Happy Friday everyone! It has been another interesting week here with many new cigars and even a new drink for you to enjoy.

Monday was incredibly busy with online orders! I think it was our busiest day of the year so far! I was picking cigars orders with Josh, we were picking orders almost all day! It was incredible to see how many orders we had. Towards the end of the day Josh helped the packing department whilst I quickly sorted out cigars which had gone out of stock.

On Tuesday, we were all exhausted from a busy Monday but we kept our spirits high. We picked all of our online orders and I noticed a lot of people ordering the Drew Estate Blackened range. They are brilliant cigars and one you need to try, i’ll always remember enjoying the Drew Estate Blackened M81 Maduro Toro – One of my favourites. In the afternoon, Lisa and I finally executed our big plan. Loyal readers will remember over a year ago we converted a spare cupboard in the shop into a humidor to store all full boxes of New World cigars – Unfortunately due to the conditions needed to store the cigars, we struggled to keep them in the correct condition at all times and so we removed the display table from inside the Cuban humidor, build some shelving and now all of our New World boxes are in there! Our two purpose built humidors are a lot easier to manage and so we decided to put them in there and it is much better! 

Wednesday was the continuation of moving the stock over. As you can see, we hold a lot of stock! During all of this, we had to make space for some new cigars – Padilla Cigars. They look very interesting as it sounds like they have tried to make them as Cuban as possible without using any Cuban leaves. Even the boxes are traditional Cuban style boxes. Afterwards, Lisa and I worked together to count the New World full boxes.

On Thursday, I wasn’t doing stock count for a change! Lisa and I decided to train Scarlett on the stock count side of the business. So it was Lisa and Scarlett this week while I spent the day picking all of the online orders. I had a very large order that took a lot of time to pick! This customer certainly likes his Plasencia’s as I felt like I picked every Plasencia we have! As well as many different Olivas. I actually felt sorry for the person packing the order with the utmost care. During the day, I was working with the London office to ensure we had the right amount of discontinued stock online. It can be difficult when a cigar gets discontinued as we then must put the exact stock online and on occasion our stock levels can change and so we need to communicate – but I’d like to think I have a good relationship with my London colleagues. We also received a brand new drink for you to try! Now I can’t call it a spirit as it is non-alcoholic. It is called All In Non-Alcoholic Lager. It is a fantastic drink that you all need to try and I imagine it would pair well with a Drew Estate Blackened.

On Friday, I started my day by picking orders. The Aladino Orchant Seleccion has proven to be a hit with our customers and it seems like every order has one currently. They are a limited edition cigar so make sure you get them whilst you can! I also noticed another new cigar come in – Chateau Diadem Monkey Business. I’m not a fan of cigars without the band but the Chateau Diadem range is brilliant and so now I feel I must try these. In the afternoon, I stock up our shelves and ordered more cigars, ready for another busy day on Monday.

I hope you have enjoyed this weeks going on.

So long for now.

Oliver.

Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the lovely weather over the bank holiday. I know I did!

So my week started on Tuesday. I came in to a large amount of online orders to pick, the team on Monday did a fantastic job picking and packing and so it was up to the rest of us to keep up their good work. We all did a fantastic job and I even had time to stock up our humidors and order stock.

On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to have a more administrative day. I started by making sure all of our cigars were online. Afterwards I finished a long job which was monitoring sales of cigars that were on special offers. I was very happy to complete this task as it was the biggest spreadsheet I had ever worked on. Around midday I created an article on the C.Gars Cigar Library. It was called Mini Cigars and Puritos – The Best Quick Smoke Options – you can read it here. I enjoy a mini cigar and I hope after this article you will too. In the afternoon, the delivery we had been waiting for finally arrived. The CAO Amazon Basin… This is an incredibly sought after cigar which normally sells out as soon as it comes in and this has been no different. This year, in addition to the Toro, they have also released a Rothschild! We have had so many of these on pre-order that we ran out! But don’t you worry, we will be getting more very soon! Due to all of the pre-orders our afternoon became even busier! So it was all staff packing orders to try to get them all out on that day! The below picture is just a small portion of the orders we had to pack!

Thursday was stock count day. Yet again Lisa and I worked through our humidors and counted them all by lunch! Afterwards I helped our product listing team with my knowledge of the new cigars that came in following the AITS trade show. One that looks particularly exciting is the Joya de Nicaragua Cuatro Cinco Secret Cask. These limited edition cigars sound amazing and to know that there’s only 1550 boxes made means you need to get yours now! You can even choose which numbered box you would like. 

Friday was quite a crazy day! Before I even walked in I could see we had received a lot of deliveries! So after picking the first lot of online orders. I started opening deliveries alongside Ben, I then started to pick everyone’s orders so they could help Ben with the deliveries. It was a challenge but also fun. Afterwards, I then helped put stock away to Ben’s amazement! To say he was thankful is an understatement. Later on in the day I was asked what cigars I think should be in our “try something new” bracket. If you’ve not heard of the “try something new” cigar, it’s a great offer where you pay £10 and we choose a cigar you’ve never tried before – You never know you might find your new favourite! You have to be a C.Gars plus member to enjoy this offer though. So for June if you purchase the “try something new” cigar, you can thank me for choosing a great selection for us to choose from.

I hope you have enjoyed this weeks goings on.

So long for now.

Oliver.

Hello everyone! Are you ready for another bank holiday weekend? We have received a lot of cigars from the AITS trade show which I can’t wait to share with you.

On Monday, there was certainly a buzz around the building. I was excited to hear about what stock was ordered from the AITS trade show. But first Josh and I had a mountain of online orders to pick. Another cigar that has been selling well ever since I put it on sale is the Casa Carrillo by E.P. Carrillo Allegiance Sidekick – It has literally been flying off the shelves! After we got the online orders picked, I had to put some cigars back online which was out of stock as well as send my manager a list of which Cuban cigars we are out of stock of. It is very well known about the issues getting Cuban cigars and unfortunately it is really showing now. In the afternoon, we had a very large Missouri Meerschaum delivery. These deliveries come straight from the USA which has always amazed me as they don’t ever turn up damaged. You will start to see these online very soon.

Tuesday was another great day. I had Scarlett with me and so I began training her on stocking the shelves fully and ordering stock. Previously she had only stocked up basic products so the cigars are a new task. Ordering is also quite difficult as you need to know what to order and what not to order as we don’t want unpopular cigars to be in our humidor forever. We were also blessed with the return of EGM Cigars – When we first received them, they flew off the shelves, so fast that the supplier couldn’t keep up with our demand. But they are finally back with two new vitolas – Blecos and Petit Encanto.

On Wednesday, I focused all of my time on the shop newsletters. The teams at each location did a brilliant job promoting what products they are currently enjoying. I particularly enjoyed Turmeaus Chesters newsletter, you’ll have to sign up to their shop newsletter to find out why. Late in the afternoon, I started creating my July Monthly subscriptions. I know I always speak highly of them but the New World Subscription has an awesome selection for July. I also learned about a new Orchant Seleccion that I feel like I need to try! The Aladino Orchant Seleccion! This is available as a Corona and a Lancero and is very limited! 

Thursday was stock count day with Lisa. We flew through the stock count and were finished by lunch! I think that is our new record! We were just in time to see some new products from one of our fantastic suppliers. I can’t reveal everything that came in until it has been put on our website but there is certainly some new cigars i’d like to try! One I can reveal is the new Oliva Serie O Cigarillos – This joins the Serie G Cameroon, both a great little smoke for a great price. Later on I created an article for the C.Gars cigar library – it’s called Henri Wintermans Cigars – A Complete Guide to the Range, Strengths and Formats – You can read it here.

On Friday, I decided to start my day enjoying a nice little cigar – The Upsetters Ska Cigarrillo – I was very surprised but this nice little stick. I found it started with a lot of black pepper and a hint of cinnamon, before moving on to a bit of sweetness. It was a great way to start my day. Back at C.Gars HQ  I concentrated on making space for all of our new stock, it took me a while as it is a lot to come in one go but I got there in the end. You will need to look out for some amazing deals that I’m sure you will see very soon. 

I hope you have enjoyed this weeks goings on.

So long for now.

Oliver.

Hello Everyone! I hope you had a fantastic bank holiday weekend! 

My week started on Tuesday. The team on the bank holiday did a great job picking as many orders as they could, but we had a lot left to do. It is almost impossible to complete a bank holidays orders in one day and so on the Tuesday as a team we fly through them to complete them. I noticed a lot of people took advantage of our great Zino offers, we handed out many free Zino cutters and ashtrays – This is why you need to sign up to our newsletters to see what incredible offers we have. I picked and packed a lot of orders and as a team we all did fantastic. I even found time to do a Cuban cigar order, I have noticed a lot of people are opting for full boxes of Cubans recently, I do think this is down to the well known Cuban cigar shortage. Montecristo No. 5 has been particularly popular among our customers. 

Wednesday was quite relaxing compared to Tuesday. I picked and packed again to help get the parcels on their way to the intended destination and then I ordered New world stock. Afterwards, both Lisa and I re-arranged our New World Humidor to make picking even easier. Since closing the shop we have been able to get more stock but that makes picking even more difficult, due to the amount of boxes we have and so we have tried our best to fill up the old shop shelves. We also received the new look J. Cortes High Class Dominican Cigar – White, these incredibly popular cigars used to come in boxes of 10 but now they have been changed to packs of 2 and I love them. They have been selling like hot cakes too so get yours now. 

Thursday was stock count day. As is tradition both Lisa and I worked our way through both humidors and completed it incredibly fast! Which is great because I have been given a new task. I need to look through all of our offers and work out if the sale is still needed or if some need to be extended. This is another great task for me as I continue to learn the admin side of the business. 

On Friday, myself and the team all got together, picked and packed the orders. It is always fantastic to see how great we all flow together. 

A bit of an uneventful week this week but next week will be incredibly exciting with the AITS trade show this weekend, I look forward to see what goodies we will be receiving and what the latest release from all of our wonderful brands.

I hope you enjoyed this weeks goings on.

So long for now.

Oliver

Hello everyone! I hope you are excited for the bank holiday weekend! At C.Gars we always look forward to a bank holiday as the orders really do challenge us.

I decided this week to treat myself to a three day weekend and so my week started on Tuesday. Lisa had done a fantastic job the day prior to keep on top of our stock as well as pick the orders and send our stock sheet to the managers. It is a big job which keeps me very busy, but I usually have Lisa’s help with the orders, so to do it all alone was fantastic. 

On Tuesday, I picked a lot of orders and checked everyone else’s. The process we do here before a parcel gets sent out is a time consuming process, but it is needed to ensure our customers get the correct products in a fantastic condition. Later on I completed all of the shop newsletters. Liam, our marketing manager, brought my attention to a new whisky that needed to be advertised! The brand new Glenallachie C.Gars Malt 10 Year Old Ruby Port Dominique London Exclusive. This was top secret until recently and I was also told that Glenallachie don’t normally do exclusive releases and so for us to get the exclusive bottling is a true testament to the work Dominique London are doing. Each newsletter got a little advert to mention this new release. 

On Wednesday, after picking online orders, I created a news article and article for the C.Gars cigar library all about the new Glenallachie. You can read it here. Later on in the day I received an order for a box of Alec Bradley Black Market Torpedo – I found it interesting as the singles aren’t a great seller but then when I researched the sale it turns out this customer orders a box every couple of weeks! You know you love a cigar when you order a box so often. It made me think, what other cigars sell better as a box over singles and another one popped up – The Blackbird Crow Corona, again we sell more boxes than we do singles. We do offer a box for cheaper than we do buying them individually, so maybe if there’s a cigar you really like, buy the box.

Thursday was stock count day, due to Ben and Sarah having a lovely trip to the Gawith Hoggarth factory, we were short staffed last week and didn’t have the chance to do it. So this week Lisa and I completed it with a good amount of time to spare. I also noticed a customer had purchased two boxes of Chateau Diadem Petit Belicoso. We had these as a try something new cigar towards the end of last year, this gave many customers a great opportunity to try it and love it. This customer must have loved them to buy two boxes! 

On Friday, we picked a lot of a very special sampler – The “A Burst of Flavour Sampler” . We offered them for slightly cheaper and lots of people bought them. I mean 11 cigars for £60.00 is a great offer! Afterwards, It was time to look through my sales of underperforming cigars to see if lowering the price has helped them sell. It’s a large list and but I got it completed! I can certainly say the public love a bargain. I also helped pack some orders, we received a delivery of Germains Pipe tobacco and as it is so hard to get, a lot of orders flood in and it goes out of stock immediately! And so I was helping the team pack them so we had a nice and empty packing room ready for the busy bank holiday.

I hope you have enjoyed this weeks goings on.

So long for now.

Oliver