Cigars, Cigar Information and where to find Premium Cigars, Discounted Cigars and even Cheap Cigars - TORAÑO . . . COMING SOON TO A CASA NEAR YOU!

TORAÑO . . . COMING SOON TO A CASA NEAR YOU!

TORAÑO . . . COMING SOON TO A CASA NEAR YOU!

Plus: “superior performance” of Altadis’s cigar division

Los Angeles, May 17 – New Toraño Cigars president Charlie Toraño is a smart guy.

So it’s no wonder that after years of eschewing all the “stuff” surrounding cigars to firmly establish the brand his father, Carlos, created, that he would venture out just a bit to test the waters.

The result is a magnificent humidor with a stunning visual created by New York artist Yuan Lee, well known for his United Nations Postal Administration series for the 1998 International Year of the Ocean (Austrian schilling version) and the 2004 Endangered Species series (12 designs).

The view is from the porch of a tobacco family – like the Toraños – looking out over the fields as the sun sets in the background. For the smoker, is there any more tranquil or rewarding view? It’s the same art originally commissioned for the family’s newest blend, the Casa Toraño.

The box itself will hold 50 cigars, is lined with Spanish Cedar and is equipped with hygrometer and humidifier.

“Casa Toraño is a very special cigar,” said Charlie. “It was the private blend our family smoked for years, and we just introduced it to the public last year. It is the mildest cigar in our product lineup.

“The cigar is doing very well, especially with newer smokers, and we are creating the Casa Toraño humidor as a promotional piece to spotlight the line. We are exploring different ways to introduce the humidor to smokers, including a plan to stock with special-release samples.”

The increasing popularity of the outstanding Toraño brands is also creating the opportunity for a product-seller’s dream in any retail location: a stand-alone sales display. The current plan is for an in-store tower display humidor that will hold up to ten boxes of Toraños, with glass windows in front. “Retailers with crowded walk-in humidors have expressed interest in a stand-alone Toraño display,” noted Charlie, with the details to be finalized later this year.

Memo to Charlie and Carlos: Ask the boys at Frito-Lay, Johnson & Johnson or Proctor & Gamble: those stand-alone displays are money, baby!

Of course, this may only be the start. First the cigars, now the humidor, to be followed by the ashtrays, cases and lighters, smoking jacket, slippers, bedsheets, bedroom set, authentic Toraño family veranda chairs and tables, in-home tobacco plantation . . . does Ikea know about these guys?

Altadis reports sensational cigar quarter:
“A superior performance of the Cigar Division” was one of the headlines from the first-quarter report of Altadis, S.A., the parent company of Altadis USA, distributor of headline brands such as H. Upmann, Montecristo and Romeo y Julieta. The details are impressive indeed:

• Sales increased in the first quarter – usually the slowest for cigars – by 7.4% in Euros, from 184 to 190 million (from $232.4 to $240.0 million), with most of the increase on the U.S. side.

• Altadis USA sales accounted for approximately 59% of the total or about $141 million in the quarter. That’s a lot of Juan Lopezs and Maria Guerreros! All of Altadis’s sales of Cuban cigars (remembering that they own half of Habanos, S.A., the exclusive distribution arm for Havana cigars) totaled about 16% ($38.4 million) and all other sales in Europe accounted for 18% ($43.2 million); that leaves about seven percent for other markets.

• “Altadis USA kept its focus on upmarket cigars, i.e., the natural (leaf wrapper) and particularly the brands Backwoods and Dutch Masters, on one hand, and premium (hand made) segments on the other hand, which had already proven successful in 2004. Total sales of Altadis USA increased in the U.S. by 15.4% in dollar terms.” Holy smoke!

• Interestingly, the Altadis first-quarter report noted specifically that its sales of Havana cigars was half of all Havana sales in the first quarter, meaning that the total sales of Cuban cigars at export was about $77 million, which would project to a sensational full-year figure of more than $300 million. Will the Cubans have enough cigars to meet this growing demand?

Cuban cigar sales in the first quarter by Altadis grew by 13.4% over the same quarter in 2004. Their comments on this success underlined the existing marketing direction: “The strategy which combined ultimate luxury (limited editions, special reserves, the latest example being the Partagas Serie P) and affordable luxury (Mini Cubanos) confirmed its efficiency.”

• Not only did Altadis sell a lot of cigars, they made a lot of money on them. The now-popular EBITDA measure of cash gain or loss from operations (Earnings before Income Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) showed an outstanding profit margin of 24.2%. Translation: about $58 million profit on cigars in the first quarter of 2005. Wait ‘til the folks in Castro’s worker’s paradise hear about that!

Comment:
This reports clearly signals strong overall health in the cigar sector in the U.S. While not on fire like at the height of the Cigar Boom in ‘97 and ‘98, strong first-quarter reports from Swedish Match and Altadis signal that 2005 will also be a strong year for cigars.

Moreover, the successful strategy underscored by Altadis in its report on its Cuban brand marketing could be turned on the U.S. Philip Wynne of Felipe Gregorio Tobacco World said last year that “limited editions will be the future.” He may be right.

General Cigar got good reviews for its Partagas Cifuentes Seasonal Blend Fall 2004 and it planning more. Will Altadis join them? We’ll know more in August, at the 2005 RTDA in New Orleans. We will be there, watching for you!
~ Rich Perelman

Bookmark

Email This

Comments (0) add comment