Tobacco Business

[ 76 ] TOBACCO BUSINESS [ JULY / AUGUST | 21 ] T Today, there are many different types of tobacconists. While some have traditional brick-and-mortar stores, others have robust websites and e-commerce operations. Then there are those that have a mixed business model, with both a physical and digital presence. Even if you haven’t heard of Luxury Cigar Club, it’s likely some of your customers have, and if this year’s Tobacco Business Awards are any indication, their business could very well be a sign of things to come for tobacco retail. Chris Doyle and Ben Rotem’s Red Beard Cigar Co. opened in 2018 with the purpose of providing premium cigars to the small town of Cottonwood, Arizona. In a short time, Doyle and Rotem’s business evolved beyond the walls of their physical store. Even though their brick-and-mortar had the only “smoke in” lounge in a 50-mile radius, the two tobacconists saw more business potential and became local wholesalers as well. Because of the small cigar community in their area, Doyle and Rotem decided to go outside of their geographic area and build a larger cigar community by taking their business online. That’s when the idea came about to start a cigar subscription service which, as the two found out, wasn’t a unique idea. In fact, there were already several other active cigar subscription services in the market when they sent out their first membership box in February 2019. Despite knowing they were coming in late to the game, the two decided to double down and launch Luxury Cigar Club. “As a cigar of the month club, what makes us unique are a few things. First is our social network, bringing thousands of people from all over the world together, creating new relationships and unbreakable bonds. We also pride ourselves with the level of customer service and support we offer. Our team goes above and beyond for every member, whether it is dealing with a mail issue or a request to source hard-to-get cigars. Last but not least is the caliber of cigars we work diligently to provide to our members, from nearly unattainable cigars and exclusively made cigars to new releases, limited editions and, of course, aged cigars,” explains Rotem. To ensure Luxury Cigar Club brought something different to the Photography courtesy of Luxury Cigar Club NOT AFRAID TO FAIL Learn how the team behind Luxury Cigar Club differentiated their business from other subscription box services and went on to win Tobacconist of the Year at the Tobacco Business Awards. By Antoine D. Reid