The Pipe Shop

New shag tobacco

With the price of hand rolling tobacco going up alarmingly, many people are turning to the much cheaper thin cut pipe or shag tobacco. A new Virginia tobacco, disrespectfully referred to in the trade as ‘Lucky Shag’ is selling well, priced at £9.68 for 50g. 

20% discount on selected cigars

Thanks to our Specialist in Havanas status, we are now able to offer 20% discount on the following cigars - Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill, Punch Petit Coronations and Romeo y Julieta No.3. Available this month or while stocks last. 

Bank Holiday

Were’re skiving off on Monday for the Bank holiday, but will be back on Tuesday at 9amish. Hope you all have a good one!

Matchless e-cigarettes

We’ve been stocking Matchless disposable electronic cigarettes for about 6 months now and are pleased to report a rechargeable version is now available. The kit comes with electronic cigarette, two cartridges and a USB charger for £13.99. Extra cartridges are £6.49 for a pack of 5. Each cartridge gives about 300 puffs, which is equivalent to about 25-30 cigarettes.

Are they are good idea? Certainly those who are already using them seem to think so, reporting a large drop in their tobacco consumption and naturally, the government have given them the thumbs up. It is interesting to note however, that the UK is the only country where they legal - all other countries banning their use pending further testing. 

It is now getting very silly

Returning from a two week holiday I see that supermarkets (and all shops over 3000sq feet) are now observing the governments latest idea on covering up tobacco products or “going dark” as it is know in the trade. We are told this is to stop young people from smoking. If anything, I think hiding things away makes them more attractive to young people. 

Surprisingly, these draconian rules also apply to wholesalers. On my last visit the tobacco section was hidden from view by black curtains and any tobacco chosen was bundled into black bin liners so my deadly cargo could not be seen on the way to the checkout.

The legislation won’t stop here though. Already talks are underway on ”plain packaging” and by April 2015 all small shops will have to cover up any tobacco products.

Hopefully by then the government will run out of legislation and pick on something else!

Pueblo stones

Not some dreadful smoking related illness, but a clever device for re-humidifying your tobacco! To use, simply soak the terracotta stone in water, shake off any excess and bury it in amongst your tobacco. Normally about £1.99 each, we are giving them away free until we run out! 

Flavoured cigars

We are already stocking Neo’s ‘Vanilla Feelings’ mini cigars, so its great to be able to offer ‘Cappuccino’ minis from the same supplier. Ideal for a quick smoke outdoors with a coffee!

Cheap tobaccos

Sterling is the latest hand rolling tobacco to be unleashed in The Pipe Shop. Priced at £3.27 for 12.5g or £6.50 for 25g, it should sit well along side other recent arrivals like JPS, Pall Mall and Gold Leaf. But trumping them all price wise, is the specialist tobacco ‘Maya’ coming in at £5.99 for 25g and ‘Che’ a thick cut tobacco at an amazing £3.99 for 25g.

Pueblo cigarettes

This additive free hand rolling tobacco has been one of our best sellers, so it’s a great joy to see the cigarettes finally make it across the channel. Slightly cheaper than American Spirit cigarettes at £6.59 a pack, they should make a welcome addition to our additive free selection.

We are still smoking

Despite the best efforts of the government, we are still smoking. Last year as a nation, we lit up 44,499 million cigarettes, enjoyed 484 million cigars and rolled  5,321 tons of tobacco. Unsurprisingly, hand rolling  increased by 5.8% while cigarettes declined by 2.8%. The best selling cigarette was Sterling Superkings, which sold at a rate of 8 packets a second. These are official figures, but the true amounts are much higher as there is no accounting for cross channel shopping, smuggling and illegal tobacco factories.