They rate the cigars but has anyone ever rated them? Cigar Magazines… How They Stack-Up Against Each Other An editorial by David Garofalo Some might say “print is dead,” meaning that nobody reads magazines and newspapers anymore but it doesn’t seem to be that way in the cigar world. At least 5 major publications continue to survive in this teeny-tiny industry called premium cigars. I’ve been in this industry long enough to remember when there […]
Are We Seeing the Beginning of the End of Buying Cigars On-Line? FedEx Corporation is an American global courier delivery service headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. In FedEx’s early days, Federal Express, (as it was called then) their owner and founder Fred Smith took the company’s last $5,000 to a Las Vegas blackjack table, after they were denied a business loan and won $27,000. In his first 26 months in business Smith racked up $29 million […]
Why Don’t Cigars and Poker Mix… Because Cigar Stores and Bars are Businesses. I’m a card player, I’ve played in tournaments and I even owned and operated an online site called Cigar Poker Room of all things, years ago before the laws were changed. I’ve never been at the World Series of Poker but it’s on my bucket list for sure. At the same time, I’ve been operating a cigar shop for 30 years now […]
Remembering “The Cigar Boom and Bust” Another Editorial by David Garofalo The Cigar Boom was the name given to the resurgence of cigar consumption in the United States between the years 1990 and 1997. As I remember it, in 1990, sales of premium cigars began to rise and manufacturers fought to keep up with demand. Before long industry-wide shortages of cigars were apparent. The trend continued as manufacturers began to import more cigars into the […]
Cigar Ratings… they’re not what they used to be… but were they ever? We’ve all seen it, you even see it here on The Cigar Authority. One of our crew “rating” a cigar with a number….89, 90, 91… what the hell does it even mean? When I was in school and got a 90 or 91 it was pretty much the same… it was an A. An 89, although quite good and almost an A […]
What exactly is a Boutique Cigar? Another Editorial by David Garofalo I got a lot of emails and calls about last week’s Editorial I wrote calling “The End of the Boutique Boom” so I thought we would clarify a bit because there is plenty of confusion on exactly what a “Boutique” Cigar Brand really is… so let’s dig in. Boutique, pronounced bo͞oˈtēk is a noun and according to the dictionary it means a small store […]
The Boutique Cigar Brand Boom is Over! The “Names You Know” That’s What Cigar Retailers were Buying Another Editorial by David Garofalo “What’s New” might be what consumers are asking for… but “What Sells” and what is “Most Recognized” is what cigar retailers are buying. I’m just back from the IPCPR Cigar Trade Show, the cigar industry’s largest convention and trade show world-wide. Walking through, I couldn’t help but notice the trade show booths that […]
The 2nd Most Asked Question in a Cigar Shop Editorial by David Garofalo You’ve heard it before, the number one question asked in cigar stores for at least the past few years has unquestionably been “What’s New?” Maybe in the future it will change from “What’s New” to “What’s Good” when the FDA stops all new brands and sizes, but that’s a subject for another time. The Fact is: What’s New is not always “What’s […]
Ladies and Gentleman….Here come… “The Copy Cats” by David Garofalo It’s that time of the year when some manufacturers come out with what they believe was “hot” last year from their competitors and try it themselves. That is a large part of the cigar industry my friends, companies taking the easiest path to success… Copying others… but maybe there is nothing wrong with it. Maybe they don’t have to be the first, just the best. […]
Limited Release Cigars It seems there is no limit to them lately First off… What makes a “Limited Release”? The term “limited release” is used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints or recorded music and films, but now including cars, fine wine, whisky and of course cigars. With cigars, a “limited release” by its very nature is restricted in the number […]