A local newsstand that has stood on Elgin Street for 35 years has a new name and a renewed focus.
The owners of Mags & Fags have announced the store will now be called "The Gifted Type" to reflect the evolution of their business.
After 35 yrs we're retiring the name Mags & Fags and excited to announce we're now The Gifted Type pic.twitter.com/Aa24CnGxBU
— Mags & Fags (@MagsandFags) September 6, 2016
In a tumblr post, owners Christa and Charlene Blaszczyk said their business faced an existential crisis earlier this year. They decided to stop selling the eponymous fags - that is, cigarettes and other tobacco products (it's a British term) - and their selection of mags had dwindled as the print industry moved further online.
The store started to move toward different items like cards and "fun and quirky" gifts.
"We made the decision in the winter of 2016 to discontinue the sale of all tobacco products and we subsequently plunged ourselves into an existential crisis. Are we still Mags & Fags if we don’t sell tobacco? Are we still Mags & Fags when the number of titles available to stock is dwindling every day?" the sisters asked in the blog post.
"Print matters and it always will to us. We love the look, feel and yes even the smell of a great magazine. No device can replace those tangible qualities that we look for in print and hold onto so dearly."
The shop says an online store is coming soon. In the meantime, the Blaszczyks are reassuring their customers "this isn’t the death of another newsstand, this is the evolution of one."