What would you do?
So, I’ve been vaping since Christmas of this year, smoke free and very excited to get other smokers “off the sauce” if you will lol. I’m learning more of how to build new set ups and maintain my equipment etc so on. I decided to go to the local smoke shop that has ecigs to see if they had vapes , juice, carto parts, etc.
I get there and #1 they have an extremely limited selection of any good brands and parts but a vast selection of all the rip-off models and such. I’m browsing everything they have, price shopping in my head, checking for outdated equipment that has since been upgraded to newer better designs n such and it starts to kill me inside about how much they have marked up absolutely everything. example : 3ml vivi nova old version: $28.95…… for the tank….. for the freaking tank alone!!! Dear Lord, if anyone ever wanted to get into vaping they’d never start.
In walks another dude, wants to quit cigs badly and has only been exposed to gas station 12 dollar disposables that last half a day. He starts talking with the shop owner (who doesnt even vape) and the shop owner gives him some extremely bogus info and advice and doesn’t even know the vivi novas have replaceable atomizer heads or how to even fill it. I step in, ask if i can take over and show him my vaper so he knows I’m not bs’ing him. 30 minutes later ive got the dude knowing what he wants, 2 flavors picked out, 2 bats, charger, 2 tanks and a case. Not even as good of a set up i got online on phoenixvapes.com for $60 for Christmas. total bill: $198.50…… bats were double, tanks triple, and flavors double, i try to get him outside to explain i know places online that can cut the bill in 1/3 the cost so I ask “dude, come outside and try my vape before you blast money out” tried 3 or 4 different ways cuz I dont wanna be taken as the guy who drove business away….
Bottom Line: what would you have done? i felt so badly for the guy, 25 or so yrs old, wants to prolong life and get into vaping but who is getting swindled hard by the one guy who should be helping most.
I really think I would have flat out told the guy he was getting ripped off. What do you have to lose, I’m guessing you’ll be buying from this store some time after pigs start flying just before hell freezes over, so why should you care if the guy kicks you out of his shop.
I hate to say it but if this guy keeps vaping, and hopefully figures out he paid way too much for his first stuff, ha probably won’t have such a good feeling for the guy that educated him and helped him pick all that stuff out.
I have no B&M’s in my area that sell vape stuff, save for the convenience stores that have pretty cheap entry level sticks. If I had one in the area that was good, I’d be willing to pay a small percentage more to support the business, but if they’re selling things over twice the average price, I’d have no problem making it known to potential customers that they shouldn’t be buying anything there.
Tough call there Gorg, but I’d have to agree with mongrel. Do you plan on giving this store your business? The worst that could happen is you get blacklisted. Perhaps that vendor needs to know that he’s full of BS and needs to get with it.
Awesome post. Being a 25 year old myself and getting into vaping not too long ago i really appreciate you doing that for him, both as a younger guy and a vaper. I remember when i bought my first 20 mls of e juice for like a hundred bucks… total rip off. Never again.
That’s a tough spot. I guess it would depend if I planned on going back there. Maybe politely said you can get replacement heads online and then brought up that there are a lot of other models online as well.
I would have totally straight up told him it was a ripoff and helped him. I’ve been to a few vape shops, and you now the difference. I went to two where they were completely clueless, and although they had egos with lanyards, they never too a vape while i was there. It was all for show imo. The guys didnt even know half of what i was talking about. One store inparticular had relabeled ECblend juice. I tried a few with names i’d tried, and they were identical. Even in the same bottles, same color tops (orange tops at the time) but with different labels. I then ended up finding a small one, was a really cool guy and had his elementary school daughter there in the back studying even. He was a straight up dude and his prices were extremely reasonable. Let me test vape anything i wanted and was actually interested about talking vape with me. A LITTLE more expensive than what i find online, but not a ripoff. His juice was reasonable as well. It is THOSE vendors you want to find. The guys who ARE making a living off of it, but only just to get by as if it were a normal job and continue to fund their business, while at the same time trying to really spread the word and get vaping out there. If you want to be greedy (Kr808 kits for like 80+ bucks) then i don’t want ANYONE vaping ANYTHING you have. Period. You’re ripping people off, giving vaping a bad name and being known as expensive, and really wanting me to give you a jaw check. Just my opinion.
thanks guys
but yes, ive been in the shop 100 times. hookah coals, hookah, pipe tobacco, lighters, fluid, butane, ive got all my stuff there for a few years now. always different people working with a high turnover rate but i still didnt feellike being that guy at the time… i referred him to this forum but thats the best i did
i think it’s important to make an opportunity to pass along info regarding better suppliers and to save face for yourself if at all possible, but i’d like to think he’d look around online and find a better long term solution… i got took pretty bad on my first setup, SmokeSmart kiosk at the mall, but at least it got me vaping…
I would have told that dude the truth right in front of the owner of the store! Stores that rip people off like that give e-cigs a BAD name.
Kuddos….I would have done the same thing.
Bottom line is most of us have been in a position where we didn’t know any better and paid way more than we should for shite. But at least we all got started. You did the best you could under the circumstances. At least if the guy was gonna pay too much, he might as well have some advice from someone who knows something.
Ahhh.. It’s a total different story if you plan on going back there for supplies.
I would have stepped in. I am a very social person. I think it was because I was shy kid, anyways…I would have started a conversation with the dude and probably would have taken him outside….the worst that would happene is the shop owner get pissed and then I would engage in a conversation with him. Asking why his stuff is so expensive. Then I would explain to him how I may be able to help him get HIS stuff cheaper and still turn a profit. I understand everyone has to make a profit, I get that. Here is the thing about vape gear though. Vape shops…remind me ALOT of head shops. They got all this badass stuff, it all pretty much does the same thing. However there is a BIG difference between some J.O.B papers and 4x blown glass. What does it come down to? The experience and the quality of it. So, are they cool? How much are they trying to make? Headshop owners know stoners dont give a damn, if they have the $ theyre gonna buy it right then and there. A vape shop owner knows someone coming in, they make that $ off of them cause its a life changing decision…. much like a nice glass piece can be…. someone who TRUELY wants to change their life will spend the $ and shop owners know that. So I would have to call the dude out and ask… are the head shop owner who is local and just wants to provide for fellow stoners and give them a place to get their “glass piece” at a decent price….helping smokers change their life and vapers get their shit. OR are you a non vaper, obviously, trying to make a $1 off of the new hip trend that may be beneficial to health? Then I would have walked outside and expected the newcomer to follow me to the church >>>> ecigadvanced “PRAISE THE VAPOR”
I would have said something, but I’m the kind of guy who can’t keep his mouth shut. lol. I guess for some people getting ripped off is a right of passage many times into the vaping world. It’s unfortunate, but happens a lot. At lease you got him squared away in the end.
Hey are you in my neck of the woods? That sounds just like my local store… At least their prices are a little better… 35 for a twist… 6.99 for DeKang juice. I usually purchase juice and cheap clearomizers that cost $8! But, I do buy there.
Our local tobacco shop is owned by a young sister and brother, both of whom do not smoke. They sell the hookahs and glass pipes, cigs and cigars. I went there a lot, and when I first started vaping. AND I’ve told everyone I’ve met in the store about the eCigAdvanced forum and all about getting free stuff in their Vape For Free store! And I’ve advised to go online and check out the reviews and coupons! I even get their email addresses and send them info on vaping! The owners, of course, didn’t appreciate me at all!!! I don’t know why?!! I would never purchase a kit there, since it is $60+ for an eCab, and $120 for an eGo-T, at least everything is JoyeTech. All of the local tobacco stores sell goods from Misty Mountain, they have a monopoly in the area, but at least there are stores here. And we now have a new kiosk Ploomz, that sells juice and accessories in the mall. And a $250 mod!! Their prices are pretty steep too, but at least they are familiar with vaping. Side note: There is a website called VaporSearchUSA, where you can search for stores by state.
I know you did the right thing. The more you educate someone to make the right decision and to save them from the frustration of getting ripped off, the more they will appreciate the true spirit of the vaping community!!! That is what I love and appreciate about vaping. Everyone is so willing to share and help and educate. Especially here on ECA. When I first started I could not even afford a kit, and instead of having to wait a few months to save for one, a forum member sent me her old kit and accessories and juice. I was so excited I vaped for 2 days straight! That is the true meaning of friendship, helping others and Gorg, you’re just carrying the torch and continuing this tradition! Don’t ever feel like you did anything wrong, it was so wrong of the store owner to give wrong info and overcharge, he reminds me of the free kit that charges your card $60 a month for their subscription!!! Gives vaping a sour taste in anyones’ mouth, or more descriptive, like a burnt throat hit!
I am going to respond before reading anyone else’s comments. I would have questioned the store clerk into a point where they just simply said I have no idea what you are talking about. Not trying to be rude but to establish to the customer that he is clearly going to be ripped off if he shops there. I would explain to him how I could help and explain a lot of things he wants to know and some he/she may not have known to ask. I would proceed to explain the different forums and explain how they are more of a support group than they are a networking forum. I have met some really great people in this forum that I would love to meet in person one day. It’s because we are working and striving towards a common goal. That is to be smoke free. Simply put. I would have then handed him my business card. I charge nothing to consult them on the phone or in person or online. I do it because I am passionate about something that saved my life. On the back of simple business card is a list of websites that I have ordered from, forums I am a member of, and what not. It’s all about educating each and every person I encounter that shows interest.
I was at a motorcycle rally last summer. I was vaping up a storm in the midst of all those smokers. My wife ran off to use the restroom. When she came back 5 minutes later she saw that I had a group of people around of about 25. I was kind of on my soapbox and telling everyone what they wanted to know.
So I would have intervened between the two because I want people to know the truth number one. Number two, I want people to not get ripped off.
Thanks. Good blog.
general consensus: sack up and be “the bad guy” to the store but “the good guy” to the consumer. yeah figured as much lol. ill seek another go, and see if i can snag a fish
I’d think each situation would be different…you wouldn’t want someone to feel bad for even coming into the store to begin with…it’s a fine line trying to save someone some cash and maybe them agreeing to check out some online stuff and then stopping off to buy another carton of cigs on the way home….
Well done
You did the right thing
You did the right thing, good blog.
you know Gorg, I just keep thinking about this story. I really wish I had a B&M, even if it was a tobacco shop near me.
I was thinking how you used to go there as a smoker, and I might actually approach them and say “Hey listen I’m a vaper and I’ll tell you if you had decent prices I’d come here and give you my business, and I’d probably send people your way. But at the prices you’re selling things at, I’m pretty much gonna tell people to stay away from this place.”
all in all that is awfully sad that B&Ms do this!
IDK what i would have really I think that I would have tried to pull the guy aside to tell him how hard he is getting srewed….
If the owner doesn’t even vape, I say scare his business away. You have to love your product to do try to sell it in my opinion!
For good or ill, the shop you mention probably won’t be around long with the attitude and pricing it has!
That shop is heading down hill
I would and have told people about the better products and prices from vendors online in front of store owners and employees. I can almost get the higher prices due to employee pay and property tax and the like but I strongly believe you should know the product your selling and if you don’t then you shouldn’t be misleading people just to get a purchase.