Canadahamlet Posted October 23, 2012 Posted October 23, 2012 Somehow scramble and Cuba just seem to work, I love the reference to "master" very clever. Nino you should be sleeping now, but resign yourself to loading up on the cheap custom rolled stuff from the usual suspects. BooHooo.
maverickdrinker Posted October 23, 2012 Posted October 23, 2012 Hhhmmmm...... Might have to change buying strategies.....
El Presidente Posted October 23, 2012 Posted October 23, 2012 I am told Habanos is not party to the retailing or income from cigars sold inside Cuban. . However Habanos s.a sells the cigars to the retailers/Divans in Cuba. HSA have been under pressure for years from distributors and retailers around the world to agitate for an increase in retail pricing within Cuba to slow down the arbitrage marked as discussed above. Cigar tourism is huge in Havana but the majority of sales are not boxes but tubes, singles and 3/5 carton packs. They would have done their numbers and realised they what they lose in Cuban box buys their distributors will pick up elsewhere. The potential losers here (excluding the serious cigar traveler) is the Custom business if they really do crack down in raw tobacco supply. Overall I am not sure it will effect bottom line of the Divans (increase prices 10%, lose 30% of turnover and you make the same profit). Increase 20% in pricing, lose say 10% and they are well ahead). The chincalas (fake houses) will be cheering!
Canadahamlet Posted October 23, 2012 Posted October 23, 2012 Interesting observation. From what I have been told, Habanos was more concerned about getting more money for themselves. That is why they are also targetting custom rolled cigars where the appear to make little if any money. They will have to use "persuasion" to get an increase in the supply and cost of raw tobacco if I understand the business model. Perhaps they had a price list for Cuba and one for the rest of the world. Whatever held them to this, if true, has disappeared. Who knows for sure, what we do know is that cuban prices have increased and that is our reality.
Jnaube Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Damn, that seriously is bad news... Cohiba prices are already high enough... As if buying cigars wasn't expensive enough right now... Well we can just imagine what it will be if the embargo is lifted... Sigh... Well at least we have FOH
MC4 Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 With discontinuation or phasing out of the Trinidad, Cohiba does not have any more competition in the high end brands. That's how Habanos SA can justify the outrageous price hike, specially for Cohiba.
Jnaube Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Those Cuba prices are now as high as some current vendor pricing. The vendor pricing changes are going to come as a shock to 99% of people buying cigars. The CoRos will be over $400 a box based on a Cuba price of $340!!!! Funny thing is prices will still be WAY under what we pay in Canada...
Blakes Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 With discontinuation or phasing out of the Trinidad, ???? They are getting rid of Trinidad??
maverickdrinker Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Art, just because Cohiba is up 30%, it doesn't mean they are 30% better... I got lots of Cohiba to last me a looooonnnngggg time....
Blakes Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Rob Extra and RobT for now....possibly more to come in subsequent years. I hope they dont discontinue more, i enjoy the Trinidads, especially the Reyes.
Lotusguy Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 ???? They are getting rid of Trinidad?? Misinformation that just won't die... Robusto T and Robusto Extra are goners. The rest is alive and well.... and there is still a LOT of stock of the Robos around.
Nino Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Nino, your positive energy will overcome any negative waves. I LMAO at your poster!!! I have been told by my Cuban source there will be no change in custom rolled cigars until after the Flying Cigar has left the Island! 20% increase is what they are hearing as well as making harder to get tobacco to reduce volume. The "custom rolled factories" at Partagas and Conde will have some scrambling to do. All this to drive more sales through Habanos dealers. Thanks Hamlet, good to hear from you ! Happy you liked fellow Canadian Donald from Kelly's Heroes ... As for your sources and reasonings, I can follow their arguments and was expecting a hike after rumours a few months back. Well ... Nino you should be sleeping now, but resign yourself to loading up on the cheap custom rolled stuff from the usual suspects. BooHooo. Will do, as always. Shoot me a mail in case you have any questions or anything I can do for you while there. The potential losers here (excluding the serious cigar traveler) is the Custom business if they really do crack down in raw tobacco supply. That would really hurt ! Can't believe they would damage such a great poster image for Cuban cigars as custom rollers are, but then again, all is possible.
AlohaStyle Posted October 24, 2012 Posted October 24, 2012 Of course, just in time for my first trip to Cuba!?! Oh well, at least it will lessen the temptation on me... LOL
CanuckSARTech Posted October 25, 2012 Posted October 25, 2012 Wow. This sucks. I find it mind blowing that it's not a consistent increase, and that's its so drastic and so sudden. It definitely seems like this is pre-Partagas festival timing. Definitely sucks for those of us planning to stock up when there in November. Quite the hit. And, its a shame if they do follow through on the plans for the increases to affect custom rollers as well.
Chelsea8 Posted October 25, 2012 Posted October 25, 2012 I believe that the reason for the price increase, apart from bringing it more in-line with duty-free/online retailers, is to prevent Cubans from leaving the island on a regular basis, with boxes for sale in a secondary market. This being tied to the new policy on reducing restrictions on travel, reported to be starting on Jan 14, next year. If too many Cubans start this business of travelling overseas with boxes of authentic cuban cigars for sale, it would depress sales from LCDHs in neighbouring countries, if not other LCDHs as well. Just my take on the matter.
dangolf18 Posted October 25, 2012 Posted October 25, 2012 Seriously, wtf... I absolutely have no motivation to go to Cuba now.
Ryan Posted October 25, 2012 Author Posted October 25, 2012 I don't know if it has anything to so with the Partagas festival really. I think about 300 people went last year. Although many of them would buy a lot of cigars, it's not an enormous amount of people. I would really like to hear if the rumoured changes to price and availability of custom rolled cigars are true. Anybody going next month, can you let us know?
Smallclub Posted October 25, 2012 Posted October 25, 2012 It definitely seems like this is pre-Partagas festival timing. With more than 2.5 millions tourists per year in Cuba, the Partagas festival is a drop in the ocean…
Canadahamlet Posted October 25, 2012 Posted October 25, 2012 I believe that the reason for the price increase, apart from bringing it more in-line with duty-free/online retailers, is to prevent Cubans from leaving the island on a regular basis, with boxes for sale in a secondary market. This being tied to the new policy on reducing restrictions on travel, reported to be starting on Jan 14, next year. If too many Cubans start this business of travelling overseas with boxes of authentic cuban cigars for sale, it would depress sales from LCDHs in neighbouring countries, if not other LCDHs as well. Just my take on the matter. Interesting take on the matter, but not the reason. But it could have happened. Assuming the cuban gets an entry visa, assuming he gets the cash to finance the purchases and assuming he's connected with a vendor who will take them off his hands. There is no need for a cuban, non cubans have been doing this, flying to Cuba on a weekly basis to buy large amounts of cigars with receipts or without.
CanuckSARTech Posted October 26, 2012 Posted October 26, 2012 With more than 2.5 millions tourists per year in Cuba, the Partagas festival is a drop in the ocean… But when you look at guesstimates of cigar sales with your average tourist, compared to those that go down for the Partagas Festival timeline, or the Habanos Festival in the New Year, then the timing just seems funny. True, it could have no bearing on anything - just another thrown dart at the calendar. But....it sucks nonetheless.
ArtifactsofSmoke Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 Hi All, New member, but longtime Canuck reader of this wonderful community -- I'll do a more formal intro shortly, but I just got back from the island on Sunday and can provide some updated LCDH prices for the curious. I mentioned this elsewhere and thought it would be helpful to some FOH members, so I hope you don't mind a cross-post. Confirmed Current prices (in CUC's): R+J Short Churchills - 6.95 ea - 10 for 69.50 Partagas 8-9-8 - 9.00 each - 10 for 90 RASCC - 3.65 each - Box of 25 for 91.25 SCDLH El Principe - 4.00 each - box of 25 for 100 H Upmann Half Coronas 2.80 - box of 25 for 70 RA Extras LE 2011 - 6.15 - Box of 25 for 153.75 Monte GE 2010 - 10.50 - Box of 10 for 105 (the EL's I saw seem to have held their price) Cohiba Siglo IV - 40.00 for a 3 pack, so something close to 13.33 each. Monte 2 - 92 and change for a 10 pack (I forget the exact amount). Most Pirámides are now priced somewhere between 8.00 - 9.50 each. Cohiba's seem to have gone up by 30% across the board, but there it's not true that everything else is up 15%. For example, in the case of the El Principe they went from 3.25 to 4.00 which is a 23% increase. Hope this helps and I can't wait to hear the stories from the festival!
jazzbass Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 Good God, what will happen to prices in our Sin Tax country of Canada ? Up Up And Away!!!!
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