50 / 65
were viewed as tainted, and they didn’t
want to do business with us,” says Cappel-
li, who overcame that hurdle through sheer
perseverance. “We just kept calling until
they answered. But I’ve got to give it to a few
guys—Alec Bradley of Fuente and a boutique
line called MBombay, out of California, man-
ufactured in Costa Rica, got us some cigars
to put on the shelf, even though we had very
little money. We literally started this business
by selling one and buying two more, selling
two cigars and buying four more. It was that
slow and tedious a process.
“Today we carry a nice amount of inventory
and can sell boxes. We carry My Father, Tat-
uaje, A.J. Fernandez and we do two boutique
lines, MBombay and Cordoba Morales. A lot
of people have never heard of these cigars, and
they set us apart from everyone else,” he says.
The Cappellis are looking to establish rela-
tionships with their vendors, not just add more
facings. “We don’t sell boutique lines beside
those two [I mentioned]. We’re not interested
in selling boutique cigars that are trying to flood
the market. We’re interested in selling boutique
cigars that want to partner with us, that want to
give us exclusive selling rights here in Philadel-
phia. We’ve found two, and we’ve done right by
them, and they’ve done right by us.”
BUILDING CONNECTIONS
“We’re becoming a legit cigar shop here,” says
Cappelli. “We’re one of two places in the city
of Philadelphia, which is the fifth largest city
in the country, [where you can legally] sit your
butt on a bar stool and smoke a cigar. And
we’re proud to be able to say that— Cappelli
Brothers and Ashton. We’re in great company.”
The Ashton name is legendary in Philly,
both as a cigar brand and as a high-end cigar
bar. However, Cappelli clarifies that he and
his brother are following a different path. “We
look up to those guys; they’re a Philadelphia
cigar company. We’re proud and humbled by
the opportunity, and we’re very friendly with
them. We sell their cigars, but we don’t try to
be them. We want to create our own business
through our own reputation. And we’re will-
ing to work very hard to do it.”
APPEALING TO…EVERYONE
That attitude is reflected in the clientele they at-
tract, which is much more diverse than your tra-
ditional cigar shop. “If you look [at our follow-
ers] on Facebook, our age group is from 25 to 45
and it’s 50/50 women and men, which is prob-
ably unheard of in this industry,” says Cappelli,
who notes that the location is targeting young,
upwardly mobile professionals of both genders.
“We have a great female presence here. Many
of them we’ve taught how to smoke cigars, [but]
many already know, surprisingly. It’s a very reg-
ular-looking place, not intimidating, so we get
a lot of newcomers, and we’re happy to guide
them through the process of being interested in
cigars to being an enthusiast. In the past two or
three years, we must have 50 guys under our belt
who went from just wondering about cigars [to
enjoying] them regularly.”
For now, the brothers are marketing their
business primarily through social media, in-
cluding Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
They also collect email addresses and send out
weekly email updates. Thus far, the updates,
announcements and special events aren’t built
around evenings with cigar reps, though Cap-
pelli Brothers Cigar Company does hold those
on occasion. “We don’t really go down that
road,” says Cappelli. “Those guys require big
purchases. It’s just not us.” Instead they feature
happy hour specials, guest bartenders, business
card and cigar evenings, special drink nights,
and free passes to local late-night clubs.
“I’m always open to ideas about how to get
the word out about us,” says Cappelli. “It’s our
toughest hurdle, and the one that we work at
the hardest and really see the least amount of
results. It’s a game of inches when it comes to
that stuff—getting people to know you. The
competition in Philadelphia is fierce for night-
life. In this city, you better be on your A-game.”
In a nod to typical cigar shops, Cappelli
Brothers offers a membership for $800 a year,
which includes a cigar locker and discounts.
Members get a 10 percent discount on cigars
and other purchases.
While they do stock high-end cigarettes—
including Nat Sherman and Dunhill—as well
as roll-your-own, they no longer support va-
ping. That category became a casualty of a
recently passed law in Pennsylvania that add-
ed a 40 percent tax to all vaping equipment
and supplies, shifting it from a profit center to
a non-starter. “We have eliminated all vapes
since the Pennsylvania
big tax has come in
place,” says Cappelli. “Vape products/vape
juice was good retail; the markup was ex-
tremely high and in demand, so it was a core
part of our business early on. But then we had
to let our vape employees go. That’s what that
tax did for them.”
PROFITING FROM PIZZA
As envisioned by Michael Cappelli from the
beginning, the growing business took over the
pizzeria next door. “To get around the smok-
ing and eating laws in Pennsylvania, we deliv-
er the food to the person. So the pizza place
will sell you the food and, since [it delivers],
[the staff ] will deliver it here. You can sit down
at the bar and eat here. The state really can’t
say where an individual [can have] their food
delivered. It’s pretty cool.”
What’s next for the Cappelli Brothers?
“We’re looking to grow the company,” says
Cappelli. “We have 80 percent of our business
plan complete. If we finish that, you will see
this company all over the city. We will repli-
cate this model in about six locations.”
But Cappelli is also watching the horizon
and is ready to change his tune if the govern-
ment continues to restrict cigar use and bur-
den the cigar industry with taxes and regula-
tions. “If the FDA continues to pressure the
cigar industry and a tax for cigars gets passed
in Pennsylvania like it did for vape, I will in-
stantly shut this place down and turn it into a
taco stand. I’m dead serious.”
TB
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PHOTOS BY TAYLOR KOGUT / DESCANO PHOTGRAPHY