripping wet. I'm sure glad the cigars I bought were wrapped in cellophane. I took the bag home, quickly got a paper towel and dried out the bag and the few drops on the cello of the cigars and threw the cedar away. Even though the first one wasn't as bad as the second, I don't think I will go back to either. Neither of the places had staff I would call professional; nobody was dressed like they were at work, it was all t-shirt & jeans or tank top, etc. The second place just gave off a really trashy vibe, and that was before the cedar BS. None of the kids they have working at any of them seem to know the first thing about cigars. The prices were good, but at this point I'll pay more to an independent B&M because you get what you pay for. And before anyone thinks I'm automatically prejudiced toward the youngins, I should tell you that one of the B&Ms I like has young dudes working there also. The difference is they are knowledgeable about the product, dressed like they want to make a good impression on the customer, and even when they do have their friends hanging out (actually smoking cigars they bought there) everyone is friendly and respectful to the other people there. Sorry if that was long, but has anyone else run into this sort of thing?