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TOBACCO BUSINESS
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2013
be number 12 here in California,”Hennegan
states.“The survival of our industry in this state
depends on a cigar and pipe tobacco tax plan
that separates us from cigarettes and allows us
to prosper at the same time.”
To that end,Hennegan has worked closely
with the lobbyist to get this effort into a
proposal that can pass the state legislature.
He says that this has required “numerous
trips”to Sacramento andmanymeetings with
legislatorsandtheirstaffers.“Itisadifficulttask
since the assembly and the senate inCalifornia
are both controlled by democrats and they
are not always receptive to our arguments,
especially when it comes to taxation,”he says.
“Still,I think it can be done.”
Despite all the local political effort and
attention that Hennegan believes is so
important, Liberty Tobacco also fights for
federal freedom—basically against the FDA’s
efforts to regulate cigars like it regulates
cigarettes and other tobacco. “At Liberty T,
we have an ongoing campaign to educate our
customers on this very important topic, and,
at the same time, [to] make it easy for them
to voice objection with their congressmen
through ready-made website access provided
by the IPCPR,”he says.“I have also traveled to
Washington, D.C. and had the honor, along
with fellowmembers of the IPCPR, to lobby
congress on this issue.”
GIVINGBACK
Beyond fighting the good fight, Liberty
Tobacco resonates with its cigar clientele
through its community work. “San Diego
has a huge military presence and we do what
we can to work with the military,” explains
Hennegan.
Specifically, the company is “most proud
of its membership in the Navy League” and
actively takes part in the organization’s Home
Front San Diego program, which assists the
families of our fighting forces, according to
Hennegan.Other communityorganizations it
is regularly involvedwith includeAngel Fight,
the Urban League, the We Deliver Dreams
Foundation, Children Across America, and
the Junior Seau Parks Project.
“Weareveryactivewithcharitiesandalmost
weekly involved with cigar sponsorships at
golf tournaments or other fundraising events,”
Hennegan says.“We call it our ‘roadshow;’we
go out and set up at the events—sometimes
we are selling cigars with proceeds going
to the cause and sometimes we are just
donating product. Either way, it allows us to
have physical presence before potential new
customerswhile doing something togive back
to the community.It’s a win-win situation.”
WHOLESALE NICHE
The golf event participation is a natural
way for Liberty Tobacco’s wholesale division
to give back. The wholesale side of Liberty
is actually a unique setup that came out of
community need—and the company’s ability
to creatively fill that need.
“Our wholesale division is a product of
the cigar boom of the mid-’90s when a
craze developed and cigars were in demand
everywhere,”Hennegan explains.“We have
a lot of golf courses in San Diego, and, for
whatever reason, cigars and golf seem to go
together. We started getting requests from
golf courses to supply them with cigars for
resale to their customers.Naturally,we were
happy to help themout.With a distributors’
license, we were in shape to provide cigars
to retailers anywhere, although we were not
equipped to handle mass distribution.”
And so, Liberty Tobacco settled on a
wholesale niche that worked best for it—
nearby golf courses, hotels, restaurants
and bars. “We provide them with tabletop
humidors and all accessories, and then
regularly supply them with cigars,” states
Hennegan. “It has worked out very well.”
On its website, Liberty boasts even more
benefits for local service businesses to count
on it to provide a no-brainer add-on cigar
business—namely:
• San Diego’s lowest cigar prices from a
volume dealer;
• All taxes paid—all a business needs is its
retail license;
• San Diego’s largest variety of imported,
premium cigars;
• SanDiego’s onlyDavidoff dealer;
• Free display humidor;
• Same day/next day delivery;
• Credit on returns—a business will not get
Liberty Tobacco is San Diego’s oldest
independent tobacco store.
Active in local charities and cigar sponsorships,
Liberty T takes a lot of its cigars on the road.
A walk-in humidor is only part of its cigar presence—
the company is a political powerhouse,
upholding cigar smoker’s rights.
Generous with its “hangout” areas, Liberty devotes
500 square feet to a comfortable smoking lounge.
