Connecticut

Connecticut businesses prepare for Black Friday

Published

1 year ago

November 27, 2024

Connecticut businesses prepare for Black Friday

CONNECTICUT (WTNH) — For many shoppers it’s a tradition, and for many stores it’s one of their biggest sales days of the year. We’re talking Black Friday: which may not be exactly the same as what it used to be.

Many stores used to see long lines and shoppers sleeping out for Black Friday sales. Meriden resident Olek Wolski was one of those who braved the cold for a good deal.

“Back in the day I used to yeah,” Wolski said. “I was always the first guy in line.”

These days he does his holiday shopping from the comfort of his warm home.

“For getting deals I would mostly go online,” Wolski said.

And he’s not alone.

“I used to go there in person,” New London resident Anh Calhoun, who says she doesn’t do that anymore. “I do a lot of shopping online.”

“I think about it but I don’t usually do it,” Mystic resident Gregg Fedus said.

With Black Friday deals dropping weeks earlier and offered online at the same prices as in store, many are choosing to avoid the crowds which may be a little smaller these days.

“I tend to stay home on Black Friday,” East Lyme resident Lori Venditti said.

Still, she and her daughter Angie do prefer shopping in person rather than online.

“We’re trying to keep businesses in business,” Venditti said. “So the first thing we do is we go to the stores and if we can’t find it we ultimately have to get the item online unfortunately so.”

“It’s a crazy day for us. It’s one of our biggest day,” Candy Shapiro, who owns Grace in Niantic.

She does expect to be very busy on Black Friday. She offers free gifts to many Grace customers and 30% off the entire store, which allows the small but popular shop to compete with the big stores.

“We learned that all you have to do is have an event that gives back to the people and when you give you get,” Shapiro said.

Not only does Shapiro have to compete with the bigger stores but also with the trends of online shopping and sales which start long before Black Friday.

She says she offers some of her regulars and those who sign up for texts early access to sales like the ones on Black Friday.

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Connecticut

AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Getting New Toro Tubo

Published

16 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Getting New Toro Tubo

There’s already an AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Toro; it measures 6 1/4 x 52. In a month, there will also be a 6 x 52 toro.

It’s not simply a quarter-inch of difference in length. The new Tubo is a round cigar while the original Toro is box-pressed. Also, as the name implies, the Tubo will come individually packaged in tubes. Blend-wise, the two cigars are the same: an Ecuadorian Connecticut-seed wrapper over Nicaraguan tobaccos grown by AGANORSA. The line is made at the company’s factory in Nicaragua.

The AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Tubo has an MSRP of $19.99 and comes in boxes of 10 cigars.

“The Aniversario Connecticut Tubo offers a perfect combination of elegance, convenience, and flavor,” said Terence Reilly, vp of sales & marketing for AGANORSA Leaf, in a press release. “It’s an ideal cigar for both longtime fans of the brand and smokers discovering Aganorsa for the first time.”

AGANORSA Leaf will show off the Aniversario Connecticut Tubo to retailers during the 2026 PCA Convention & Trade Show, which takes place April 18-20 in New Orleans. The company says it will ship the cigar to stores in late April.

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. Previously, I started TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors blogs of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry since 2010, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. Beyond writing, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff from weighing cigars to coordinating the tech. Outside of work, I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.

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Connecticut

Teen injured after being shot in Hartford Monday morning

Published

1 day ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

Teen injured after being shot in Hartford Monday morning

A teen is suffering non-life-threatening injuries from a gunshot wound after a shooting in Hartford on Monday morning, police said.

Hartford Police Lt. Aaron Boisvert said officers were dispatched to the area of East Street around 6:45 a.m. When they arrived, they found a 14-year-old victim with a gunshot wound. The victim is being treated at a local hospital.

“It is not believed that the incident occurred on East Street,” Boisvert wrote in a press release.

Police do not know where the shooting occurred, according to Boisvert.

The Hartford Police Major Crimes and Crime Scene Divisions are investigating the incident.

The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with any information regarding the case is asked to call the Hartford Police tip line at 860-722-TIPS (8477).

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Connecticut

Two in the hospital after Hartford crash early Sunday morning

Published

2 days ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

Two in the hospital after Hartford crash early Sunday morning

Two people are hospitalized following a crash early Sunday morning in Hartford.

According to officials, officers responded to 587 Blue Hills Avenue around midnight for reports of an accident with serious injuries.

They say firefighters arrived on scene to a 2-car crash with a white Lexus rolled over with ejection of the driver.

Officials say the victim was conscious on the ground and received quick trauma assessment before being transported to Saint Francis Hospital.

The driver is in stable but critical conditions, police say.

The operator of the white Toyota sustained minor injuries and was also transported to Saint Francis Hospital for further evaluation.

Officials say that the driver of the Lexus was driving southbound and tried to pass the Toyota when the car spun out, hit several fences and two parked cars.

The investigation is still ongoing.

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