Cigar Marketing: Thoughts of Cuban minis as Limited Editions?

[El Presidente]

I came across this earlier today: 

PRESS RELEASE

 

The world of Cuban mini cigars continues to evolve with the launch of the Cohiba Wide Short 50 Limited Edition 2024 humidor.

Following the success of Cohiba Wide Short, which, since its launch in 2023, has continued to grow, the brand celebrates the introduction of the Wide Short format with a limited edition featuring 50 cigarillos made in Cuba using 100% Cuban black tobacco. This release is presented in a premium humidor that combines noble materials with a contemporary design.

Cohiba Wide Short has become a milestone in the brand’s history within Cuban machine-made mini cigars, rising in two years to become its second best-selling format by volume and the leading one in terms of global revenue.

The Cohiba Wide Short 50 Limited Edition 2024 humidor is available at leading specialist tobacconists across Spain at a retail price of €225 per case.

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Does this cheapen the whole Limited Edtion concept?   Maybe I am just oldschool. 

No doubt it will be successful. Still, I wonder at the unintentended implications.  

Limited Edition Jose Piedra anyone? 

[zacca]

I think for the most part, the people who buy Shorts and minis see it as a cost effective way to smoke Cuban tobacco. Others I’ve encountered are just starting out with CCs and don’t realize they’re not hand rolled.

So if you start making LEs out of them, I agree it cheapens the LE concept and it also starts to price out many customers who were buying minis in the first place due to value. 

[JDoughty]

I see it as a way to enjoy any reasonably tasty cigar at all when I may have only a short time to smoke. For that much money, it had better be an extremely tasty short smoke.

[Lucas Buck]

Love my minis, chicos, puritos & clubs. Smoked my first Cohiba Wide Short a while back and it was a great short smoke. I have exactly zero interest in a LE humidor. 

[JohnS]

I too have no interest in this whatsoever; however, a number of people out there will definitely buy this, in my view.

[gormag38]

I personally think it's a terrible idea. Minis, Clubs, Chicos etc. have never appealed to me though. If I want a short smoke I'll grab a HUHC or similar. The Limited Edition Shorts I also have no interest in. 

[Astro70s]

As a recent beginner in the UK, I spent way too much in trying pretty much all the Minis/Clubs/Puritos currently out there (apart from the Partagas Chicos). I still have a soft spot for some of them, as they help keep cravings in check when you are trying to age proper CCs, but these LE versions seem like total cash-grabbing and fetishising. The prices for a standard pack of Montecristo / Trinidad Shorts are creeping up every month over here, so the only ones I now would consider are the RyJ Puritos (better than the Monte version). However, definitely tempted by the recently announced Trinidad Wide-Short, but have yet to see any out there. 

[Dadof3]

I really enjoy the Wide Shorts. Great quick format with something akin to a Cohiba flavor. A humidor for it seems a bit much but to each their own. But what is the descriptor about Cuban black tobacco? Is that a catch all phrase? I presume the wide shorts are made from the trimmings and waste from the rollers?  

[Fugu]

Not to be confused with ‘Edición Limitada’ in Habanos. These simply are limited runs (‘Limited Edition’) of a special packaging (now zodiac mostly and ‘88’-count, of course). Same cigars. And as such they are being promoted. They’ve been doing it for years in the ICT offerings, the Clubs and the Minis. While in the Short, the wooden high-gloss piano-finish humidors started around 2018. I don’t find anything ‘mean’ about it. When the surcharge was still decent (15 to 20€ extra for the box), I bought some, as they give nice cases for my daughter’s drawing tools. 😅