Boulder's Cigarette Store Corp. building new headquarters

The Cigarette Store Corp. -- the Boulder-based operator of retail brands such as Smoker Friendly and Gasomat -- recently acquired a plot of land in Gunbarrel where it plans build a new headquarters facility, brokers close to the deal announced Friday.

The privately held Cigarette Store Corp., through its real estate holding company of KTDoubleMD LLC, bought a 2.21-acre parcel in the Gunbarrel Technical Center, 6790 Winchester Circle, for $395,000, said Scot Smith, a founder and principal of Boulder-based The Colorado Group Inc., who represented The Cigarette Store Corp. in the transaction.

Jason Kruse, a Colorado Group broker, served as the leasing agent on the vacant property, which was sold by Syngenta Flowers, formerly Fischer U.S.A.

Cigarette Store officials hope to break ground by October on the property, where they plan to erect a 20,000-square-foot office and warehouse building, said Terry Gallagher, the local firm's chief executive officer.

"We really felt that the marketplace was ripe to buy a piece of ground at this point, and it's a good time to build," Gallagher said. "There are people out there who are hungry to do some work."

The company had reached the end of its five-year lease at 5303 Spine Road and was running out on warehouse space, so the family-run company decided to take a gander around its hometown of nearly 30 years for potential locations, he said.

"We wanted to stay based in Boulder because our roots are here," he said.

Gallagher said his family had been in the Boulder area since the late 1800s.

The custom-built building also will allow the burgeoning company to fill out its warehouse and office needs, he added. The Cigarette Store Corp. -- through its brands of Smoker Friendly, Gasomat and the Cigarette Store -- has posted some of its best numbers during the past three years, he said.

"When the economy goes south, vices seem to pick up," he said. "It's a small luxury item ... a lot folks think, 'Maybe I can't go out to dinner, but I can buy a pack of cigarettes or a nice cigar.'"

About 35 people work at The Cigarette Store Corp.'s current 12,000-square-foot office. The firm has 425 employees companywide working at its Boulder headquarters and in its retail stores across the country.