J.C. Newman Renames Its PENSA Cigar Factory
Factory is Nicaragua’s Second Largest, Rolling More than 100,000 Cigars by Hand Per Day
ESTELI, NICARAGUA — Today, the Newman family announced that the name of its Nicaraguan cigar factory is changing from “PENSA” to “J.C. Newman PENSA.”
“This change, while symbolic, reflects the shift that we are making as a company to elevate the ‘J.C. Newman’ name and use it to tell our story as a 123-year-old, four-generation family business, and America’s oldest family-owned premium cigar maker,” said Eric Newman, president.
In 2011, third-generation cigar makers Eric and Bobby Newman built Puros de Esteli Nicaragua, S.A. (PENSA), a state-of-the-art handmade cigar factory in the heart of Esteli, Nicaragua. Since then, J.C. Newman PENSA has more than tripled in size. Today, 840 employees hand roll 100,000 cigars there each day, more than at every other factory in Nicaragua except Drew Estates.
“Because we own and operate our own large factory, which has great economies of scale, we are able to produce high quality, handmade cigars at a much lower cost than many of our competitors who buy from other factories and middle men,” said Bobby Newman, executive vice president. “We pass this savings on to the consumer.”
J.C. Newman rolls its Brick House, Perla del Mar, and El Baton, Quorum and other cigar brands at J.C. Newman PENSA. Quorum is the top-selling cigar brand from Nicaragua. The factory is led by general managers Omar Ortez and Lazaro Lopez who have run J.C. Newman PENSA since it opened.
“We are very proud of our team at J.C. Newman PENSA and the outstanding cigars that we roll there,” said Drew Newman, general counsel. “We want the world to know that this is our factory and that our family legacy stands behind the cigars we roll there.”
