About Smoke Rings Tobacco in Nanaimo
The Family Legacy: From Winnipeg to Nanaimo
Steve's Dream
Steve was part of the tobacco trade throughout his life. In his early years, he worked for Sherlock Holmes tobacco in Winnipeg where he learned the trade and grew his knowledge. He worked for a handful of other tobacconists in his career, and managed the legendary Thomas Hines tobacconist in Winnipeg until the late 2000’s.
Afterwards, Steve became a high school English teacher, but he missed the shops he used to manage. In 2011, Steve saw that Nanaimo was lacking a premier tobacco shop, and moved out West, into his parent’s house while he bootstrapped our now long-running family business.
The Spittoon Incident
We take a lot of pride in our world-class custom pipes.
Legend has it that one day, a man walked in with a cheap backwoods pipe that was cracked down the middle. When he handed it to Steve and asked about buying a pipe, Steve threw the old pipe clear across the store, right into the spittoon.
His opinion? “It’s time for a new pipe.”
A Family Tradition
Following Steve’s passing in 2020, the torch passed to his daughter, Erin. In 2022, his grandson Leo moved from Winnipeg to manage the shop. We are a family-owned business that cares about your experience. Tobacco is about the experience, and we’re here to make sure you feel at home. We love chatting with our clients, so please let us know if you have any questions!
A lot of tobacconists can often feel stuffy and exclusive, and we make it goal for our store to feel welcoming to people of every experience level. So whether you’re an old hand, or it’s your first ever cigar, give us a call or pop by anytime.
The Spittoon Incident
We take a lot of pride in our world-class custom pipes.
Legend has it that one day, a man walked in with a cheap backwoods pipe that was cracked down the middle. When he handed it to Steve and asked about buying a pipe, Steve threw the old pipe clear across the store, right into the spittoon.
His opinion? “It’s time for a new pipe.”
Plan Your Visit
Hours & Contact
Tuesday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Wednesday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Thursday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Friday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Saturday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Sunday 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.