That’s pretty bad.
And you could probably report the store.

But it’s hardly surprising.  And it’s probably not an anomoly.

Mini-markets… well, the people working in them are not paid well at all, are subject to a wide variety of the public, and are at an elevated risk of being robbed…

I’ve heard from a young man (about to start college) who had a job over the summer at a mini-market (in the country - not in the city, btw) and he said pretty much all of his co-workers were drug users (and not just marijuana).
And not all of them were teenagers either.  (After all, kids who use drugs generally grow up to be adults who use drugs - addiction isn’t confined to youth.)

And not to condone her question about them using it with weed, but it’s probably not an outlandish one.  I wouldn’t doubt that a great deal of the cheap cigars bought at mini-marts, by young people, are being used for that purpose.
Adult cigar smokers generally buy their cigars at a tobacco shop, and generally would put out the extra cash to get the better kind, that don’t stink and don’t taste lousy.  Or at the very least they’d buy their cheap cigars where they could get them cheaper than at a mini-market (which is not offer the best prices on anything).

Frankly, I avoid mini-markets altogether as much as I can.

I suppose it’s no more of an anomaly than selling rolling papers to kids way younger, which I’ve seen happen. A higher than average percentage of the nightime clientele often seem to have red glassy eyes.

I stopped by to get a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream last evening (this store sells it as a loss leader, I’m pretty sure....lowest prices in town). The woman was on duty and I mentioned that “my high school son was in last night”.....pregnant pause....."the one buying the unflavored Phillies cigars with his friends....the ones you told about using the Phillies with weed?”

That look of recognition passed over her face and she said, “Oh my God, I didn’t know that was your son! I’m so sorry!” She really didn’t know what else to say. I was polite about it, but made it clear that I didn’t think that was a wise policy, especially since she had no idea how old they were, and, like most parents, I would appreciate it if she didn’t encourage something we’ve spent the last umpteen years trying to discourage.

She didn’t get all defensive or anything. Just seemed embarrassed and truly sorry. I don’t know that it’ll change her habits, but it may make her think a little harder next time. Or maybe not.

Well you know that it doesn’t surprise me at the moment, not after what I just went through with “The Aunt” and what she did as a supposed “Adult”!!! And that doesn’t even sound tempting LOL! ewwwwwww.

"A higher than average percentage of the nightime clientele often seem to have red glassy eyes."

It does seem that a lot of patrons of mini-markets seem to be a certain type.
For example, when I lived in a town where there was a Turkey Hill in the less desirable area of town.  I had to go to this Turkey Hill to buy the town’s garbage stickers.  (They were the only distributor besides the municiple building, which was right across the street, but only open during business hours.) And I noticed the people there… were mostly red-eyed types.
And what was even more strange was that - why were they there?
Just a few blocks away was a 24 hour Price Chopper grocery store that sold cigarettes, and had lower prices than anything at the Turkey Hill mini-mart, (including Turkey Hill brand ice cream) - yet the Turkey Hill was always bustling with people buying tobacco products, food & drink.

As for the clerk who apologized to you, but didn’t seem defensive, just embarrassed.
It’s probably because she saw nothing particularly wrong with what she said, so there was no reason for her to be defensive.  But she may be a mother herself, so upon discovering the young man was somebody’s non-drug-using son (perhaps an oddity there), she felt bad for YOU.  Not about what she said, in general, but that she had no intentions of crossing you personally.
She likely sees nothing wrong with what she said.  But, she’s got nothing against you personally, and if it upsets you that she said that to her son, then of course she’d feel bad about it - because it wasn’t her intention to cross you.
Will she continue to act that way?  Probably not to your son, if she recognizes him.  ;) Other people - who knows.

You are probably quite right, Chloe. She may not see anything wrong with what she said if that is part of her lifestyle. Maybe she thinks it’s a perfectly okay part of growing up.

Here the grocery stores close pretty early so the convenience store is the only place to get anything at night. But the place is always mobbed during the day, too. Part of that is because they have the best deli in town. Maybe also because the parking is more convenient than the grocery stores. I know that I’ll stop by there to get a gallon of milk rather than stop at the grocery store, if that’s all I need. It’s a lot quicker and milk is cheaper there. I think it’s also the only place in that end of town that sells lottery tickets. Different reasons for different folks. Guess that’s why it does a booming business.

Ah, yes, the lottery tickets.
Around here, the tobacco shops usually sell lottery tickets too, and some grocery stores as well. 

I can see why it would be popular if it was also a deli - and a good one.

Most of the mini-marts around me are Turkey Hills, which might include a deli, but are not, to my knowledge, any better (perhaps not as popular) as the grocery stores.
Or they’re mini-markets attached to gas stations, with not really all that much to offer - they really are MINI.  heh.

I’m surprised to learn you don’t have any 24 hour grocery stores.  I thought they were popular all over.
I suppose you live a bit out of the way? 

I have at least 2 24 hr grocery stores in under a 10 minute drive from my house.  The smaller is only 3 minutes away. 
Where I used to live, there were also 2, even closer.  But this is in a dense metropolitan area I live in.  (Surrounded by mountains & rural area - and of course in the rural & woodsy areas there’s not too many 24hr grocery stores.)

It’s is funny because I once had some guy on the internet arguing with me that Wilkes-Barre & Scranton were “rural” and not urban - based on his driving the highway through the area - which cuts through the mountains.  heh.
But obviously we are pretty urban… since this photo was taken late at night at a 24 hr grocery store, halfway between Wilkes-Barre & Scranton, in a business strip in an area that’s considered a small residential town.  (And it is pretty quiet in that area.)

When I lived in a small 4500 person town back in New York state, we had a 24 hour grocery. Here in a 19,000 person small city, we have two grocery stores, neither of them 24 hour. Go figure.

While I wouldn’t say we are that out of the way, we feel like it most of the time. Boston news pretends we don’t exist and New Hampshire ignores us. Kinda feels like a no man’s land.