Question by N-tron: Habanos distributors

[El Presidente]

1. How does a company become an official Habanos distributor (competitive bidding, history, connections)?

2. Does Habanos or the regional distributor inspect official retail outlets?

3. How to the cigars physically travel from the Cuban factory/warehouse to their final retail destination on the other side of the world (climate controlled shipping, airfreight)?

1. How does a company become an official Habanos distributor (competitive bidding, history, connections)? All the above

All regional licence holders have two things in common: A. Money and B. extensive distribution networks.

Where a License holder has a region under control and he meets his budgets...he is relatively safe. Someone eyeing this territory or part of it, needs to spend years cultivating connections and detailing how their extensive distribution networks would progress Habanos interests. Money, politics, intrigue makes up the rest.

2. Inspections are haphazard. They follow the 80/20 rule in that they will support and invest time in the 20% who make 80% of the profits.

3. In this region by Air.

[n-tron]

I thought the answer to question #1 might be a little too convoluted for a short reply.

I am glad to hear that the little guys travel by air on their way from Cuba. I had this vision in my head of them imprisoned in cargo containers on ships for weeks at a time.

Thanks Prez!