40
TOBACCO OUTLET BUSINESS
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012
you want to offer something a bit more
high-end, there are different style bowl
reamers designed to keep the cake in
the bowl dressed back, maintaining it
at the proper thickness. They range in
price from under $5 to close to $50 for
one that is deluxe.
Tobacco Pouches & Tobacco Jars
are items that most pipe smokers will
need. Most pipers prefer to put the
tobacco they carry with them in a
pouch. It can be a folding pouch or a
zippered pouch and again, they range
from low-end to high-end, from vinyl
to expensive leather. Tobacco jars are
also a handy accessory; many have a
humidifier in the lid that keeps the
tobacco moist. Customers can take
the tobacco out of a tin and put it in
a jar to store at home. Retailers might
also consider stocking very small
humidifiers as an add-on for a pouch
or tin, retailing for 99 cents to $2.
Matches & Lighters
should not
be forgotten! In lighters, there are a
whole range of pipe-specific options
now on the market. Some disposable
butane pipe lighters have a flame that
comes out sideways to make it easier to
light a pipe.There are also a number of
lighters that use lighter fluid and not
butane; some pipe-specific ones have a
hole in the windscreen that allows for
easier pipe lighting. But realize a lot of
pipe smokers prefer to light up with
matches—wooden matches that are
kitchen size. And matches are a very
low-dollar item with excellent markup.
Pipe Racks & Ashtrays
might
be considered as you develop your
customer base. A small pipe rack that
holds seven pipes is enough for a week’s
rotation and is relatively inexpensive.
There are a whole range of ashtrays you
can stock from inexpensive plastic to
glass to ceramic, but generally speaking,
pipe ashtrays should be larger; eight
inches is a nice size for the purpose of
a pipe.
Pipe accessories are the finishing
touch on a serious pipe program. And
what’s so great about them from a retail
perspective is that you don’t have to sink
a lot of money into them to accessorize
for profits. You can always grow them
to the next level when you and your
customers are ready.
TOB
Pipe cleaners
Pipe lighter
with built-in
tamper and pick
Tobacco pouch
with pipe compartment
