Page 6 - TOB Magazine March/April 2013

16
TOBACCO OUTLET BUSINESS
MARCH/APRIL 2013
NEWS & TRENDS
Swisher Launches
Premium Cigar Division
Alex Goldman has joined the company as
president of Royal Gold Cigars.
Industry veteran Alex Goldman has
been appointed to head a new premium
cigar division at Swisher International.
“Alex’s leadership of House of Oxford/
Mom’s Cigars as its owner and
president for the past 20 years positions
him perfectly to develop and market
our new premium cigar lineup,” says
Peter Ghiloni, president of Swisher
International.
Goldman will lead Royal Gold Cigars
in developing and introducing various
cigar lines to compete with key players
in the premium cigar market. Test
marketing of the new lineup is planned
for April with a national launch set for
the International Premium Cigar & Pipe
Retailers Association (IPCPR) Annual
Convention & International Trade Show
in July in Las Vegas.
“As a fourth-generation tobacconist,
I have cemented relationships that will
enable Royal Gold Cigars to develop,
source and market an array of premium
products that customers will enjoy at
competitive price points,” Goldman
explained. “Operating as a division
of Swisher International gives Royal
Gold Cigar the opportunity to tap into
Swisher’s leadership and leverage
its resources, while maintaining an
independent business model.”
The 81st Annual Convention &
International Trade Show will be held
July 13-17 at the Sands Expo Center
in Las Vegas, Nevada. Admission
to the convention and trade show,
which is not open to the public, is free
to members of the IPCPR. For more
information about the event, visit
www.rtda.org/tradeshow.
Flavored Smokeless
Products Ban Continues in NYC
New York City court upholds 2009 ban.
The city has outlawed the sale of
flavored smokeless tobacco products
everywhere but tobacco bars—a
decision upheld by a court ruling in
late February. Tobacco manufacturer
Altria Group attempted to get the
ban overturned on the grounds the
ordinance is pre-empted by federal law,
but the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
in New York upheld a lower-level court
ruling rejecting its arguments.
“We are disappointedwith the court’s
decision and are considering our
options,” said Brian May, a spokesman
for Altria.
The issue dates back to October 2009
when the New York City Council voted
to ban the sale of flavored tobacco
products, taking a more aggressive
stance than federal law, which only
bans the sale of flavored cigarettes and
their component parts. The city’s ban
restricts all flavored tobacco products,
including little cigars, chewing tobacco
and cigarillos. Menthol-flavored
tobacco products are not banned.
Altriafiledsuit blocking theordinance,
reportedly arguing that the measure
imposed manufacturing standards
on their products that conflicted with
federal law. But the judge who upheld
the ban ruled that federal law included
language that does not limit the power
of states or local governments to exact
stricter measures than Congress or the
FDA.
Seen at
TPE 2013...
Many booths, such as Smoking Joes’,
offered prize-winning opportunities
throughout the day on the trade show
floor.
IPCPR to Hold
Annual Convention
in July