Where Do You Buy?

[craig61a]

Yeah, they’ve had that ordinance for several years now. Pretty misguided. Originally intent was to shut down the hookah bars/lounges.

 

[adui]

Tobacco and pipe cleaners, the local B&M's I like. Pipes. I buy mostly block and carve them now, but the ones I have that I didn't make were all gifts.

 

[jaytex1969]

I'd love to spend all of my TAD/PAD cash at my local B&M. Reality sets in and that ain't happening. I manage to divert a quarter of my spending their way but I have a cellar to feed on a modest income, so many of the site sponsors extract their pound of flesh from me regularly.

 

[Spa32]

99% online. There have only been 2 times that I haven't purchased pipes or tobacco online in 5 years.

 

[logs]

Mostly online. But I'd be hitting the Iwan Ries B&M hard if only they had evening and weekend hours.

 

[morgansteele]

I'm lucky to live bewtween 2 fine B&Ms and 1 has a wine/beer license. So, B&M for me. And, there's no rush on unicorns when they're in stock.

 

[Peter Peachfuzz]

I'll buy single tins to try locally and if I hit a keeper I'll go online.. example, picked up a tin of Mac Barens Burley at just shy of $20 out the door. It was a keeper so went online and picked up 10.

 

[seanv]

50/50 between local and online for me. I try my best to buy as much locally as possible but the price and lack of selection hurts.

 

[seanv]

Online by a not so great margin. Last two pipes I bought last year I got from my local tobacconist. In my case, it's a matter of principle to support him since he's been buying and selling the pipe stands I make like pancakes.

So you're the guy that they said makes the leather pipe rests?

 

[bullet08]

things i need immediately, local tinderbox. rest, online.

 

[curl]

Pretty much always online. There's only 1 quality B&M near me (Bennington's in Sarasota), and it's in the middle of a major tourist trap. When I travel for work, though, I always try to see if there's a B&M nearby, and if so I'll check it out.

I found Benningtons during a long weekend in Sarasota back in January 2018. It was there that I found the only tins of Esoterica available to me. It’s a nice place and the guy was helpful.

 

[eslavs]

I found Benningtons during a long weekend in Sarasota back in January 2018. It was there that I found the only tins of Esoterica available to me. It’s a nice place and the guy was helpful.

It is a nice place. I wish it was in a better location though. My other issue with them is that I think their prices are borderline outrageous ($26 for a tin of Squadron Leader).

For me, I have no problem buying from a B&M, and I expect that their prices are going to be more than what we pay online. That being said, if I feel like you're gouging me, you won't get my business.

 

[sablebrush52]

For most of my illustrious smoking career it was 100% my local B&M. Selection and prices were both excellent, and as a regular whom the owner liked, I got a 20% discount. Even after I became aware of these large online outfits I continued to buy from my local B&M. I liked having a place to hang out and chat with the other customers, as well as the full service treatment.
Then my B&M was sold and the new owner has changed the business to a cigar lounge. It's much spiffier, but no longer carries much of anything pipe related. Now my purchasing is a mixture of online and remote B&M's, although my purchasing is largely done and not any too soon from the looks of things.

 

[sablebrush52]

My other issue with them is that I think their prices are borderline outrageous ($26 for a tin of Squadron Leader).

Some of that, it not most of it, is the excise tax charged by your state that the B&M has to pay. In light of the Supreme Court decision, on line sellers are implementing collection of sales taxes, but haven't yet implemented collection of excise taxes, which is why they can still offer what looks like a bargain. Don't expect that to continue. Even if on line stores manage to dodge having to collect excise taxes, your purchasing info will be forwarded to your state and at some point your state will implement a collection process and contact you for payment.

 

[olkofri]

So you're the guy that they said makes the leather pipe rests?

Yes! ?

 

[cigrmaster]

I refuse to pay the 85% wholesale tax on pipe tobacco in my state of Florida. I stopped buying at my b/m back in 2009 or so when the law took affect.

 

[sablebrush52]

I refuse to pay the 85% wholesale tax on pipe tobacco in my state of Florida. I stopped buying at my b/m back in 2009 or so when the law took affect.

Fortunately for you, me, and a lot of others, collection of these taxes wasn't anything more than an honor system. With the purchase reporting that's going to change. I always paid my taxes so that I wouldn't have to deal with the bullshit I knew was coming. Glad that I saw the writing on the wall and cellared when I did.

 

[artvandelay007]

I buy online except when I want to go to the cigar lounge I of course buy something there. Either a blend I’ve wanted to try or pipe cleaners and a cigar then I just smoke whatever pipe tobacco I’ve brought with me.

 

[carlomarx]

My "local shop", 30 miles from home, is my first choice for pipes, accessories, and artisan tobacco. I'
ll be going there next week for a new tobacco pouch and ashtray. For my day to day codger tobaccos I go to one of the very few super markets in my area that carry pouches or online for a tub.

 

[karam]

There's exactly one shop offering good pipe tobacco in Athens, Greece, which is dead in the centre of our extremely busy city, so I rarely go there - although I like it is the one place I can talk pipe tobacco - so I order from them online. The prices are the same online and in the B&M so does it make a difference? I rarely order from abroad because most places I used to (UK, Denmark) don't send abroad anymore. When I do I circumvent the restrictions by sending orders to friends/family abroad, or in my firm's UK office.