Top Quartile: 83%
Second Quartile: 76%
Third Quartile: 52%
Bottom Quartile: 65%
Bishop’s take:
“When you shop Trader Joe’s or Costco, part of the attraction is that you never know what you’ll find. So you don’t necessarily want to have a specific cadence, once a week or every Friday; you want to surprise and delight your customers in that same way.”
4. Offer Knowledgeable, Personal Service
(% of respondents who described their personnel as “extremely” knowledgeable and service-oriented)
Top Quartile: 78%
Second Quartile: 81%
Third Quartile: 57%
Bottom Quartile: 50%
Bishop’s take:
“You need employees who can do more than just get customers what they ask for. A tobacconist shop is like a wine shop; many customers who come in want to be guided to something new or to engage with an expert who can tell them what makes a cigar different—something they can then go and tell their friends.”
Participants By the Numbers
The survey on which this article is based received responses from 110 cigar shop owners, most of whom reported weekly sales ranging between $8,250 and $14,950. To follow are additional statistics on the respondents.
Number of Stores
One Store: 76%
2 Stores: 9%
3-5 Stores: 7%
6-plus Stores: 8%
What Else They Carry
(% of total respondents carrying category)
Pipe/Cigarette Tobacco: 85%
Tobacco Pipes: 85%
Premium Cigarettes: 63%
Rolling Papers: 48%
Smokeless Tobacco: 42%
Make-Your-Own Cigarettes: 42%
Standard Cigarettes: 33%
Alternative Pipes/Glassware: 5%
How They Reward Regular Customers
(% of total respondents who have this type of program)
Loyalty Programs: 46%
Membership Programs: 44%
Clubs: 30%
– By Jennifer Gelfand
This story first appeared in the September/October 2017 issue of Tobacco Business magazine. Members of the tobacco industry are eligible for a complimentary subscription to our magazine. Click here for details.
Photo courtesy of Oettinger Davidoff AG
