The Certified Medallion: Leveraging TU

We tell all TU Apprentices and Certified Tobacconists that getting Certified and passing the final exam is just the beginning of the process, albeit the hardest. Ultimately, Certification must be leveraged by wearing the Certified Pin and using the Certified Medallion, on business cards, store signage, and your website. After all, if you get Certified and never mention it to your customers, co-workers, vendors, and the community around you, then the benefits will never materialize. While TU is no magic bullet for what ails our industry, the ability to leverage it is a massive competitive advantage.

PS: every CRT store gets a framed diploma with their logo, store signage stickers, and the right to use the Certified Medallion as long as they maintain one CRT. Individual CRT receive the Certified Pin, a personal diploma, mouse pad, and more...

The Tobacconist Handbook Proof

The Tobacconist Handbook Proof has arrived. And, it is indeed proof of our credibility and professionalism. These 205 pages, 120+ custom images/graphics, and 41,000+ words took almost fifteen years to create and then another 2,000 hours to distill into a handbook. I could not be more excited to preview it here for you. Thank you to all of the well-wishers and inquirers; it will be available in September 2009 and you will definitely be hearing more about it in the months to come. Please sign up for our email list (top left) to get the latest and greatest news!

Take a sneak peak at the Padrón Foreword.

TU Pays CRT $100

Today we cut our first check to a CRT for certifying a consumer (CCT). While the $100 check may not lift us out of the current economic crisis, this is nonetheless an historic occassion. CRT around the world can certify consumers and earn $100 for doing practically nothing! Pure profit (less postage)!! This is what we mean when we say TU creates "new value and opportunities". So, in the tradition of retailers framing their first dollar bill, we are posting our first $100 check written to a CRT for certifying a CCT. This is just the beginning and we could not be more proud than to create value and profit for retail tobacconists.

FYI: you can read all about CCT here.

National Media Honors Certified Tobacconists

Certified Tobacconists from across the country received national media recognition for their accomplishments in a news report today:

Gaining positive media attention is a rare thing indeed these days, and important to projecting and preserving the honor and credibility of the luxury tobacco industry. Congratulations to everyone who has been certified and was mentioned in the article. Thank you for your support and enthusiasm. And thanks to all our apprentices. We look forward to certifying all of you and watching this list grow!

Sickening Health Industry

Over the last few weeks the FDA has come out against the use of e-cigarettes, and the state of Oregon has banned them, even though these products are estimated to be 1400 times safer than regular cigarettes (see http://tobaccoanalysis.blogspot.com/ for further enlightenment). Meanwhile, a study was just released showing that the use of antidepressants in America has doubled over the last decade. Antidepressants are the drugs that affect serotonin levels, a.k.a. the pleasure center of the brain. Perhaps this is what people turn to when they are scared into giving up natural delicacies like tobacco (see Pills vs. Cigars)... I don't know the reasons why, but clearly there is something wrong with a society that needs to medicate so many people just to be functional. I can empathize with anyone taking these drugs, but I am ashamed to live in a world where they are so prevalent and the real drug pushers are multi-national pharmaceutical companies (the same companies that push nicotine replacement products - not including e-cigarettes though).

I hope we can get back to a place where a stiff drink, good cigar, or long night of shagging can cure what ails us.... Let's remember that we have lived on this planet for thousands of years without the aid of pharmaceuticals and there are many natural and traditional values and practices that can enrich and balance our lives; they include, but are not limited to: great food, wine, chocolate, tobacco, sex, sunshine, long walks, relaxation, being around the water, nature, excercise, friends and family. Perhaps, the only thing getting in the way of real pleasure and happiness is the sensationalized and fear mongering news media and health organizations which want us to buy their products. I think there was a time when doctors and health organizations were admired and trusted by the citizenry... but for me, that time has passed; I am sickened by the health industry and the fact that they never cure anything.... What do you think?

F-D-Absurdity: Electronic Cigarettes

On Wednesday July, 22 the FDA held a press conference which essentially banned e-cigarettes (definition) and tried to spin the information (as opposed to scientific data) so it seems like they are as bad as cigarettes. Dr. Michael Siegel does a great job of outlining the lunacy of the FDA's position in his article: FDA Lunacy: Product We Know Will Kill 400,000 People This Year - Approved; Product that May Well Help Prevent Many of Those People from Dying: Banned.

Clearly, the FDA, lung and cancer associations, pharmaceutical industry, and anti-smoking groups hate the thought of e-cigarettes. It seems they abhor the thought and/or act of smoking more than the negative health effects. Perhaps the thought that people actually enjoy nicotine or sensory pleasures is unbearable to the nanny state and pleasure police so they must vilify any act that resembles smoking anything.

The horrible irony is that there are nicotine replacement therapies (nrt) whose side effects are SUICIDE, yet they are just fine by the FDA and the pharmaceutical companies that sell them; as well as the lung and cancer lobbies/associations (there are too many to name them all so please allow the generalization).

We all know that cigarette smoking is the most unhealthy of all our freedoms... and it will remain that way... unless they make them illegal or allow a product that will shorten the lives of 500,000 people per year (as opposed to the supposed 400k who die prematurely from cigarette smoking). But, in a free and healthy society people must be able to take educated risks and live their lives as they please without infringing on the freedoms of others.

There will always be a "WORST" or "MOST UNHEALTHY" freedom/lifestyle choice/personal preference/activity/taste. And that should be OK. Society does not need to continually beat up and/or prohibit 'the worst' freedoms; a healthy society will just accept them and educate the population. Otherwise, the most dangerous threat to freedom is the continual legislation and pursuit of health and safety.

In the end, I don't believe that 'Greed Is Good' (to quote Wall Street's Gordon Gecko)... But RISK IS GOOD - as determined by the individual, for the individual. Risk is necessary to move civilization, technology, and individuals forward. Risk is the foundation of the pursuit of happiness - the fundamental premise behind The United States of America. Risk is good.

PS:

Dear FDA,

Please relax, smoke a cigar, and remember that WITHOUT FREEDOM OF CHOICE AND RISK THERE IS NO REWARD OR PROGRESS. Clearly you understand that when allowing the sale of pharmaceuticals whose side effects include suicide, depression, heart attacks, etc... FREE TOBACCO. LET THE FARMERS LET THE PLANTS CONTROL THE NICOTINE. And leave my coffee, alcohol, and chocolate alone too.

The Hard Truth

Rostros Anonadado (Bewildered/Stunned Faces) by Eduardo Expósito

As a retail tobacconist, I can unequivocally state that the last ten years have been difficult (dramatic understatement). The challenges we face are unlike any other business persons' or industry (i.e. FDA, S-CHIP, OTP, smoking-bans, tobacco de-normalization, etc...). And, if you think the last ten years have been bad... what do you think the next ten will be like?

If we don't make dramatic changes to our industry and culture, our future will be exponentially worse! This is the hard truth. While marketers, manufacturers, salespeople, and retailers tell you 'business is good', that is either a lie or tunnel vision. Business people must 'spin' positivity because negativity does not improve sales. But, just because you make money this year does not mean 'business is good'. A viable industry/business-model needs to be sustainable; we must be able to plan ahead for things like retirements, recessions, childrens' educations, growth, asset preservation, business sales, etc...

One of the worst trends that has infected our industry and political climate is the 'grandfathering' of existing tobacconists and cigar bars without allowing the creation of new ones. Yet, whenever these laws pass, our industry claims a victory because we preserved a 'business'. But we also put a nail in our coffin if no one can open a new business!

Yet another sad sign that we are in trouble is the inconspicuous nature of our customers. One of my oldest and dearest friends/customers who has a passion for cigars hides this from his own children; he takes a 'fabreeze' shower before going home and swears to his kids that he does not 'smoke'. Partly, this is because children are thoroughly indoctrinated in school that 'smoking kills' and they do not distinguish between types and frequency of tobacco use. On a similar note, I am still irate, years after a policeman went to my little sister's school, in full uniform with a badge and gun, and gave an hour long lecture about how 'smoking kills' - still no distinguishing between types of smoking and the value of human freedom and personal choice. Plus, what is a policeman doing lecturing kids about smoking?

So, without writing a book here.... I would like to end on a positive note... since I have devoted myself and resources to the preservation of the luxury tobacco industry and retail tobacconists. I am not a negativist! Our path to salvation will not be easy. First, we must join and support the CRA in order to fight the short term battles and legislative momentum. Next, we must get Certified, and project our credibility!!! But, when we say 'project our credibility', we do not mean sit around with other cigar/pipe smokers and talk about how good or knowledgeable we are! Projecting our credibility is about making non-smokers, friends and family, and the society we live in understand and RESPECT our profession, passions and choices! Make converts out of non-aficionados! If every cigar and pipe smoker convinced 10 people to respect our rights, then we would still have our rights!

Final Note: Part of the TU Mission is to "research, learn, and teach in order to educate ..." and our Vision is to "build and project the credibility of the luxury tobacco industry in order to gain cultural acceptance around the world..." With that said, we are not beholden to any person or business. We are an independent educational institution with a clear mandate to speak the truth: the truth as we see it - not the 'truth' as devised or spun by marketers or business people. We receive no money from the IPCPR and our Sponsor(s) know that they are funding free education and certification without infringing on our Vision and Mission: perhaps, this is why we only have one sponsor. But, you can rest assured that TU will continue to research, learn, and teach while delivering the truth and working to build the credibility we will need to survive... for generations to come. Ultimately, we will only be successful if you and the rest of the industry participate. So, what are you doing to ensure the survival of the luxury tobacco industry?