38
TOBACCO OUTLET BUSINESS
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012
embracing Women
Serious collectors can come in feminine form,
so be ready to treat them seriously.
H
ave you had the pleasure of
being in the company of a
pipe-smoking woman? Has
she come into your store ready to make
a pipe purchase—not for her man, but
for herself ?
If women of the briar have not
become customers of your store yet, it is
likely they will. They are out there and
they can be serious pipe hobbyists—so
be ready to treat them accordingly.
As a tobacco retailer, it’s important to
recognize that women are an increasing
demographic in the new pipe and
tobacco-buying market segments.
Perhaps you have not witnessed it first-
hand yet due to the simple fact that the
majority of smoking (of all kinds) now
takes place in the privacy of people’s
homes and/or out of sight.
As a young man, I happened
to encounter my first woman of
the briar in 1978. She was with a
famous international modern dance
company, probably in her 40s, and it
was shocking to my friends and me
to see her smoking a pipe so openly.
Back then, you only saw a woman
smoking a pipe on TV—it was a
rarity and it was always portrayed
oddly—an old pioneer woman sitting
on her front porch in a rocking chair
or some eccentric aunt that came to
visit. Women who smoked a pipe were
seen in that time as primitive and
uneducated—it was something to poke
fun at; it was supposed to be a joke.
But times have certainly changed. I
did not personally see another woman
smoking a pipe until about 2005 at one
of the big pipe shows. More recently
at the shows, women are common.
And there are now some Internet sites
devoted to depicting stylish women of
the briar.
But don’t be fooled by some who may
view pipe-smoking women as merely
hot. Indeed, they are, literally, lighting
up a new genre of smokers. But they
are not doing it to make a statement or
to exercise their rights—these women
are serious pipe collectors and experts
on tobacco, and they have wholly
embraced the hobby.
In order to embrace them, you need
to embrace the trend with three top tips:
1.
Don’t be surprised when a woman
pipe-smoker shows up in your
store—remember: your attitude is
everything. For the most part, women
that are taking up this hobby are
serious collectors, and the last thing
you want to do is patronize them or
act like it’s cute or call them “honey.”
2.
As a general rule, women prefer
smaller pipes, and don’t forget smaller
Meerschaums and corn cobs as well
as briars; recognize that they may be
sensitive to scale.
3.
Be prepared to answer questions—
it is my experience that women pipe-
smokers ask more questions than
their male counterparts.
Ultimately, embracing women of the
briar means embracing new customers.
And that should be a high priority for
every tobacco outlet retailer.
ToB
By Bill Doherty,
head of market development,
Daughters & Ryan
of the
BrIar