The combination of taxes and internet sales is killing them, according to the B & M owners I have spoken to in upstate NY. That is not to say that there aren't "successful" tobacconists around, but they require high traffic and a well-heeled clientele, i.e, an urban setting or some equivalent. The fringe establishments, the ma's and pa's, the "news stands," all have a layer of dust on their nicotinic wares and are dying.
I hate it and a 75% tax on anything is an obscenity. They recently passed some firearm legislation here by underhanded means, taking their cues, apparently, from the creep in the White House. The foregoing, combined with some personal legal issues, have me 99% convinced to move somewhere with more respect for liberty and property rights. It's often said that politicians are whores; I disagree, because they have nothing to prostitute. If they want a life of "service," they can begin by getting on their knees in front of me.