92 TOBACCO BUSINESS | JULY / AUGUST | 22 What happens when you open a cigar store at an airport? Ramón Torres shares how Las Vegas’ Luxe Cigar Boutique came to be and what he’s learned about building a business without a regular customer base. By Antoine D. Reid Photography courtesy of Ramón Torres When Ramón Torres was a teenager, his family operated a duty-free store located along the U.S./ Mexico border in California. Like many who work in family-run businesses, he was stocking shelves and cleaning bathrooms. His older sister made sure that kept him busy and out of trouble. At the time, the duty-free store didn’t offer cigars, but it did sell a lot of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Later on in life, Torres moved to Las Vegas, where he became a consultant for a cigar lounge that he eventually took over completely. Today, he runs Interluxe, which operates two cigar stores located at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas (LAS): Luxe Cigar Boutique at the Terminal 1 baggage claim and Interluxe at Terminal 3’s international departures area. Operating a cigar storewithin an airport is unique, to say the least. First, there are very few repeat customers, and even with more than 50 million passengers flying in and out of LAS each year, you still have to get them into your store. Although Luxe’s location within the airport gets more foot traffic in a year than Disneyland, it still must appeal to the traveler who isn’t necessarily looking for or thinking of buying a cigar in an airport. Most passengers are more preoccupied with getting their luggage and moving on to their destination on the famous Las Vegas Strip. Luxe is a very unique business that must capitalize on trends, impulse purchases and the all-important convenience factor in order to be successful. Interluxe has also taught Torres to keep an open mind when it comes to different opportunities within his stores. Even though cigars are the store’s main attraction, Torres has brought in other products based on what each store’s customers were requesting. Luxe has found success with W WHEN RETAIL TAKES FLIGHT TOBACCONIST
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