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| MARCH MADNESS FOR CIGAR LOVERS! |
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Page 1 of 2  Plus: Our reader’s-only special of the week!Los Angeles, March 19 – The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament is three weeks of wild finishes, both on the court and in office pools across the country, where players are trying to figure out which team will be this year’s Cinderella. Of course, you can go to Las Vegas and bet on the games – this weekend is one of the busiest of the year at the sportsbooks – or you can try to win some hard-to-find cigars! The cigar contest is the second annual March Madness giveaway sponsored by Tampa-based online merchant CigarsDirect. The contest is free to enter and is arranged through CBSSports.com. You have to register by March 20 (first day of the main tournament) and the players with the five highest point totals will win prizes including: Each player can have up to two brackets in the contest, but can win only one of the prizes.Winners will be notified by e-mail at the end of the tournament. Naturally, owner Billy Ferriolo won’t be upset if you take a look at his offers on cigars and he’s offering free shipping during the tournament period (ends April 7 with the national championship game) by entering the code "NCAA" during checkout. Synergy Brands to sell cigar division: The diversified food-service company Synergy Brands is selling its money-losing cigar division – Gran Reserve Cigars – for $400,000 to an investor group in a transaction expected to close shortly. The Syosset, New York-based company has owned and operated Gran Reserve Cigars for several years, selling at retail through its Web site and at wholesale mostly to golf courses and private clubs. Its brands include Almirante, Andulleros, Breton Corojo Vintage, Breton Legend, Don Otilio, Mike Ditka, Nativo and Suarez Gran Reserve. “Synergy believes that the cigar operation has become a non-strategic asset for the company and it plans to focus its efforts on its largest wholly-owned subsidiaries, PHS Group and Quality Food Brands,” said the company’s announcement, released Monday. “The cigar operation represented less than 2% of sales and less than 5% of gross profit and the operation was the sole entity that is expected to report a net loss in FY 2007.” |
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