FDA Scrutiny Clouds Cigar Outlook

FDA Scrutiny Clouds Cigar Outlook

While flavored and pre-priced cigar sales are booming, FDA’s pending regulation of the category could upset trends and profits. by Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Tedeschi Food Shops does a strong cigar business, and with 3-4 feet of space reserved for cigars on the back bar, consumers take notice. Sales on cigars were up for the [...]

Lighting Your Way to Profitability

Lighting Your Way to Profitability

When sold responsibly, lighters are a dependable source of revenue, even as the number of smokers declines. Lighters are a much-needed tool for the home grill and candles. Another trend helping push lighter sales in c-stores is flavored cigars, which continues to grow at an impressive rate. “Tobacco accessories are alive and well, evolving with [...]

Designing a Winning OTP Strategy

Designing a Winning OTP Strategy

Convenience stores have evolved from being a destination for cigarettes to a destination for tobacco products as a whole. By Joe Bush, Contributing Editor. It was inevitable that the conversation on convenience store cigar sales would shift eventually from rapid growth to supplier relations, category management and marketing. As cigarette regulations and prices and taxes [...]

Cushion Tipped Cigars

Cushion Tipped Cigars

From one of America’s leading cigar brands comes an exciting new line of products: Cheyenne Cushion Tipped Cigars. Cheyenne Cushion Tipped Cigars. are a larger cigar offering full flavor, wine, vanilla and wild cherry styles in a five-count pack. The cigars represent a new standard from the brand you count on to offer high-quality products [...]

Wood Tip Cigars

Wood Tip Cigars

New from Kretek International: Djarum natural leaf wood tipped cigars in five-packs and 25-count upright units. These new cigars are offered in four new clove blends including Classic, Vanilla, Cherry and Rum. Each blend carries a unique clove signature, smoothed by the imported natural leaf wrapper and a blend of mild tobaccos. Each wood tipped [...]

Quality Pipe Tobacco

Quality Pipe Tobacco

Russell Springs, Ky.-based Tantus Tobacco, a company dedicated to bringing high-quality, value-priced filtered cigars, cigarettes and pipe tobacco to the market, has added Red Buck Pipe Tobacco to its product line. Red Buck Pipe Tobacco is available in eight-ounce, 16-ounce and five-pound bags in three flavors, Regular, Mild and Menthol. The Red Buck brand is [...]

Imperial Tobacco Introduces Commonwealth – Altadis Inc.

Imperial Tobacco Introduces Commonwealth – Altadis Inc.

Commonwealth – Altadis, Inc. strengthens competitive position with total tobacco focus and larger sales force. Altadis U.S.A. Inc. and Commonwealth Brands Inc., both owned by Imperial Tobacco Group PLC, have come together to create a new sales and distribution company called Commonwealth – Altadis Inc. (CAI), offering consumers and customers a high quality range of [...]

Swedish Match at NACS 2011

Swedish Match at NACS 2011

“Fresh as the day they were made!” HTL cigar brands exhibited at NACS; Garcia Vega, Game and White Owl. White Owl sweets and Green Sweets. 100% Freshness Guarantee is key to Swedish Match’s product offerings. New and improved line of Game cigarillos with new wrap. White Owl White Grape with a slow burning wrapper. Foil [...]

NACS 2011 Kretek

NACS 2011 Kretek

Today’s cigar smokers are looking for quality, value, variety and taste. Watch this video from Kretek to learn how adding DJARUM Natural Leave Wood Tipped Cigars in four premium flavor blends: classic clove, cherry, vanilla and rum, combined with Kretek’s strong introductory program, display allowances, promotions and merchandising will increase your cigar sales.

Driving OTP Sales

Driving OTP Sales

While cigar sales do not approach those of cigarettes, they offer convenience stores better margins. Plus, new flavors and competitive pricing are keeping customers interested in the category. By Joe Bush, Contributing Editor. Other tobacco products (OTP) in general and cigars in particular continue to earn more shelf space in convenience stores, and the higher [...]

Kretek

Kretek

Today’s cigar smokers are looking for quality, value, variety and taste. Watch this video from Kretek to learn how adding DJARUM Natural Leave Wood Tipped Cigars in four premium flavor blends: classic clove, cherry, vanilla and rum, combined with Kretek’s strong introductory program, display allowances, promotions and merchandising will increase your cigar sales.

TPE 2012: Two Full Days of Buying & Networking

TPE 2012: Two Full Days of Buying & Networking

It’s all about business at the Tobacco Plus Expo International in Las Vegas. The most comprehensive tobacco show in the U.S. will be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Nevada, Feb. 1-2, 2012. The not-to-be-missed event promises to be the year’s best opportunity for retailers, manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers to see new products, [...]

Wawa’s Cigar Sales Flourish With Middleton Partnership

Wawa’s Cigar Sales Flourish With Middleton Partnership

“John Middleton has some very strong sellers in our stores, but the new merchandiser they developed with us has been an overall improvement to the [cigar] category.” John Middleton Inc. has been operating in the Philadelphia area since 1856, beginning with a retail tobacco shop. More than a hundred years later, John Middleton divested its [...]

Forecast Strong for Cigars

Forecast Strong for Cigars

Amid all the chaos of legislation, regulation and taxation, it’s good to have tobacco category managers like Gate Petroleum’s Matt Hieb. Hieb’s approach to his chain’s market-leading cigar performance is calm and measured, driven by data, common sense and manufacturer promotions. In 225 locations throughout six southeastern states, Gate’s cigar offering exceeds the southeast market [...]

A Taxing Time for Tobacco

A Taxing Time for Tobacco

Last year was truly a difficult time for tobacco. The State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) increased tobacco taxes from a “modest” 158% increase on cigarettes up to a hideous 2,000 plus percentage increase on roll your own tobacco and small cigars. (RYO went from $1.10 per pound to $24.68 and small cigars went from [...]