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TOBACCO BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014
trench marketing
year, Smokers Choice is able to justify a full-time construction
crew, which, in turn, enables the company to continually update
and evolve its stores. Busier stores are updated more frequently,
notes Schwartz, who says the company is in the process of
updating its look.
“Our new look is more upscale with brick-red walls, cherry
wood fixtures and tile floors,” he explains. “People like to be in
an inviting environment.”
Some larger highway Smokers Choice stores have drive-
thrus that enable out-of-state customers to easily pick up a
few cartons while in lower-tax Pennsylvania. But Schwartz
has found that having restrooms available for customers draws
clientele into the store and boosts sales of coffee, beverages and
snacks. “Restrooms are huge,” he says. “We think about what
our customers are looking for, and that’s something people who
are traveling need and appreciate.”
Hot for HookaHs
Smokers Choice also excels at spotting and proactively
responding to trends, as evidenced by the company’s relatively
recent move into hookah lounges. It now has six Ha Ha Hookah
lounges: five adjacent to existing stores and one freestanding
location.
“We’re in a lot of college towns now because freshman and
sophomores are too young to go to places that serve alcohol and
need somewhere to go,” explains Schwartz. “This offers them a
place where they can hang out with friends and have coffee, tea
or a snack.”
Having the lounges also helps bring traffic through the retail
stores and drives sales in the hookah category. In fact, some
customers come from as far as 20 to 30 minutes away, notes
Schwartz.
All of the lounges feature marble tables, leather couches and
large screen televisions. One 3,000-square-foot lounge in Troy,
New York even has a DJ and a dance floor. “We’re in the process
of changing the look and décor to make them more Middle
Eastern-themed,” says Schwartz. “We’re adding tapestries and
ornate lamps.They’re not where I want them to be just yet but
they’re on track to get there.”
vyinG for vape
Like many in the industry, Schwartz is embracing the
e-cigarette and vaping category with a store-within-a-store
concept. The section occupies a prominent spot in the store
and employees receive incentive pay for devices they sell, which
is something the company also does with make-your-own
(MYO) devices. “The idea is that if you sell them the device,
they’ll come back regularly to buy the supplies for that device,”
explains Schwartz. “It’s like selling an ink jet printer cheap and
“if a sales clerk asks
every customer
who comes in,
‘Do you want a lottery
ticket?’ or ‘how about
a lighter with that?’
you can add to the
bottom line.”
