Martys First to Stop Tobacco

Details: Created on Friday, 20 September 2019 00:13; Written by Nick Anastasi

DANVILLE- At the beginning of September, the state of Vermont joined 13 others across the nation in raising the legal age to purchase tobacco products from 18 to 21 years old. Martys First Stop in Danville has gone even further by removing all tobacco products from its shelves. Shortly after the September 1st adjustment, Marty made his decision. One of the main driving factors behind that being to ensure the safety of their cashiers.

In late August, Grocery Manager Darcie Brill, was working at night and someone broke in, taking only cigarettes from the store. And that’s not the only threat, Brill explains that the state is more interested in trying to bust stores for selling to minors, then they are with assisting with the transition. “If we’re busy, if a cashier makes a mistake and sells ‘em and it’s to the wrong person, there’s a lot of consequences for that. And we don’t want to put that kind of pressure on our cashiers. We have a lot of young cashiers, and it doesn’t matter, even seasoned cashiers can make a mistake.”

While Marty’s has received mixed feelings from customers, some like Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital CEO Shawn Tester are thrilled to see that Marty has made steps in this direction. “At NVRH we couldn’t be more excited by this development. We’re really, really tickled that Marty has made this brave step for his community and the health of everybody who lives here. It’s really important you know, tobacco is a major killer, and we know that people who smoke have worse health and health outcomes. This is really a positive step.”

Now while there may be others who are not as pleased, Marty’s stands behind its decision, and as Brill explains, they don’t believe it will impact their sales at all. “The person that might normally just stop in and get a cup of coffee and a pack of cigarettes everyday, maybe we won’t see them, maybe they’ll take that somewhere else where they can get both at the same spot. But I don’t think it’s going to hurt, we’re a full grocery store and convenience store, premium meats and deli. So cigarettes really weren’t a big bulk of our business.”