Deletions 2010...


Which 2010 deletion would you save?  

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lots on there that I am going to be sad to see go but the LGC Med #1 hurts the most I'm afraid. Connie 3 close 2nd and Dip 4 close 3rd. ERDM GDE is on that I have had just begun to really enjoy but dont have enough experience with. Not yet at least.

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It would seem to me that there is no way to justify the deletion of half of these cigars. The elimination of the Partagas Serie Connoisseur No.1, No.2 and No.3 is nothing short of madness. I have bought five boxes from this series in the last eighteen months as well as a box of Punch Royal Seleccion 11s and La Gloria Cubana Medaille D'or No.1. Diplomaticos #4 and Punch Royal Seleccion 12 are on my short-list. WTF. I'm voting on the Partagas Serie Connoisseur No.1, like it even matters. As I have discovered in earlier deletions—there is a silver-lining—I'll be spending less money on cigars.

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It would seem to me that there is no way to justify the deletion of half of these cigars. The elimination of the Partagas Serie Connoisseur No.1, No.2 and No.3 is nothing short of madness. I have bought five boxes from this series in the last eighteen months as well as a box of Punch Royal Seleccion 11s and La Gloria Cubana Medaille D'or No.1. Diplomaticos #4 and Punch Royal Seleccion 12 are on my short-list. WTF. I'm voting on the Partagas Serie Connoisseur No.1, like it even matters. As I have discovered in earlier deletions—there is a silver-lining—I'll be spending less money on cigars.

This last point is where I would like to begin.

I have worked for some very large companies each of which has canceled some iconic and slow-moving product on more than one occasion. Every time we announced a discontinuation, we were barraged by emails and letters from loyal customers who implored us to reconsider in order to preserve their brand loyalty. While we were often moved by these letters, we almost never reconsidered. Because virtually none of the letters ever made an effective business or brand statement that had any legs. And, by the time a product made it to our 'canceled' list, a lot of research, analysis, meeting time and other due diligence had been performed and performed again--it was just too little, to late. It is never an easy decision. But, at the end of the day, it's just business. Show me the money.

For us to have any real chance of success: my advice here is to cut down the scope of the petition and make a far more compelling business argument than I am seeing in this thread up to this point. Let me be specific.

I wonder how many of the people who are now evangelists for the Diplomatico 4 and 5 have bought more than three boxes in the past 12 months. Not many, I am sure. The same is probably true for the LGCs, QDs and Punch Churchills. And, remember, this is a site of real aficionados and not a typical cross-section of the Habanos customer base. Those folks probably never tried any of these. Besides, in tough times-- when things have to be reevaluated to preserve the greater good-- one can make the argument that there are already Monte 4s and 5s and Cohiba 1s and 2s and so on--in other words, no shortage of PCs or TPCs in the lineup. So who needs the slow-moving Dip 4 and 5?. That is how a business will look at it in times like these and it's why I believe that these two cigars as well as the RS 11 and 12 are gone, sadly. This last one really hurts me as it is a personal favorite.

However, by being more focused and respectful of the business argument, we do have a better chance for saving the Connaisseur Series. As a complete series, they are one-of-a-kind, universally praised and, quite obviously when you look at the pricing compared to a Dip or an RG, a high-margin product that benefits from the premium and popular nature of the Partagas DNA vs. a Dip or RG. A good, if not great, business point -of-view that is worth trying.

What's more, two out of the three vitolas in the Series no longer exist anywhere else in the Habanos portfolio. And with the cancellation of the Grande Espana, all three of the Connaisseurs will become unique. Hence, the historic or 'brand' argument. As a 'compromise' position, it would be far more likely to see this as a relatively easy 'give back' to us. The line just has far more horsepower for possible preservation than most others on this list of goners.

It is still a long-shot but one that makes far more sense and shows far more understanding that they are running a business and a brand.

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Neal,

I have bought and smoked many boxes of both the Diplomatico's on the cut list and regularly purchase #1's and #3's when I come across them if a reasonable price.

As far as I am concerned, this is far more about homogenization of brands and the marketing of "flagship lines". Just because the market or profit margin for, say the diplomatico, is not as high as say a 100 dollar siglo 6, Coro, PSD4, or RyJ Churchill, does not mean that there is not a valuable and devoted buyer base for them.

IMO, this was a poorly thought out marketing decision, and not one based on sound business thinking.

It seems more and more, HSA is far more interested in creating homogenous lines of cigars, indistiguishable from one another, as well as focusing on production of RE's, EL's. I guess, as long as people clamor for the newest limited release, attention is diverted from the quality and diversity of the rest of the HSA portfolio. It appears that HSA sees the future of their business in limited release stuff and the collapsing of lesser known brands (some fear of brand dilution perhaps?)... I think it's a huge mistake.

The future is looking more and more like you will be able to either purchase one of 5 different regular production robusto's or CG's suffering inconsistent quality or taste, or you can drop twice the coin for some RE with the hope that it will be worth it...not a pretty sight IMO.

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