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TOBACCO BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015
where retailers are finding that the mist
is landing, turning the cigar cellophane
wrappers a gray color and making
everything look dull and dingy,” he
explains. “We explain that the water
needs to be cleaned through a process
so that it is pristine and you don’t get
any of that film on the product. Then
we tell them to talk to retailers and to
go see the finished product in action.
After that, we usually get a phone call
asking, ‘Where do we begin?’”
How It Works
Projects begin with a conversation.
That stage can go quickly or can take
months depending on how much back-
and-forthing goes on. For example, if
a store owner calls to express interest
in upgrading his existing humidor,
Blanton will ask for the dimensions
of the store and what he has in mind.
Is there something that the owner has
seen in a magazine or in another shop
that he liked? “We start with a blank
sheet of paper because no two stores—
and no two store owners—are the
same,” says Blanton.
Next, The Humidor Store sends
design sketches to the client. Some
retailers request minimal changes,
others ask for more. When the design
is complete, the company runs color
sketches depicting the humidor from
multiple angles past the customer.
“Then we spray wood samples from
the various woods and stains we offer
and send them for the customer to
share with his/her employees and
partners and get back to us with
feedback,” says Blanton. “After that
we build one or two cabinets that
they can come to see in person to
make sure we have the color exactly
right.”
Finally, The Humidor Store erects
the entire store within its factory,
checks to make sure everything is
working right and takes photos. “Then
we disassemble it, wrap everything up
and put it on our own trucks,” states
Blanton. “We have a family member
drive it there and, if required, we send
installers up to unpack it and set it up.”
The price of a commercial walk-
in humidor design, build and install
can run from as little as $13,000 to
as high as $450,000. “It depends on
how elaborate and fancy you want
everything to be,” says Blanton, who
notes that the company is up to any
challenge. “Our approach is, ‘If you can
dream it, we can build it.’”
TBI
Rick McKenrick adjusts the glass door on a small freestanding
humidor that is getting ready to be shipped to a liquor store.
Luis Rodriguez makes last-minute preparations prior to staining
the door frame for a humidor coming down the factory line.