Cigar Trends 2024: what’s hot and what’s not in the new year. Searching for ways to take your cigar sales to the next level? Staying ahead of the latest cigar trends is one of the best ways to maintain great sales growth and prestige. You’ll be able to develop inventory and marketing strategies to keep your cigar customers happy and those cigar sales booming throughout the year.
Deciphering what cigar smokers want can be difficult in the post-pandemic era of evolving tastes, supply issues, and ever-changing legislation. So, our cigar marketing gurus put together this quick guide to help you identify and dissect cigar trends so you can up your cigar marketing game and keep your cigar sales on the path to success.
Cigar Size Matters: A Deep Dive into the Latest Size Trends
Identifying the cigar sizes your customers want is a straightforward affair. However, getting the most out of size trends can be a bit of a trickier process. Trends can emerge slowly or quickly, drastically affecting supply and demand and leaving you on the outside looking in when attempting to seize the moment.
It takes time for cigar makers to build up their inventories and ship products, so trendier sizes may be slow to reach cigar shops. In addition, trends can come and go in the time it takes to order, receive, and stock the cigars. So, staying ahead of the curve requires planning and educated guesswork.
A great way to remove some guessing is by using cigar industry surveys, such as Cigar Insider’s annual US cigar retailer survey report. Gaining insights from other cigar retailers and manufacturers lets you explore rising and falling trends. For example, Cigar Insider surveyed 81 retailers with over 290 retail stores, and their results show several trend patterns regarding cigar sizes.
Nearly 70% of the cigar retailers surveyed stated the Toro size as their best seller. Also, the 2023 survey indicates 60-plus ring gauge cigars (Grande/Gordo) moved into the second best-selling size slot with a 14.8% share compared to Robusto’s dwindling 13.6%. That’s a substantial shift from previous surveys where Robusto held the top position and 60-plus popularity seemed to wane.
So, as the survey points out, big cigars are in. The report also suggests that consumers are gravitating to larger-diameter cigars to get what they perceive as greater value. This information offers a great example of how you can use surveys to bolster your sales position. Adjusting your inventory to include more Toro sizes and 60-plus ring gauge cigars lets you take full advantage of the larger size trend and deliver more of what your customers want.
Blending Excellence: The Evolution of Cigar Blends and Flavor Profiles
Not so long ago, the hottest cigar trend was “bolder is better,” with cigar enthusiasts scrambling to get the richest, most powerful cigars they could find. However, recent trends show cigar smokers trading potency for more complex, intricately blended flavor profiles.
Cigar Insider’s retailer survey highlights Padron, Arturo Fuente, La Flor Dominicana, My Father, Davidoff, Romeo y Julieta, Liga Privada, and Rocky Patel as customers’ most asked-for premium cigars. It’s no coincidence that these brands are also noted for their refined, deeply complex offerings.
Taking full advantage of cigar flavor trends requires flexibility when curating cigar inventories so you can quickly pivot as trends evolve. Showcasing top cigars, like the Fuente Fuente Opus X or Padron 1964 Anniversary, and other alternatives of similar quality is a good way to ensure you always have dependable, in-demand options available no matter the trend.
Adapting to cigar flavor trends enhances your store’s reputation as the go-to cigar destination for cigar smokers. Yet the trick is identifying trending cigar blends before they peak, and your customers overwhelm you with requests. So, work with your marketing team to develop strategies to use industry sources and communicate regularly with customers to track current and future cigar flavor trends.
Smoking Experience Redefined: Innovative Techniques and Pairing Suggestions
Cigar sizes, blends, and smoker’s tastes ebb and flow, affecting the overall cigar-smoking experience, including how they cut and light cigars to where they prefer to smoke. Pairing trends also rise and fall, depending on what’s hot in cigars and drinks. So, you can ensure your customers achieve an optimal cigar-smoking experience by helping them explore the latest trends and innovations.
Cigar pairing trends continuously evolve with changing flavor profiles. Cognac long held the top spot for cigar-pairing spirits yet was supplanted by scotch whisky. Most recently, bourbon and other more robust spirits served as favorites, matching fuller-bodied smokes. As the pendulum swings back toward more refined cigar flavor profiles, equally sophisticated cigar-pairing spirits such as gin and tequila trend upwards. Also, fortified wines, including port and sherry, continue an upswing in sales, paralleling their reemergence as go-to pairing options.
From cigar cutters to high-tech humidification systems, cigar smokers love new gadgets. They love their tasty beverages, too. So, sharing the latest cigar accessory technology and pairing options with your customers shows them how to enhance their smoking experience. This provides great in-store promotional and digital marketing opportunities that build customers’ trust and increase sales.
Impact on the Market: How Cigar Trends Shape the Industry’s Future
Cigar trends propel the premium cigar industry forward, compelling cigar and accessory manufacturers to explore new ways to add to the smoking experience. Cigar retailers are on the trend front lines, feeding or starving trends by providing a direct conduit from consumer to cigarmaker. So, how you approach your customers’ needs can greatly impact how the industry responds to trends, shaping the health of US cigar markets and those around the world.
National trends may not always match trends in your area, so engage with your customers often to note if and when their cigar preferences change. By comparing what’s hot in cigars nationally and locally, you can identify trend patterns and pivot your cigar business’s strategies accordingly, so you’ll always be ahead of the curve.
Put Cigar Trends to Work for Your Cigar Business
Understanding cigar trends is invaluable to cultivating a versatile, top-selling cigar inventory your customers depend on to create their ultimate cigar experience. So, use cigar trend insights to implement strategies that take your cigar shop’s sales, prestige, and visibility to another level.
Whether you are a trend bucker, setter, or follower, Cigarketing can help you navigate cigar trends to discover the best ways to grow your cigar business. Don’t let the next big cigar trend pass you! Schedule a meet with our trend-savvy experts today!