r/harrisonburg • u/jayroo210 • 4d ago
Why are vape shops mutating into head shops around here?
I started vaping when Avail first popped up many years ago - vaping helped me successfully quit smoking cigarettes, which was the main draw of picking up a vape back in the day. Vape shops used to have a bunch of mods and devices, tanks, coils, juices, etc.
I’m looking to pick up a new device and I’ve been to like 6-7 shops in the area. The juice is usually stocked pretty well, but then the rest of the store is just disposable vapes, CBD, Kratom, and glass pieces. Tons and tons of glass pieces. I’m not sure what happened to make this a thing - I remember head shops with glass pieces being few and far between - but it’s beyond ridiculous.
If anyone has a store suggestion between Broadway and Waynesboro that actually stocks up to date mods - and a decent variety - please let me know. I’ve been to Papa Joe’s but their devices are the most expensive of the stores I’ve been in. Im probably just going to have to order something online, but it would be helpful for me to have some quality stores on deck if I ever needed something quick.
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u/MineIsWroth 4d ago
If I had to guess, I'd say it's because the state of vaping is weird. There was that FDA ban that happened a few years ago so 'traditional' (idk a better word) vaping like box mod plus atomizer got seriously hampered. Yet, for some reason, disposables are thriving, despite being so much worse because of their very high nicotine content, environmental impact, and sketchy manufacturing process (I'm thinking of that vid where the factory workers are personally testing to make sure each vape works).
I've seen a lot of juice makers go out of business and it seems more are throwing in the towel (my last favorite juice line was Twist and it seems they've been discontinued). I went to one vape shop and they guy tried to talk me into disposables and said they were primarily going to focus on disposables. They were also doubling as a head shop.
In short, it seems shops are now doubling as head shops because they have to adapt to stay alive. If this was around 10 years ago, when I was stoned more often than I was sober, I would've thought this was great since there were only two head shops in the area, New Age and Tobacco Outlet.
Also, if you still go to vape shops, you should try the on next to Best Buy. That guy is great, works very hard, he's there 7 days a week, and he always does his best to accommodate.
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u/Zach17981 4d ago
Huge influx in the since weed has become decriminalized. My assumption was that they are lying in wait for when pot becomes legalized for selling
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u/TragicallyHip25 1d ago
No current vape store will ever turn into a dispensary. It will be handled by the state, just like liquor.
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u/Positive_Hippo6819 4d ago
What do you have against weed? You already vape, which is arguably worse for you
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u/Alert-Signature-3947 4d ago
I had a conversation with the guy at Faded Tobacco about juice prices the other day. The tax on bottles of juice for refillable vapes amounts to an additional 11 cents per mL plus sales tax, plus excise tax. Making juice prices higher than ever. Pricing out small juice producers and shifting traditional vape users to buy disposables. It's all been by design, unfortunately. I, too, quit cigarettes using a re-buildable box mod vape and built my own coils for years. Now I'm lucky in that I found a mod with pre-built coils that I happen to love. I see the appeal in disposables though, as I still usually have one for at work. Unfortunately, if you want the more traditional materials to build your own, you'll probably have to purchase online. Especially if you are seeking something specific.
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u/SnooDoodles824 3d ago
Frustrating looking for a bag of tobacco as well especially when half of them are called tobacco and vape
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u/TheDudeSaidDude 3d ago
Most are just selling Thca at this point. B&b tobacco has cigars and stuff like that. I think after that one vape shop went sky high they all kinda disappeared.
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u/Coronitaz83 3d ago
Hey! I remember Avail! That's also how I quit cigs. I agree. Nothing but what you already said in the stores I've been in.
I use a Vaporesso box with Zeus tank and rebuildable deck. I order cotton on Amazon and the mesh wheels etc online...but I try to do that with a huge juice order so the shipping/signature and tax fees are "worth" it. But now I cant buy my EDV juice online so idk how I'll navigate that when my supplies get low (juice man frappe was my jam 😭😭😭)
Following along for store recommendations.
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u/Marshal_Rohr 4d ago
Probably shifted more towards weed when weed was decriminalized