80
TOBACCO BUSINESS
MARCH/APRIL 2014
trench marketing
your cheek, I carry hookahs and shisha in pieces and parts,
higher-end pipes like Dr. Grabow, and a variety of RYO
brands, including OHM, which is my main brand.” She also
carries rolling papers, cigarillos, wraps, ashtrays and other
miscellaneous lighters, candles and incense.
Many of Curnett’s customers were loyal regulars on the
big RYO machines that once filled the store, but even now
that regulation has put a stop to the use of those machines,
Curnett’s customers know that RYO is here to stay. “I set up
tables with every type of machine a customer can use at
home, and we’ve been successful with the category because
we’ve put the product back in the customers’ hands and
made it even more affordable for them. The heart and soul of
our business is RYO.”
Going the Extra Mile Pays Off
Having something for everyonewhowalks in the door iswhat
has made J.C. Tobacco Mart successful. “I think it’s important
that I have everything available for whoever comes in, and it’s
important for my customers to know that if I don’t have it, I’ll
find it for you,” says Curnett. “I’d rather go the extra mile to
order something special that a customer wants than have 60
of something that no one wants.” Her store has two displays
for high-end cigars, but Curnett pines for a walk-in humidor.
“My store’s demographic isn’t as keen on high-end cigars, and
walk-ins can be very costly if you don’t have the right clientele
to justify it, but it’s one of my dreams for the store.”
Curnett caters primarily to the middle class, she says.
“We’re all out here trying to make it work, so the more
solutions and alternatives I can give them, the better. This is
the last legal vice we can hold on to, so I want to make sure
my clients are getting a healthier product if that’s possible,”
she says. “These are blue-collar folks, including the milkman,
the street sweeper, and lots of seniors, and I’m working hard
to take care of my people.
“I’m seeing a lot of my customers go through economic
struggles, and it shows up in many different ways,” says
Curnett. The most prominent one is customers adopting
filtered cigars after having smoked cigarettes. “I’m not the
king of this industry, but I don’t think filtered cigars were
meant to be a replacement. They were a supplement, and
they can be harsh because people are smoking them like
cigarettes, not cigars. I’m also seeing elderly customers come
in asking, ‘What’s the cheapest cigarette [that you sell]?’ and
that’s where RYO comes in.”
Practice What You Preach
“We [Curnett and her staff] all roll our own, and we know
the product is better,” she says. “When you’re doing it, you’re
seeing what you’re putting in there, so we work hard to put
the product back into their hands and show them that they
can afford to do it. It’s a little bit of work, and I feel bad for
folks who work 50 hours a week and don’t have time to roll.
“I like to think customer service goes a long way, and I
know it does because I feel it when I’m out shopping, but
realistically price is always No. 1,” says Curnett. “If they can
get it cheaper down the road, they’re going down the road,
but I’ve got such a turnover on my product that nothing’s
staying on the shelf. My competitors down the road only
have two products and they’re both dried out, so if I take
customer service a step further, my customers will come
back to me even though the same product costs a dollar
more in my store.”
Curnett isn’t big on advertising and admittedly has barely
scratched the surface of the Internet. Instead, she puts most
of her marketing energy into events, like Mardi Gras and
Oktoberfest celebrations where she and her team can educate
locals about the products. Similarly, she set up a dedicated
lounge area where customers can enjoy products. “It’s a very
simple rolling room decorated with drawings of James Dean,
