Joel Sherman, Former Nat Sherman Owner, passes away


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Joel Sherman, 1939–2024

A veteran retailer who spent decades in the cigar business

Sep 10, 2024 - By David Savona

Joel Sherman, 1939–2024

Photo/David Yellen

Joel Sherman, the longtime owner of the Nat Sherman store in New York City, died yesterday after a long battle with Parkinson’s. He was 85 years old. 

Sherman was born on August 2, 1939, and he spent decades in the family tobacco business. His first job was cleaning the original Nat Sherman store on 1400 Broadway when he was 10 years old. Sherman began working full time in 1963 at Nat Sherman, a company founded by his father Nat in 1930. When he was in high school, Joel came up with a business plan to move his father’s store to a much higher-end location, on Fifth Avenue. The store was moved several times over the years, and the final location was on 42nd Street near Grand Central Terminal. 

Joel left the business for about 12 years, in 1978, shifting to run a business called Concord Shear. He came back to Nat Sherman after his father’s death in 1990, and was joined in the family business by his children Bill, Larry and Michele.

Nat Sherman was far more than a retailer, and developed its own line of Nat Sherman cigars. (For a time before the Cuban embargo, it was the exclusive supplier of Cuba’s Bolivar brand for the United States.) It also had several lines of cigarettes. In 2017, it drew the interest of cigarette giant Altria Group Inc., which acquired Sherman Holdings Inc. and the entire portfolio of Nat Sherman branded high-end cigarettes and premium cigars. 

On September 16, 2020, Nat Sherman closed its store, known as The Townhouse. Today, no more cigars are sold under the Nat Sherman name, although the blends live on under a new name, Ferio Tego. 

“Few people have the opportunity to make such a lasting impact on so many people’s lives,” said Michael Herklots, who worked for Sherman for many years. As one of the owners of Ferio Tego, he is now the custodian of the old Nat Sherman brands, if not in name, then certainly in spirit.

Source: https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/joel-sherman-1939-2024

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SEPTEMBER 10, 2024 - CHARLIE MINATO

JOEL SHERMAN, FORMER NAT SHERMAN OWNER, PASSES AWAY

Joel Sherman, the former CEO and owner of Nat Sherman, passed away on Monday at the age of 85.

He was born on Aug. 2, 1939, the son of the company’s founder, Nat Sherman. He began working for the family’s store in the 1960s though left before returning in the 1990s. He served as CEO until early 2017 when the family sold Nat Sherman to Altria, the tobacco giant that sells Marlboro cigarettes in the U.S.

For a few years following the acquisition, some parts of Nat Sherman remained the same. Altria bought the company for some of its cigarette brands but it kept the other parts of the Nat Sherman business—a retail store, cigars, pipes and accessories—going and kept much of the existing staff.

In 2020, those non-cigarette businesses were shut down. Nat Sherman was probably best known for its Manhattan retail store, though the location itself moved around multiple times. The final store—on 42nd Street, around the corner from the New York Public Library—closed in September 2020. That also marked the end of the Nat Sherman-branded cigars, which had just six years before released a Joel Sherman-branded cigar in honor of his 75th birthday.

The cigar and pipe brands were purchased by two former Nat Sherman employees—Michael Herklots and Brendon Scott—who sell the lines today under the Ferio Tego name.

“Mr. Sherman’s love and generosity were truly boundless,” said Herklots in a statement to halfwheel. “His quick smile and sense of humor, combined with his genuine care for others, made him an incredibly special, irreplicable and unforgettable person. He will surely be missed but his legacy will no doubt live on in the countless lives he touched and made better.”

Source: https://halfwheel.com/joel-sherman-former-nat-sherman-owner-passes-away/442587/

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My first box purchase as a sophomore in college was a box of Nat Sherman Hobarts in 1996. Put them in a “cigar jar” as my humidor. Loved their blends. They always have a fond place as my intro to cigar smoking. Happy to see their blends in Ferio Tego hands. Have had opportunity to meet Michael Herklocks at a local event who shares a passion for the cigar industry. 

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I was in his store several times when he was on 42nd St. A first-rate operation with beautiful humidors and other cigar accessories, and knowledgeable staff. 

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