Roll-Your-Own Cigarette Stores Owner Fighting Feds To Stay Open
Sam Bontempo, partnership owner of the closed Tobacco Road, roll-your-own cigarette shops in the Tampa Bay area, is set to fight a federal law that led to higher taxes on discounted smokes. The Brandon shop was one of the more popular sites.
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A local businessman is vowing to fight a federal law that has led to the closure of his Tampa Bay area roll-your-own cigarette shops, including the Tobacco Road location on Brandon Boulevard.
“As of this moment we are basically out of business,” said Sam Bontempo, of Largo, a partner in Good Times Pinellas. The company operates 13 roll-your-own stores in Central Florida, including Tobacco Road in Brandon, at 948 West Brandon Blvd., one of the company’s most popular sites, Bontempo said.
- Related Updated Content: Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Road Cigarette Stores Reopen, thanks to a federal district court injunction that puts the brakes on enforcement, at least temporarily.
Roll-your-own stores offered smokers the chance to pick their own tobacco and use large machines to have the tobacco rolled into cigarettes. While it could take 10 minutes to sit and roll 200 cigarettes, the stores were popular with smokers for one reason: price.
While 10 packs (200 cigarettes) of Marlboro Lights can cost north of $60, 200 cigarettes at a roll-your-own store typically cost around $20-25.
“It was a little inconvenient but it was worth it for the price,” said Mary Ann Flower, who bought her smokes at the store for two years.
Under the new law, roll-your-own cigarettes will now be taxed at the same rate as brands like Newport and Marlboro, all but eliminating the roll-your-own market niche.
“It’s our customer who will now take it on the chin,” Bontempo said. “These are people who are unemployed or on a fixed income that cannot afford to pay $60 for a cartoon of cigarettes.”
Bontempo was left fuming after a federal transportation bill signed into law earlier this month contained a small amendment targeting roll-your-own tobacco businesses. Under the new law roll-your-own stores are now termed “tobacco manufacturers.”
Good Times has been in business two years and employs 55 people at 13 stores in New Port Richey, Holiday, Lakeland, Plant City, Largo, Pinellas Park, St. Petersburg, Zephyrhills and Tampa. Florida is home to some 80 roll-your-own stores, second only to Pennsylvania, according to Bontempo.
Bontempo and his attorneys now plan to file for injunction against the new law.
“At least so we can wind down out inventory and work out something with our leases,” said Bontempo who estimates he has $150,000 in unused tobacco.
The stores are still selling tobacco paraphernalia but their cigarette machines — their largest source of income — are closed.
“We would like to have at least some time to sell off the inventory and reach agreements with landlords. We have some leases that are for 1 and 2 years.”
The company also plans to join a national campaign against the new law which Bontempo estimate will impact 800 roll-your-own stores across the country.
D
9:30 am on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Another Obama administration giving a helping hand to small business's that employ workers in the USA. Our government in action. Pretty soon if we don't start to pay attention to what is happening around us it will be too late.
Jery Elliott
12:07 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Raise your and if you want across-the-board equal opportunity in the marketplace? You members of the Tea Party can raise BOTH your guns.
Laura
1:44 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Very upset over this entire scenario! My job was outsourced to India, can't find another job, have given up all my vices (most by no chocie of my own) but don't take my cigarettes! Have been frequenting Tabacco Road since they opened and NOT happy this little bill was slipped through under a highway/transportation bill!! This is so not right! The small business is being hurt, us poor people are being penalized and people jobs are in jeopardy. Tell me what good this is doing? I know more people still buying big tabacco's smokes than are shopping at the "roll-your-own" shops. Shame on Obambam!!! If you need help fighting the law get in touch with me - Craig in Brandon knows me.
Jery Elliott
1:50 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Hey Laura --- the taxes from your cigarette purchases are going to be used to pay for the health insurance that you cannot afford because you are unemployed and which I am tired of underwriting with my paycheck. At least you admit that cigarette smoking is a vice ... maybe if you gave it up and used that money for something more productive (like job training) you could find a job and pay for your own health insurance (which would be cheaper because you no longer smoked).
Rich Lewis
1:15 pm on Monday, August 27, 2012
Are you a Joke, y job went to Mexico in 1998, I took a truck driving cource and passed with a Class A CDL just to find that you need 1 year on the road experience to be hired by a company. I have been turned down by so many jobs for over experienced. Give me a break. Those taxes are not to help with health insurance, it is there to linethe government workers pockets. Show me where all of those taxes that have been paid on cigarettes for all of those years went...You Can't!!!
Jim Smith
2:30 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
This bill will cost abouut 10,000 job and put many small business out of business all because of big tobacco companies. The best way to beat it is to roll your own at home like I do. Check out ryocigs dot com
Jery Elliott
3:24 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
So tell us Jim ... where do you get the figure "This bill will cost abouut 10,000 job". I am simply curious.
Marc
6:51 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
U r very mis-informed mr Elliott. 4 more years of this will kill choice and spirit period. This is a very small example. Please educate yourself and help us get our country back. Class warfare is not the answer.
Marc
9:52 pm on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Fantastic...the liberal has been silenced. We all need to work together.
Laura
5:36 pm on Friday, July 27, 2012
Ha ha ha joke's on Jerry - Tabacco Road is back open again!! And I'm "assuming" since you're belittling my ONE vice that you can walk on water and have no vices? Call me the next time you heal the children or perform a walk on water show as I'd like to be in attendance since I've never met God before. As for job training - I have training, including a degree - do you? Nothing worse than a non smoker worrying about us smokers! Take your holier then thou views and peddle them to someone who gives a hairy rat's arse!
Dee
7:27 pm on Sunday, July 29, 2012
Laura Love Your Comment I own a Tobacco Shop. If it comes down to it you can always roll your own @ Home. Buy a machine and pay as little as 12.00 per carton. visit my facebook The Village Tobacco Shop.
Linda Chion Kenney
6:08 pm on Friday, July 27, 2012
Story about today's reopening is coming soon . . .
LORI
7:59 pm on Monday, August 13, 2012
Jerry i was a manager for one of the Tobacco Road stores and im NOT a smoker.. I am a honest hard working woman who does not like to rely on ANYONE to help raise my kids but as this "bill" was snuck in under the new "TRANSPORTATION BILL: i am now unemployed!! It really doesn't matter if it was 100 or 10,000 people out of work!! THIS BILL HAS FORCED MORE UNEMPLOYMENT,MORE WELFARE, AND IS UNFAIR FOR THOSE WHO CHOOSE TO SMOKE AS A "FREEDOM" AS AMERICANS SHOULD HAVE!!