Looking ahead, Giolito is confident that Illusione will continue to innovate and remain competitive despite various challenges, such as the ongoing deeming rules imposed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). He notes that the mounting challenges to the industry are causing other manufacturers and brands to merge or seek acquisitions and other deals to gain a bigger share of the cigar industry. But he’s not tempted to follow suit with Illusione. While acknowledging that smaller companies like Illusione must find a way to keep up with the growing expenses of regulation compliance and legal representation, he says that Illusione is set up to meet those challenges while remaining competitive and continuing to evolve.
Staying Consistent
Giolito feels that Illusione came along at the right time. With the success the company has had in the cigar market so far, he wouldn’t do anything differently. Part of Illusione’s evolution includes expanding the portfolio with a previously released brand known as OneOff. Giolito purchased the brand in 2017 from its previous owner, Andrea Molinari. OneOff was a brand that left an impression on him after he went into business for himself in the early 2000s.
“It was really the first superstar of the industry, of the mid- to late-’90s Cigar Boom, in my opinion,” he says. “It was a bottle-rocket brand, both in impact and lifespan. When the brand became available, I jumped on it for those reasons, not to mention it was a predicate date, grandfathered cigar by the FDA’s standards and regulation.”
Even as Giolito continues to work on building his boutique brand, some things remain unchanged. He’s still a private person, choosing to spend more time behind the scenes than in front of the media. He’s still a big fan of the unusual, and he continues to draw inspiration for his brand’s marketing from UFOs and aliens as well as the latest conspiracy theories (his favorite at the moment being QAnon).
At the end of the day, his life, like his brand, remains constant and consistent. He’s still Dion Giolito, the cigar enthusiast from Las Vegas who enjoys a round of golf and a dram of Islay malt whisky, and who can be found working behind the counter of his cigar store in Reno when he’s not in the factory overseeing the latest Illusione production. Though he says success is relative, Giolito does have advice to offer those looking to build something as organically successful as Illusione: Market like Drew Estate’s Jonathan Drew, blend like Henke Kelner, and love what you do 100 percent of the time.
This story first appeared in the January/February 2019 issue of Tobacco Business magazine. Members of the tobacco industry are eligible for a complimentary subscription to our magazine. Click here for details.
– Story by Antoine Reid, an editor and digital content director for Tobacco Business Magazine. You can follow him on Instagram @editor.reid.
