Seeing those stereotypical cigar smoking men in the window was always a fixture downtown. I feel like they were on display like women in a red light district, it was great.

Man, I got a pack of Dutch cigarettes there back in the 90's that was just a plain black pack with a white skull and crossbones on it, and despite being filtered they were stronger/more harsh than any unfiltered cigarette I'd ever had... and I came down with bronchitis two days later.

With The Owl Shop leaving town, this was my last opportunity to have an excuse for telling that pointless story. 😁

That sucks. I remember going there with my grandfather back in the 80s. I bought a flask there in the mid 90s when I was in high school. Bought Nat Sherman cigarettes and cigars there when I started smoking them in college and eventually pipe tobacco (Cherry just like my grandfather smoked) in my mid twenties. I stopped in there with my son a few months ago and they didn’t carry my pipe tobacco anymore because Massachusetts banned flavored tobacco.

I don't live in Worcester anymore, but when I did and I smoked pipe, I lived for this place.

That Mavrodaphne pipe tobacco is some next-level shit.

This makes me so sad.

I'll miss that wonderful neon sign😢😢

i've always enjoyed the charm the storefront has even though i've never stepped foot inside. i think it would take a lot more than increased foot-traffic to keep this place alive. people don't smoke any more. i'm honestly amazed that a tobacco shop can even survive these days.

The current owner is moving operations to NH, opening a brick and mortar and doing online merch.

Does anyone know where in NH?

Def was mirroring you in the late 90s. When I wanted to get fancy smokes, probably after a paycheck, I’d head there for premium products. Was a nice walk from wpi too, even with the hookers and junkies pre gentrification of north main.

When I was a smoker I occasionally went to the Owl Shop to indulge in a pack of Balkan Sobranie cigarettes. For a regular smoker they were too expensive to smoke every day and so I rationed them. For the rare smoker, these cigarettes are like an expensive dessert or fine liquor. You should never mindlessly smoke one just to feed your nicotine jones. This is to be enjoyed after a special meal or with really good coffee. They are an exceptionally smooth smoke with a nice flavor. As an ex smoker I don't preach nor support smoking and am only suggesting this to those who do smoke. The Owl Shop is the very last vestige of the old downtown that once bustled like Herald Square in NYC where 34th Street, Sixth Avenue, and Broadway converge. It's nothing like that now. So I'm a little sad about this but time constitutes change. I wish the owners good luck .