Passion is Thrown Around a lot in the Business

I’m in Nicaragua working at the factory and it was said that you can really tell the difference between a working factory and one for show. I had never considered this fact until this was uttered in my presence. 

Have you met someone who makes cigars? If you have how much did they talk about going to their factories frequently? How often did they talk about the excitement they have visiting with their workers and friends in their cigar producing nation? I never thought about passionless cigars until the term working factory was brought to my attention. 

Ever since I started to learn how to make cigars and flying back from Nicaragua, I was focused on my next trip back – my next project in tobacco, and my next interactions with my friends down here. We don’t bring people down to show off flashy factory business, a pretend rural culture in one of the largest cities in Nicaragua, or show off what we do with cigars. I invite everyone I meet to come with myself and my partners to Nicaragua because I am in love with this country and I’m in love with its people. I am passionate about our very small role in this ocean deep culture in Esteli. 

It wasn’t until now that I started to realize I pretty much stopped smoking loveless cigars years ago. When a certain fast food chain started using machines to quick produce their burgers on a sort of assembly line suddenly we started seeing loveless food. Now we go to these gastropubs or a local place that is still in love with food. I didn’t realize how much our industry is like fast food now until someone referred to working factories vs those that are for show. So many loveless blends. I’m sure that this will make some people unhappy to hear. A friend of mine from a brand I really respect came in for a cigar debut recently in one of our stores. I conveyed how much I respect the company and how much they are putting into the business to make a splash on our small niche community. The premium cigar business is still a small business globally. 

When I think about the flash in some factories, all the money on advertising, all the money spent on all this bullshit that isn’t about making a cigar you can be proud of, it is no wonder the prices of cigars have spiraled out of control. We stick to an MSRP, plus state excise tax formula, but I still notice the multiple price hikes a year. Often, very often, for loveless cigars. What are you smoking these days? Lots of great manufacturers are making cigars better than ours. People I respect and love to try anything they come out with. I just don’t know why more people don’t do what we do and keep the price low and let the cigars speak the passion, the craftsmanship, and the quality of what they are making. That’s my goal. Every stick we make should speak for itself. I guess I always want to be a worker for all of my life. I’ll always have something to prove. Hitting a winner a couple times is not going to work for me. There are too many blends we haven’t made yet that need to be smoked.