One of the reasons I'm writing this review was from information I had read about the fair and reasonable prices at this store. That brought to my attention there probably were others, such as myself at one time, unaware of the price differences that exist.
More to the point I used to shop at this store and one of there other stores quite often since I lived close by. However as stated in other reviews I too purchased merchandise that stopped working or broke shortly after arriving home only to discover they had no return/ exchange policy. This happened on more than one occasion.
The most important reason I nolonger shop there was from something i was unaware of until brought to my attention by others. I was informed that most all smoke shops closer to and in phoenix were allot lower in price on merchandise which was the same or similar to as carried by Smoke Away. I was given a few names and locations of several of these businesses only a few miles east towards Phoenix. When I visited these stores I was totally blown away at what I saw. To be truthful I figured I'd find a few items cents cheaper similar to stores caring items of a different nature competing with other stores that sell to the same type shopper. What I discovered was that the prices these stores had on all their items identical if not similar in type carried by Smoke Away were priced bucks cheaper. Many of these stores had a much larger selection. In addition, they all had the typical fair return/exchange policy as most stores have.
Since this is my review I should mention that a few times I was treated poorly by a couple of employees there. However, In all fairness I must further clarify that most of the employees there were very knowledgeable and treated me professionally. Another good point was the store was always clean and kept in good condition. The display cases were clean and clear allowing for good view of the merchandise. Everything taken into consideration for me its well worth a few more miles to drive for the much lower prices. If you don't feel the same then I strongly suggest that you at least go to a few of these stores and check out the prices and have your eyes pop out like mine did.
Lastly this whole situation with the lower prices found in stores located in the phoenix and surrounding areas in comparison to stores in Surprise and Sun City is also true for various other stores of different type products as well. Not all knowledgeable of all the operating procedures in retail that affect merchandise pricing I remain confused as to the reason. I know a few things such as overhead, advertising, suppliers and the amount you by from them, pilfering and in house losses, all affect the price of the merchandise. In the situation with the Smoke shops I would think everything is fairly closer except for leasing and different city tax codes. Without knowing the exact differences in the cost amounts i remain confused as to why such big differences In pricing among the stores exist? More than likely there probably is a reason clear only to the bean counters who deal with that on a daily basis.