An interesting Canadian article

[cbob]

In Calgary, I have heard rumors of an authorized Havana House of Canada retailler refilling boxes with the Havana House label with questionable cigars that his customers or himself brings back from Cuba/Mexico, etc.

My first comment is that the linked piece is from a 1997 CBC bit. Things have changes quite a bit since 1997 and our BOTL outside of Canada should regard any price or retailer quotes in light of the 11 years of "progress" in the cigar industry.
Those of you who missed the original Marketplace program :
They took a box (I think R y J Churchills but maybe Esplendidos) purchased at a Casa del Habano in Canada to Cuba and offered a cigar to the manager of a cigar factory (which one escapes me). He took a couple of rapid puffs and pronounced it A FAKE!
Well DUH!
Nobody should believe that he was not afraid of a setup and it was best that he err on the safe side rather than look stupid when the CBC told him it was a Dominican. When shown proof of purchase, he could still claim that the cigar was sub-standard and had slipped through.
The program had repercussions in Canada with Havana House taking extra pains to ensure authentic cigars.

But the points are well taken and have current parallels.
I sat beside the Manager for Havana House from Quebec during our cigar rolling class at the Festival in Havana in Feb and we later go to discussing the "parallel market" which he considers a real threat to honest retailing of Cuban cigars in Canada. He mentioned that there are currently (in Cuba) managers in factories that will divert sub-standard product to the parallel market rather than recycling it as is the rule. He also claimed that parallel market wholesalers in countries such as Panama and especially Honduras are replacing half the cigars in boxes of Cuban product with locally-made cigars, (after carefully lifting all seals etc) then supplying these cigars to the Canadian market. I don't buy into everything he said (there's more) given his vested interest but my own experience is that there are indeed poor quality or counterfeit products finding their way into Canadian retail stores.

Drew, I'd be interested in the name of that Calgary retailer. ???
I met a self-styled "BIG" Calgary retailer at a dinner in Cuba -cowboy hat and all- and he impressed me as just the kind of guy who would be buying from the parallel market or buying counterfeits on his trips to Cuba (difficult due to Cuban diligence but not impossible) and substituting the cheapies for the real thing for those customers he might consider "unsophisticated" IYKWIM
I won't mention any names here but you could PM me and we can compare notes.

Commander Bob
Has had a fake Monte 2 from a (former) local retailer.

 

[Ocat]

Interesting. Very interesting. Cockroach flavored fake Cuban cigars. Damn! I'm amazed at the things people will do to make money.

 

[ulster]

Thank you for the great post and for sharing your experience. I was recently in Vancouver at a lounge/shop there and was just boggled by the prices. The approach taken by Canadians who frequent these establishments was to buy and try at the shops, but also to purchase a box now and then to insure exceptional treatment in their lounge. But alas, with the recent passage of the smoking ban, their very comfy lounge has been shut down and their experienced and friendly servers are now little more than counter help. What a tragedy.

It's quite surprising to me that even with an official distributor, that so many shops offer fakes. I remember walking down the main streets in VC and seeing the glowing neon signs advertising "Cuban Cigars" and wondering what they were really selling. Some of these shops struck me as headshops, or even 7-Eleven type convenience stores.

With respect to online v B&M, here in the U.S. it is much the same. Buy to try and then order boxes from any one of the reputable vendors here such as Al at Puffstuff, Mark at Tower, Brad at The Outlaw.

Wilkey

Ahhh.....Vancouver - my home town. I know the lounge that you are referring to quite well Wilkey. It was a great place and is still one of the few places that I will purchase singles from when I am in Vancouver. Did you notice the prices for non-cuban's - Opux X Robusto for $55 each, RP Vintage 1990 Torpedo for $29 each, La Aurora Perferidos for $45. Cuban cigars are cheaper than Non-cubans. It is nice to have a foot on both sides of the border!

Most of the "hole-in-the-wall" stores that liter Vancouver sell fakes. Even some of the nicer looking shops designed to fool tourists sell fakes. One must be careful to purchase from some of the few reputable shops who have direct ties to Havana House.

 

[cbob]

Buy to try and then order boxes from any one of the reputable vendors here such as Al at Puffstuff, Mark at Tower, Brad at The Outlaw.

Wilkey

Are we discussing CUBAN CIGAR RETAILERS here now?

Commander Bob
With the rule staring me in the face as I type.

 

[tigger]

Buy to try and then order boxes from any one of the reputable vendors here such as Al at Puffstuff, Mark at Tower, Brad at The Outlaw.

Wilkey

Are we discussing CUBAN CIGAR RETAILERS here now?

Commander Bob
With the rule staring me in the face as I type.

NO WE AREN'T!

They're all U.S. vendors of Noncuban cigars, who have all been very good to this board and its members. I'm surprised you aren't aware of them, and that Wilkey is the last person who would break that rule.

 

[Ginseng]

Right you are, Tim. These are all U.S.-based retailers of non-Cuban cigars who are well known to the American members of CigarPass. They are active here on the community in the Retailer Specials forum and throughout the board. Good men, all.

Wilkey

 

[cbob]

My mistake.
I don't know the retailers mentioned and assumed incorrectly that they were offshore.

For personal reasons, I don't import from online vendors to avoid import duties and tax.

My apologies to all.



Commander Bob

PS
The article is STILL from November 4, 1997

CB

 

[vortex]

Thanks for posting this info, Wilkey. I had no idea how systemic the problem has become.

As far as the new tax laws go, I don't see much reason to hope we will be spared much longer. Maybe us serfs will have to rise up a la the Peasants' Revolt of 1381!