Report: First Trip to B & M Vape Store

[Doreen725]

Good Evening All. OK...well today I made my first trip to a real live vape store. As far as I know it is the only real one in the area and boy what a gold mine for the owner. Not a big place, maybe 700 square feet of retail area. Glass cases on 3 of the 4 walls, lots and LOTS of bottles of juice on the shelves behind the glass cases.

The first thing that hit me when I walked in was the vapor hanging in the air! Goodness! I felt like I was in an opium den or something. I almost laughed...in fact I think I did. There were about 12 - 15 people inside and only 3 workers, but just about everyone in there had some sort of vaping apparatus to their lips, including the employees.

Being it is Saturday night, one hour before closing AND closed on Sunday, it was pretty busy in there. I browsed around and waited for assistance, but still not really sure what I want being I just ordered my MVP 2.0 online. Tank! Yes I want an Aspire Nautilus tank...out of stock. OK....how about a Protank II - they had it....$20. I wanted to see/touch/feel a Provari. They only had a few, $199! Too pricey for me right now.

I wanted to try some flavors. So I was ushered over to the "bar" and given a menu! SWEET!
Lots of choices. Not sure what I wanted, but lets start with something coffee/caramel/vanilla/frappuccino something.

Tried one called Caviar by Quality Over Quantity. Good, but didn't knock my socks off. In fact that was my biggest surprise about the juices. I would say I tried about 15....NOTHING knocked my socks off. Some tasted like incense, some tasted like soap.

The lady tried to tell me I was getting something called "dead buds" where I cannot distinguish or taste properly anymore. She also told another employee that I was ultra picky. REally? I was just being honest...I wasn't meaning to be "picky" I just felt that maybe they could steer me in a different direction......perhaps I was expecting too much here, I don't know. But after those comments I felt pressured and a bit uneasy about sitting there any longer. In retrospect I think that they were busy and maybe it wasn't the best time to go and check things out. I will give it another go during the week. I would like to take my boyfriend with me to see if we can't get him vaping and off the cigs.

I took the Protank Mini II, 3 flavors, (the Caviar, a caramel apple flavor and gummy blue shark). $63 out the door....a bit pricey I felt.

But I can tell you that I am really not thrilled that once I got my new Protank on my battery and wanted to change to a different tank, I unscrewed the wrong area and voila....blue shark juice all over me! NOT HAPPY about that! GRRRRR......

So there you have my first Vape store experience.....
Have a good night all!

 

[Vapocalyptic]

I had a pretty terrible experience at a B&M store, but it was a lesson learned. I'll throw out a few bullet points

- Markup, markup, markup. When you take into account the limited amount of suppliers and vendors (compared to other retail products you can find competitively priced) you've got to understand the margin for error. Not to mention as a relatively new commodity, they have got to have some assurance in regards to pricing. As with other specialty stores, expect the convenience factor. Until the vendor/business supply is more fruitful for both parties, online is too appealing to pass up.

- Know it all dickbags. Seriously, the lady I had dealt with told me "rebuilding a coil is a good way to have something explode in your face." We see these people everywhere, but something tells me vape shop employees carry a bit more sense of entitlement. The lack of integrity and informal knowledge, in my experience, was baffling... to say the least.

- BE PICKY. Not only are you paying close to MSRP for these gadgets, you're supporting a GROWING BUSINESS. You do not want to be in and out because you didn't like a flavor, your expectation was too high, the quality wasn't up to par etc etc. I highly suggest doing your research and if you prefer the premium price in favor of shipping, settle on an item and have at it.

I too had an issue with the pro tank. Similar to yours, so now I don't feel too embarrased. Basically, I tried filing it without the coil and base installed. I wondered how the hell people got it to work because my pyrex was wobbling everywhere. Needless to say, I am an incredibly naive person. Probably a little stupid too.

 

[Nermal]

You didn't hit the best perhaps, but you surely didn't run into the worst.

 

[Vapocalyptic]

Yeah 'cause the worst is right up the street from my house!

 

[Burn_notice_fan_NY]

Seems like they jacked up the prices. I would be insulted if they charged that much unless the juice was damn good haha. I would think it would be about $40 at most... unless they are 30ml bottles.

 

[Coelli]

Doreen, what part of SoCal are you in? I can try to steer you to a better shop.

$199 for a Provari is definitely overpriced. I bought another Provari today at a local B&M and paid more than ordering from Provape, but not by much, and I didn't have to wait for it.

I have a hard time tasting anything when I sample at juice bars and have made many regrettable purchases because of it. Now I only go to shops that will let me drip (I use a dripper, not a tank) so I can tell what it will actually taste like. Good vape shops are okay with letting you do that. You SHOULD be "ultra picky" - juice can get expensive, and you shouldn't vape it if you don't want it. Did they at least offer you some water to sip while you were tasting? That's another sign of a good shop.

I went to a shop once where I tried a bunch of juice but they were out of almost all of it. I'm not going back to that one. Another shop was highly recommended on Yelp but when we walked in, no one greeted us for the first 10 minutes and I got the sense that if you weren't one of the cool kids, you didn't belong there.

Anyway, if you can give me a general idea of where you are on a map I might be able to steer you to something better!

 

[Vapocalyptic]

Seems like they jacked up the prices. I would be insulted if they charged that much unless the juice was damn good haha. I would think it would be about $40 at most... unless they are 30ml bottles.

With the insurgency of hard to resist online deals and specials, one does wonder how these vape shops can pull themselves out of the red! My understand of business management isn't as up to par as others, but even I have my doubts. The market and target audience just doesn't seem as bountiful as it's online counterpart. Hopefully time will change this!

 

[Burn_notice_fan_NY]

With the insurgency of hard to resist online deals and specials, one does wonder how these vape shops can pull themselves out of the red! My understand of business management isn't as up to par as others, but even I have my doubts. The market and target audience just doesn't seem as bountiful as it's online counterpart. Hopefully time will change this!

I suppose it is quite simply that it is the only one around and people do not know of the online market places. I certainly didn't when I made my first purchase and spent $35.99 on something that I could easily be had for $15 (not same brand but equal quality). There just are no vape shops in my area and I did not really know about it as you don't see too many people doing it around here. That is why I am thrilled to see one person on this forum from my hometown. Sadly, they are inactive.

 

[Vapocalyptic]

But of course. Location, location, location..... open a vape store far from your competitors ! I definitely can relate, though. My former boss was the one who introduced me to ecigs and dated a guy who worked at a store. To think I nearly purchased their evod starter kit (84.99) instead of waiting, purchasing online, and snagging one for 34.99!

 

[Doreen725]

Yeah 'cause the worst is right up the street from my house!

LOL! That's funny! Thanks for the giggle!

 

[Doreen725]

Doreen, what part of SoCal are you in? I can try to steer you to a better shop.

$199 for a Provari is definitely overpriced. I bought another Provari today at a local B&M and paid more than ordering from Provape, but not by much, and I didn't have to wait for it.

I have a hard time tasting anything when I sample at juice bars and have made many regrettable purchases because of it. Now I only go to shops that will let me drip (I use a dripper, not a tank) so I can tell what it will actually taste like. Good vape shops are okay with letting you do that. You SHOULD be "ultra picky" - juice can get expensive, and you shouldn't vape it if you don't want it. Did they at least offer you some water to sip while you were tasting? That's another sign of a good shop.

I went to a shop once where I tried a bunch of juice but they were out of almost all of it. I'm not going back to that one. Another shop was highly recommended on Yelp but when we walked in, no one greeted us for the first 10 minutes and I got the sense that if you weren't one of the cool kids, you didn't belong there.

Anyway, if you can give me a general idea of where you are on a map I might be able to steer you to something better!

I am north of the inland empire area.

 

[Doreen725]

Seems like they jacked up the prices. I would be insulted if they charged that much unless the juice was damn good haha. I would think it would be about $40 at most... unless they are 30ml bottles.

Nope....all were 15ml bottles.

 

[FourWinds]

I did that open the wrong part of the tank last night too. I think it's best to view it as a right of passage thing.

I got lucky with my first B&M, they only had maybe 20 flavours, so no fancy menu, and they were all pretty good.

 

[TheReign]

Yeah 'cause the worst is right up the street from my house!

Same situation with me. It's not even 5 minutes away from my house which is convenient, but man do they suck..... Prices are out of this world!!! 100$ for a SVD and a VAMO, Juices are almost 20 bucks for 15$ I'd say around 16-17 with tax. Not a whole lot of choice between Mods, Pinkspot is the only juice they have, RDA's are RIDICULOUSLY priced, 100Bucks for a prometheus clone? No thanks, And all the other tanks they had were marked up like no other! I won't even say how much the PT2 costs there.

With all that being said, I heard from another shop that I went to ( and am now a regular ) say that they saw the person working there smoking a cigarette outside.... Really? Thats a little contradicting isn't it? Not to mention when I was there and bought a Cartotank just for kicks the guy didn't even know how to take the carto out! That was a test, and now I no longer go back there. Ever

 

[Coelli]

Are you far from Rancho Cucamonga? There's a fantastic store around the 210/15 junction called The Vapour Lounge. Definitely stop in there if you're down that way, it might be a little far but very easy to get to and would be worth the trip!

 

[TheReign]

If you like caramel flavored and don't mind a bit of tobacco I just bought some RY4 from ECblends at my new shop.. Boooooy oh boooy is it gooooood. I don't even want to vape it so Im letting it steep longer to help bring out alll that goodness! 5050 pgvg with 12mg nicotine no flavor/sweetner boosts

 

[jestermh]

you know what i noticed brick and mortar store employees hate more than anything? an informed customer. I went in to a local shop and asked a few questions about their items and was told literally that if I wanted to ask so many questions I should just go somewhere else. I honestly will avoid shops from now on until I can find a good one that isnt out to just make a quick buck by taking advantage of a new and upcoming industry.

 

[Doreen725]

you know what i noticed brick and mortar store employees hate more than anything? an informed customer. I went in to a local shop and asked a few questions about their items and was told literally that if I wanted to ask so many questions I should just go somewhere else. I honestly will avoid shops from now on until I can find a good one that isnt out to just make a quick buck by taking advantage of a new and upcoming industry.

Yes, I agree. I did seem to get a bit of a feel of a superiority complex from the employees there. I wish I had the knowledge and moolah to open a shop....I really think there is some money to be made in this industry. I have worked in customer service for a long time. In MY shop, everyone would feel welcome! LOL! Like the TV show Cheers! LOL! I know...I'm silly!

 

[Doreen725]

Are you far from Rancho Cucamonga? There's a fantastic store around the 210/15 junction called The Vapour Lounge. Definitely stop in there if you're down that way, it might be a little far but very easy to get to and would be worth the trip!

I do get to Rancho about 2-3 times a month and I have heard about this shop....gonna check it out next time. How are the prices there?

 

[Doreen725]

Yes, I am finding that I like a caramel flavor. I think I did try one yesterday like you are describing....but I didn't care for the tobacco aftertaste. I was a menthol smoker, so that is probably why. However I will be taking the boyfriend to the store tomorrow. Trying to get him off cigs and that sounds like something that he would get into. Thanks for the suggestion!