In the most rewarding new industries, there is often a convergence of factors that make them lucrative and sustainable. Factors like the emergence of new technologies, a ripening of the consumer market, or a political climate that spawns laws and regulations that give a particular business model oomph can revolutionize an industry. Over the last two decades, the counterfeit cigar industry in the United States saw all three of these factors converge to create the perfect storm of the illicit trades market.
It began in the 1960's as the trade of authentic Cuban cigars was banned in the United States. This immediately created a situation in which there was a consumer demand for a product that was all but inaccessible through conventional retail channels. More recently, the explosion of computer and printing technology has allowed for the easy duplication of cigar boxes, labels and seals of authenticity. Finally, the growing popularity of cigars over the last fifteen years has fueled a consumer market that is eager to get its hands on any kind of Cuban cigar possible.
In this environment, producing counterfeit cigars is all but the perfect business move. Add to this fact that the punishment in the U.S. for this type of counterfeiting is among the most minimal for illicit, black-market crimes, and the reward seems well worth the risk.
Altadis, USA has consistently been a prime target for counterfeiters with the reputation of its ubiquitous cigar lines. Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, and H. Upmann are all among the most notoriously spoofed cigar lines in the United States, and Altadis is beginning a major crackdown.
On March 25th, 2005, Altadis, USA was awarded $3.5 million in counterfeiting and trademark infringement against two Florida corporations. The corporations have now been disbanded. In addition to the damages, the counterfeiters were ordered to recall their entire product line including promotional and packaging material and deliver it to Altadis for destruction. The participants in the two corporations are also permanently enjoined from employing graphics that are confusingly similar to trademarks within the Altadis cigar line.
The cigar boom of the late 1990's brought with it two major problems - the first was the proliferation of sub-par cigar lines and the second was the increased circulation of counterfeit cigars. Sub-par cigars have, for the most part, been filtered-out with the rapid decline in consumption that occurred between 1997 and 2001. Companies that did not have a strong foundation in quality were forced out of business. Now, it looks like, major corporations are finally stepping up to weed-out the proliferation of counterfeit cigars.
In the 2005 United States cigar market, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who would disagree with the fact that there are more higher-quality handmade cigars available at better prices than ever before. To ultimately do serious damage to the counterfeit cigar industry, it will take the efforts of Altadis redoubled and spread all over the globe. But now that the counterfeiters are being taken to task, maybe we can all have the confidence that we get what we pay for.
Tynan Szvetecz is an editor for http://www.whatsknottolove.com, an online cigar boutique that is helping bring the feel of your local cigar shop to the internet. It features a unique cigar collection as well as cigar tips, cigar culture advice and cigar accessories.
Why are intelligent people so afraid of the idea that... Read More
Elliot Spitzer, recently said he wanted to drive a stake... Read More
Excess capacity occurs in many industries, such as power, electricity,... Read More
Utah introduced a bill designed to limit the use of... Read More
When organising a country or a group of people in... Read More
As baby boomers, we have been spoiled all of our... Read More
In today's Rants from Lance session I address the question... Read More
The first reaction of economies in transition is a sharp... Read More
IN A DAY AND AGE where one voice screaming among... Read More
On June 16, 1972, a security guard at the Watergate... Read More
I heard on the news this week how America continues... Read More
Many MLM sales people mean well but they inadvertently commit... Read More
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development issued a report... Read More
In Police Magazine I read a great article about transient... Read More
Here are some miscellaneous thoughts on issues many of which... Read More
Throughout all recorded history on our lovely little planet, Earth's... Read More
Britain has a proud tradition of valiant armed forces and... Read More
Ohio's transportation sector seems to be strong, even with Ohio's... Read More
Rufus King: (Said to be the fifth most important person... Read More
(Note: This article was written slightly before the 2004 election;... Read More
The US Dollar has been falling continuously in last year.... Read More
The official figures are staggering: 35% of the workforce -... Read More
The Federal Trade Commission in their latest move to increase... Read More
The City of Portland is going after any small business,... Read More
The RSS is getting feedback from its 140 pracharaks or... Read More
It is time for a change. A change in philosophy,... Read More
Legislation was introduced into Congress this week that would establish... Read More
The second amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees every American... Read More
In an age of terrorism, guerilla and total warfare the... Read More
After 9-11 insurance rates on Independent Truck Drivers and smaller... Read More
The paper industry in the US is hurting. Due to... Read More
Our Airports have excess capacity, which is not being used... Read More
A quick look back at NAFTA; how did we do?Stabilizing... Read More
Many of the problems that the members of the European... Read More
An American soldier is taken behind enemy lines and brainwashed... Read More
Most modern day media stories containing fear, controversy and chaos... Read More
The use of religion is well-documented as a social engineering... Read More
Visible remnants of the world's eldest democracy can be seen... Read More
OH MAN!Here we go again. I guess now the "proof... Read More
THE ECCLESIASTICAL GRANT:There are good things done by the hegemony.... Read More
Continued thoughts while driving down the road in a huge... Read More
Last Summer the Federal Trade Commission came out with a... Read More
Former Governor of Alaska, Jay Hammond, died at age 83,... Read More
Reform Social Security has been talked of Capital Hill for... Read More
In the event of that a threatening nation to the... Read More
The problem of poverty in America comes as a surprise.... Read More
The RSS is getting feedback from its 140 pracharaks or... Read More
Environmentalists say GM Seeds are bad for the environment, dangerous... Read More
Well, another election has come and gone in the US... Read More
Sodomy is against the law, yet goes on every day... Read More
INTRODUCTIONPERHAPS the sentiments contained in the following pages, are not... Read More
Many parents might think it a bit farfetched to compare... Read More
It is widely known in the Homosexual Male Populations that... Read More
Last week, the media coverage called the airplane crash in... Read More
You are not going to believe what is going on... Read More
Alexander Hamilton ? Policy Separated from Politics:I am related to... Read More
Down The Bush and BlairBy now everyone, except us, is... Read More
Veterans Affairs Employees using government credit cards on personal items?... Read More
Today we have a new franchise report from the Federal... Read More
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development issued a report... Read More
This is the fourth and final article in a series... Read More
As you can see from some of our previous articles,... Read More
The Second World War was the continuation of World War... Read More
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act Was created on July 30th 2002, by... Read More
Do you find it interesting that people complain about the... Read More
Indonesia's Energy Minister, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, is unhappy with the modest... Read More
Political |