THe differences in vape shops.....

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pumukl

Full Member
May 24, 2014
47
34
Morrilton, AR, USA
I am still a little bit new, a little over two months now. Of course, I did the usual, went to the gas station and the tobacco store for my first set ups. Then I found vape shops. I did not want to order online, since I was worried about wasting money on juice that I would end up tossing out, since they did not taste right. So I went to the local shops. I live in rural Arkansas, and there are three within 30 miles, and another one about an hour away. And the difference are still baffling me. The fist one was nice looking, they have "brand name" juice. The people there were "uppity", looking down their nose, like they were better than me, cause they have been doing it longer. Or know more, but when I asked, no help on equipment. No questions answered. Just out for the quick buck, I guess.
The second one sells their own mixed juices. And I don't think they knew what they were doing. First it was like I was bothering them with my presence. The shop was not very clean. The taster are cheap clearos, like the ones I bought from the gas station. When I pointed out that one of their juices tasted burnt, they laughed. He offered me his own set up, and pushed me to try it. When I told him that I hated anything melon flavor, he pushed harder. And of course I hated it. It was a melon mix.... I tried an amaretto flavored one, and the darn thing leaked. on my hands, into the battery. I handed it back, and pointed it out, and got a blank stare. This store only had like 5 batteries, and not much else on equipment. Trust me, I wont be back....
The furthest one away was kind of ok. They were at least nice, and their juices were not bad. They were all "cloud chasers" and the shop reflected it. Like walking into a wall of vapor. And that was what they were pushing. Everything was geared towards big clouds, and everything I looked at was commented with the amount of cloud I could produce.
Now to the last one. Finally. A good one. Nice people, clean place, friendly atmosphere. Good mix of equipment, good juices, from economy line to expensive. But the best part? That they could answer questions. So I don't have the latest equipment. The lady, Laura, tried her best. She opened several different packages of coils, to find the one that would fit my "off brand" tank. Kind of funny that one of their tasters was kind of burnt, too, but she fixed it right away. A pleasure to go into, and hang out. She was even happy and congratulatory when I told her that I finally kicked that last stinkey per day that I thought I needed. Chairs, a good place to visit at the tasting bar. All around good thing. It happens to be the newest shop in Conway, and its terrific...
So, all this rambling is basically to say that there are so many different stores, and so many different experiences. One has to find the right one. How did your vape shop journey go?
 

gatorguy

Full Member
Jul 9, 2014
57
30
Nashville, TN, USA
I live about 30 minutes outside of Nashville. Vape shops have popped up like crazy! Luckily I have one 10 minutes from my house. They were friendly, answered all my questions, had a ton of gear, and a taste bar. The manager really helped me. She didn't just push high end gear on me. She got me in a great starter setup. I will always go back to them!
 

pumukl

Full Member
May 24, 2014
47
34
Morrilton, AR, USA
I live about 30 minutes outside of Nashville. Vape shops have popped up like crazy! Luckily I have one 10 minutes from my house. They were friendly, answered all my questions, had a ton of gear, and a taste bar. The manager really helped me. She didn't just push high end gear on me. She got me in a great starter setup. I will always go back to them!

So great that you found a good one right away. And yes, they are popping up everywhere. But quantity is not quality....
 

westonG

Senior Member
ECF Veteran
Feb 27, 2014
91
34
San Diego, CA
I am still a little bit new, a little over two months now. Of course, I did the usual, went to the gas station and the tobacco store for my first set ups. Then I found vape shops. I did not want to order online, since I was worried about wasting money on juice that I would end up tossing out, since they did not taste right. So I went to the local shops. I live in rural Arkansas, and there are three within 30 miles, and another one about an hour away. And the difference are still baffling me. The fist one was nice looking, they have "brand name" juice. The people there were "uppity", looking down their nose, like they were better than me, cause they have been doing it longer. Or know more, but when I asked, no help on equipment. No questions answered. Just out for the quick buck, I guess.
The second one sells their own mixed juices. And I don't think they knew what they were doing. First it was like I was bothering them with my presence. The shop was not very clean. The taster are cheap clearos, like the ones I bought from the gas station. When I pointed out that one of their juices tasted burnt, they laughed. He offered me his own set up, and pushed me to try it. When I told him that I hated anything melon flavor, he pushed harder. And of course I hated it. It was a melon mix.... I tried an amaretto flavored one, and the darn thing leaked. on my hands, into the battery. I handed it back, and pointed it out, and got a blank stare. This store only had like 5 batteries, and not much else on equipment. Trust me, I wont be back....
The furthest one away was kind of ok. They were at least nice, and their juices were not bad. They were all "cloud chasers" and the shop reflected it. Like walking into a wall of vapor. And that was what they were pushing. Everything was geared towards big clouds, and everything I looked at was commented with the amount of cloud I could produce.
Now to the last one. Finally. A good one. Nice people, clean place, friendly atmosphere. Good mix of equipment, good juices, from economy line to expensive. But the best part? That they could answer questions. So I don't have the latest equipment. The lady, Laura, tried her best. She opened several different packages of coils, to find the one that would fit my "off brand" tank. Kind of funny that one of their tasters was kind of burnt, too, but she fixed it right away. A pleasure to go into, and hang out. She was even happy and congratulatory when I told her that I finally kicked that last stinkey per day that I thought I needed. Chairs, a good place to visit at the tasting bar. All around good thing. It happens to be the newest shop in Conway, and its terrific...
So, all this rambling is basically to say that there are so many different stores, and so many different experiences. One has to find the right one. How did your vape shop journey go?

Its still going, i live in San Diego and im always finding new vape shops, ive been to probably 15 in a 20 mile radius from my house. Ive only gone into a couple where they were complete idiots or just didnt really care you were there.. Hopefully down the road you can try ordering online, whether it be for mods, attys, juice, etc. If your going to order offline i highly recommend researching it like a mad man before pulling the trigger. make sure you order from a reputable dealer, get in contact with that online dealer about their product and ask questions.. and as always, ask here then you can be as close to 100% sure as possible about your purchase before you do it.
 

tj99959

ECF Guru
ECF Veteran
  • Aug 13, 2011
    15,118
    39,615
    utah
    There was only one vape shop in the state when I started, and it was about 5 minutes from my house. However it was, and still is, one of the best in the country. My first time in the store, (and first e-cig) I swear they took the time to show me every thing that could possibly go wrong with my stuff,and how to fix it. So I couldn't have asked for more. However there was also a well known online e-liquid supplier here in town when I started. (that can't even be mentioned here on ecf)

    Now there are a dozen vape shops in town, and some are much better than others.
     
    Last edited:

    jstjoehere

    Super Member
    Jun 1, 2014
    343
    174
    Wv, usa
    I would love to have a good vape shop in my area we only have 1 they are nice as can be when they sell you the first set up but after that you dont exist when you walk in. They have one showcase basically full of kangertech tanks and maybe theres a couple different RTA, RDAs in the case but mostly Kangertech I have no problem with kanger but I wish I could have seen more when I first started. Another showcase has mostly vision spinner batteries, maybe a cheap box mod, and an ohm meter. They dont carry any wick, wire, or o-rings for anything. All their juice is house mix which is all good but its not good juice. I dont even think they had a single removable battery in the whole shop lol. They do have a sample table but most of them are covered with juice from leakage. Basically the customer service sucks. The juice is self service, They allow you to bring your old bottles in and refill them. Not to sure how sanitary that is lol. Needless to say only time I go in there is when I need some new coils to rebuild for my aerotank. What I would do for a shop that had friendly people and a good variety of equipment and juice. I basically had to find the right juice for myself online by trial and error thats alot of shipping and waiting lol.

    To those of you who have good shops to visit and shop at I envy you lol.
     

    GinnyTx

    Ultra Member
    ECF Veteran
    Verified Member
    Jul 2, 2014
    1,849
    2,611
    Pearland, TX
    Glad you found a shop you like and keep on vapin'!!

    same here Weston, there's probably ten or so just on our "section" of town (Houston) I love our little local shop but they're cloud chasers, they're always friendly and fun though (and know what they're doing) it was pretty cool to blow on down on the bar and move it with your hand...and it tastes amazing, and I"ll probably do a dripper for around the house, but on the "go" the "fiddle factor" comes into play *lol*

    So I'll "cheat" and keep trying out what other shops have...to find that new flavor...good luck!!
     

    Thejack1

    Senior Member
    ECF Veteran
    Verified Member
    May 20, 2014
    147
    380
    Nj
    IMO the problem with shops right now is that there are plenty out there that know they have no interest in being around in another year or two. Its like the wild west out there right now, with little regulation. Many shops are interested in raking in as much $ as quickly as they can, before regulation hits the industry.Clearly, a sucky situation for the person that walks in trying to quit.....Odds are they will buying inferior gear, and god knows whats in their juice. That being said, I'm starting to see some more quality shops opening up in my area, and the difference is night and day.
     

    Rickb119

    Ultra Member
    ECF Veteran
    Jul 20, 2013
    1,824
    4,109
    Greeley, CO, USA
    The last vape shop I visited looked nice from the outside and was well set up on the inside, although the inventory was limited. It seemed to me that their main "push" was selling e-liquid. The young lady (at my age, anyone under 40 is young) went on and on about how good it was and even let me try a couple. OK, they were good and then I tried to explain to her that I make my own. She then told me that they were getting a new brand in that she thinks is made with 100% pure nicotine. :blink: I bit my tongue and left.
     

    Raider87

    Senior Member
    Jul 11, 2014
    72
    105
    Mississippi, USA
    Theres one about 10 minutes from where i work, and a new one about 10 minutes from home.

    Ive only been to the one close to work, they were really friendly and have some fairly cheap in house juice along with a decent amount of devices and name brand juice that is priced similar to online prices, Mothers Milk is 22 bucks for 30ml.
    It's good to have a friendly place if you want something quick, but ive seen some better deals online for batteries, tanks and other equipment.
     
    Hi! I'm lucky enough to have a great local B&M just 10m from my work or 15m from my home. They are super helpful, have a variety of merchandise, high and low. They have a tasting bar plus an area with a TV and couches that if you just want to crash and vape, you can. I'm glad you at least found one place that fits your needs. I usually split my purchases between my B&M and websites that I've had good dealings with.
     
    I have 2 shops in my immediate area..both are geared toward different customers and i have gotten to know the employees of both shops fairly well...some hindsight....what i took to be arrogance at first from a few people was actually enthusiasm for vaping, but very poorly communicated....they wanted the best for me, but there idea of best didn't exactly mesh with mine at the time....
     

    LeftHandBlack

    Super Member
    ECF Veteran
    Sep 17, 2013
    410
    222
    Brighton Co
    Here in the Denver area new shops are opening all the time. There are close to 20 of them around. Most are johnny come lately shops where they sell premixed juice from vendors and have junky mods and no knowledge. There are 5 shops that I purchase from that have their own juice with signature flavors and good to decent mods and knowledge. 1 of these 5 seems to be going downhill every time I go in there. A shame but thats how it goes. Shop the ones that you like and ignore the rest.
     
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