“Roll Your Own” cigarette store in Lehigh Acres is going up in smoke!
Roll Your Own store, once located at 3114 Lee Blvd., next to the Tax Collector’s Office, has closed for business due to a recently signed Federal Transportation Package law.
Under the new law, these types of shops have to pay the same taxes as cigarettes sold in a convenience or grocery stores. These stores have large machines to make cigarettes, so now they’re recognized as cigarette manufacturers. Cigarette rolling machines cost about $30,000 each
According to a news article, the Roll Your Own opened 15 months ago.
“People were coming in here and they can’t believe it. We could sell them cigarettes like they want for half the price of going anywhere else, guaranteed. We have machines that roll the cigarettes for the customer,” Belinda Richardson, manger said. “It’s was a new way to produce your cigarettes.”
“We used what’s called natural tobacco and that means there are no added things like chemicals or other agents that many claim have caused addiction to cigarettes,” Richardson said.
“We are hoping that the new law gets appealed, so we can serve to customer again.” Richardson said