Interesting thought or troubling.....

[cigar_040]

I was reading this thread http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showthr...ewpost&t=27514 and a certain comment got me to thinking.

Originally Posted by guinsdan

Ahhh...the classic wal-mart vs. small business debate.

Now be it I'm on the night shift....my 7th in a row w/ 2 to go. So.....I got this thought in my head.....

What would happen to the cigar market or mom/pop B&M if Walmart suddenly decided to specialize in cigars.............? Could they set prices? Would quality suffer in the face of quanity? How about a box of Opus on lay-a-way?

Just curious to get peoples opinions..........

[Zenistar]

I suspect it would end up the same as everything else, if they could take advantage of mass buying power and retain the quality of the product in their stores - they could probably lower / set prices much lower than a regular B&M and make sales.

We are already seeing this with some online stores who shift so much stock their prices are way lower than B&M, the thing that draws people into B&M though are the knowledgeable staff, friendship and singles but there are a large proportion of people who don't care for this and will shop for the cheapest deal no matter what.

[Bigwaved]

IMHO, it is not the product that suffers, instead it is the worker. WalMart is the poster child for not treating its workers well.

[bpegler]

FYI-There is a cigar shop already in the Wal-mart in Cancun. It wasn't anything special, although seeing Castro's finest in a US owned store ws a little weird. This store probably doesn't represent a move in their business model, but there it is.

Probably on-line retailers represent more of a threat to small mom/pop B&Ms than anything else.

[Brother Jebadiah]

Originally Posted by Bigwaved

IMHO, it is not the product that suffers, instead it is the worker. WalMart is the poster child for not treating its workers well.

Not true according to the people I know who work there.

[mike32312]

Cigars on lay away. Now that would be a dream come true. I'd go to work there just to get an employee discount and fisrt debs on the good stuff.


HI WELCOME TO WALMART!

[tech-ninja]

Originally Posted by Zenistar

I suspect it would end up the same as everything else, if they could take advantage of mass buying power and retain the quality of the product in their stores - they could probably lower / set prices much lower than a regular B&M and make sales.

We are already seeing this with some online stores who shift so much stock their prices are way lower than B&M, the thing that draws people into B&M though are the knowledgeable staff, friendship and singles but there are a large proportion of people who don't care for this and will shop for the cheapest deal no matter what.

I have a b&m that I frequent when on business in GA. I was talking to him and telling him how I tried the Rare Corojo in his shop and it prompted me to buy a box at $88 from Famous. He paused and told me that I had gotten a cheaper price on my box than he had gotten from his distributor.

[Bigwaved]

Originally Posted by Brother Jebadiah

Not true according to the people I know who work there.

Not trying to start an arguement, just stating what the general perception of big boxes is.

[Corona Gigante]

Originally Posted by Bigwaved

Not trying to start an arguement, just stating what the general perception of big boxes is.

My perception is the same as Bigwaved. That's why my family doesn't shop MallWart.

If Sam's isn't selling something, it's not through oversight. You can bet they've considered it and just don't see themselves making money on it. Probably can't source them cheap enough. But let's not go there.

[donp]

I don't shop at Walmart when I want high quality in merchandise. If I want to buy a set of 300 dollar stereo speakers, I am looking for 3 hundred dollars worth of quality. If Walmart would carry discounted cigars, I would look at their quality first. I would probably be disappointed though.
B&M's can have great product and prices and poor products and even poorer prices or, great products and awful prices. My budget requires that I get the best bang for my buck, and therefore I'm gonna spend my money where I can get the most value. This is the way of things in our economy. I will buy singles from the B&M I go to but, their prices on boxes is prohibitive in many cases.

I would tend to think that given the size and market penatration of Altias and General Cigar and Fuente, plus the active internet market, that Walmart would not have the price influence that they have on other product lines. Since the cigar market already has a hard time keeping up with demand for preminums (handmades, full length tobaccos), I can't see the manufactures needing to cut prices just to court Walmart. White Owls, Swishers, Blunts and the such are a different story, as these are already cut rate, and already marketed at many discount outlets. Why would the big name suppliers/makers chance the degrade in product quality required to mass produce to Walmart's standards, when these big cigar companies can already sell as many cigars as they need, at prices that are well above the wholesale price they would have to grant Walmart. Same thing for cubans if the embargo were to be lifted. the soaring prices on cubans and the limited supply would put them in a catagory that Walmart could not demand a discount enough to be competitive.

just my

[TU09]

I was talking to the owner of my local B&M yesterday who is also a wholesaler and supplies most of the cigar retailers in New Orleans. He made it sound as if many cigar producers had favorable pricing and distribution policies for B&Ms over large online retailers. I know my B&M also has many selections that will never be released to online retailers (JFR) and many more that, for his sales volume, he gets more of than the large online guys (Opus X). I suspect that the producers would be even more hostile toward Walmart and why would they want to sell to them anyway? Walmart represents a lifestyle very different than that which they try to associate with cigars. I also doubt that Walmart would have any sway when it comes to pricing as there is a huge market already. Does walmart even sell tobacco products currently?

[Darb85]

[QUOTE=TU09]I was talking to the owner of my local B&M yesterday who is also a wholesaler and supplies most of the cigar retailers in New Orleans. He made it sound as if many cigar producers had favorable pricing and distribution policies for B&Ms over large online retailers. I know my B&M also has many selections that will never be released to online retailers (JFR) and many more that, for his sales volume, he gets more of than the large online guys (Opus X). I suspect that the producers would be even more hostile toward Walmart and why would they want to sell to them anyway? Walmart represents a lifestyle very different than that which they try to associate with cigars. I also doubt that Walmart would have any sway when it comes to pricing as there is a huge market already. Does walmart even sell tobacco products currently?[/QUOTE]

Yes they do. only one lane in the center of the store usually.

[mosesbotbol]

I’d think the big players in the cigar industry would be reluctant to give Walmart too much stock. The B&M’s are a solid distribution chain and Walmart could leave you high and dry just as quick as they say they’ll buy everything.

Smoking in general is on the attack and I don’t think it makes sense for Walmart to invest larger than they are in tobacco related products; it opens them to litigation when some gets cancer and says they always bought the tobacco at Walmart.

FYI, my parents live in Mexico 4 months a year and they say you can buy some Cuban cigars at Walmart in Cancun.

[Baric]

Wouldnt Walmart risk creating too much of a monopoly if they entered into the cigar market (either a product range monopoly or one in the cigar market) as from what ive heard they are getting pretty big (much like our Tescos)?