Q: What is Ultra-Premium Price Point Level?

[javajunkie]

IMO, Ultra-Premium expectations begin around here.
Corona-$8
Robusto-$9
Toro-$10
Double Corona-$12
Torpedo-$11

Javajunkie brought up a great comparison with the Oliva V Melanio here http://www.botl.org/community/forums/showthread.php/61854-New-Oliva-Cigar/page2 in post #28 concerning evaluating a new product to an established one(Padron).

thanks for the props, dub! and i like your price point, about $9-12. however, i see a lot of correllary here with wine and spirits. there are clear marks between $5 and $10 wines, between $10 and $20, but into the thirty and up realm, it is more about personal palate and preference here. i start counting anything at ten bucks as about hyperpremium, and evaluate each differently. most important is, it HAS to make an impression at that point. i think at that range, the psychology has as much to do with it as the production values, if you see what i mean.

 

[Fourtotheflush]

Just a curve ball on this. I live on Long Island so when I go to the local smoke shop and buy lets say CAO MX2 Toro I am going to spend about $14.00 is that consider a premium cigar

I think that is fairly far over MSRP.
Im figuring your B&M needs to inflate for taxes or to have a % of revenue be tied to tobacco to allow for smoking.

 

[Herfin' Harg]

I can't help but think that this is going to have everything to do with what your local B&M (or favorite online retailer, I suppose) keeps on hand. Seems reasonable to think that the folks that spend time at a shop that stocks only a few sticks north of the $7-8 range are going to have different opinions on pricing than those that purchase from a retailer that regularly stocks premium/ultra-premium sticks. I'd think that sort of baseline would be important to properly contextualizing pricing. Well, that and taxes, which you've already addressed.

At my local shop, I'd ballpark that their stock is broken down more or less as follows regarding price-point: 10% Budget, 50% Intermediate, 35% Premium, 5% Ultra-Premium.

Budget:
Corona - $3
Robusto - $4
Toro - $5
Double Corona - $5
Torpedo - $5

---

Intermediate:
Corona - $5-6
Robusto - $6
Toro - $6-7
Double Corona - $6-7
Torpedo - $6-7

---

Premium:
Corona - $8-12
Robusto - $9-15
Toro - $10-16
Double Corona - $10-18
Torpedo - $10-16

---

Plaid:
Corona - $13+
Robusto - $15+
Toro - $16+
Double Corona - $18+
Torpedo - $16+

------

Hope it's helpful.

 

[Tobacco Giant]

IMO, Ultra-Premium expectations begin around here.
Corona-$8
Robusto-$9
Toro-$10
Double Corona-$12
Torpedo-$11

Javajunkie brought up a great comparison with the Oliva V Melanio here http://www.botl.org/community/forums/showthread.php/61854-New-Oliva-Cigar/page2 in post #28 concerning evaluating a new product to an established one(Padron).

I'll second these prices. If I'm paying $9 for a robusto, it better knock my socks off considering that is almost twice the amount I can pay for a DPG blue robusto which I consider a great cigar, although not uber premium, per se.

 

[jamesbrownsplit]

Anything 11+ is generally considered ultra premium to me. Only 11+ dollar sticks I have bought more than one of are Padrons.

 

[StogieNinja]

Personally:

Premium=> $8; Ultra-premium=>$13, uber-premium=>$20.

I don't know why, but that's kinda where it's at. Anything over $8 I expect premium from. Anything over $13 ought to blow me away, and anything over $20 should be one of those memorable experiences.

 

[ZachF88]

Personally:

Premium=> $8; Ultra-premium=>$13, uber-premium=>$20.

I don't know why, but that's kinda where it's at. Anything over $8 I expect premium from. Anything over $13 ought to blow me away, and anything over $20 should be one of those memorable experiences.

X2. There are too many good cigars out there that are in the premium range, that the uber-premium is just not worth it anymore.

 

[Hoshneer]

Personally:

Premium=> $8; Ultra-premium=>$13, uber-premium=>$20.

I don't know why, but that's kinda where it's at. Anything over $8 I expect premium from. Anything over $13 ought to blow me away, and anything over $20 should be one of those memorable experiences.

X2. There are too many good cigars out there that are in the premium range, that the uber-premium is just not worth it anymore.

^^^^ This.
Although there are uber premiums I will always try once, odds are I will never smoke them again. It's just not worth it for the cost. Unless you have tons of cash and like throwing it away. Most uber-Premiums are selling a lifestyle not a flavor profile. In fact it's almost a turn off for me. Mmmmm.... Gurkha comes to mind. I love me some $30 Gurkha!

 

[CWS]

Tough question. I am much more interested in taste versus cost. There is however a point where I stop looking at a cigar considering it beyond the realm of reality. Super premium

Corona - $18
Robusto - $20
Toro - $25
Double Corona -$35
Torpedo - $30

 

[Knickerbocker]

Just a curve ball on this. I live on Long Island so when I go to the local smoke shop and buy lets say CAO MX2 Toro I am going to spend about $14.00 is that consider a premium cigar

don't buy from B&M's on LI because taxes are 75%

 

[RacFocus]

This is a tough one because in my opinion it depends on how much money someone has or is willing to spend on cigars. To me paying over $15 a cigar is getting into some rare air, ultra premium special occasion stuff. My most common smokes are between $6-12 with the occasional Opus or Padron Anny for special occasions. For someone who makes considerable more money then I their opinion may be that a $15 smoke is their everyday choice.

 

[heavyd]

Corona - $10.00
Robusto - $12.00
Toro - $14.00
Double Corona - $15.00
Torpedo - $14.00

Anything over this price point, I consider pricey, but my meager senses can't detect "roasted rosemary" or "smooth lemon merangue" like some of the finer palates. I sometimes pay more than this for cigars that, imo, are not OOber-premium, just to try something new.

 

[NHaze]

Corona - $10.00
Robusto - $12.00
Toro - $14.00
Double Corona - $15.00
Torpedo - $14.00

Anything over this price point, I consider pricey, but my meager senses can't detect "roasted rosemary" or "smooth lemon merangue" like some of the finer palates. I sometimes pay more than this for cigars that, imo, are not OOber-premium, just to try something new.

+2.

I'll try a $25 smoke just to try it, but I'm not likely to spend $250 on a box of ten.

 

[Tobacco Giant]

....I already have an opinion which I may or may not share later after others add their opinions......

And btw, don't be such a tease.

Edit - Even though I already think we all know you're personal opinion given the prices of current LP prices. haha. But I would like to hear your thoughts about how your cigars are priced other than the costs involved in making the cigars and the overhead involved.

 

[njstone]

Is "ultra premium" only about cost? I feel like the QUALITY of the cigars is the biggest factor, not the price.

There are plenty of $10+ cigars that I would only buy if they were on sale online for $4, and plenty of others that I wouldn't even buy then. I've had cigars I paid $7 for that I thought "I'd have paid $12 for this," and of course vice versa.

Price does not determine how good a cigar is. It only determines how often I'd potentially be able to enjoy it. if it's a cigar I really like, and it's affordable, I'll buy a lot of them. If it's something I really like but pricey, I'll still buy a couple, but only enjoy them sparingly (and be tempted to complain about the price).

 

[njstone]

I will add this: some people give the benefit of the doubt to a high-priced cigar, "If it's $20, it must be amazing!" But I believe that most of us here (the hardcore cigar guys), tend to the have opposite biased. I know I do.

I am MUCH more harsh on an expensive cigar than I am on a cheaper one. If a cigar I'm smoking cost me $15, it had better be more than good, it had better be awesome. That puts an incredible amount of pressure on the cigar to perform, but to me that is not "unfair pressure," it's very fair indeed ... $15-worth of fair.

 

[CAJoe]

There are so many good premium cigars out there under $10 that for a uber-premium I would say around $15. Maybe once or twice a year I will pay over $15 for a cigar but with how much good stuff you can get for much cheaper it just is not worth the coin.

 

[Treinenwj]

For me, this is way too subjective. "Premium" in my rotation is based entirely on taste. And most of those fall in the $7-10 range. Rarely do I purchase cigars higher than that. And then it's maybe up to $14-15, and never by the box. However, if I was in a trade or lottery pool that specified premium, I wouldn't consider sending anything valued under $10.

Side note, am I the only guy worried here? I mean, first we get a $6 short-filler, immediately followed by an across the board LP price hike, and now Steve is flat-out asking how much we'll pay?? Hide yer wallets, LP lovers! :grin:

 

[Alwayslit]

Anything over $20 per stick gives me pause.

 

[TravelingJ]

Side note, am I the only guy worried here? I mean, first we get a $6 short-filler, immediately followed by an across the board LP price hike, and now Steve is flat-out asking how much we'll pay?? Hide yer wallets, LP lovers! :grin:

I caught that too, and made a comment about it in my post. I'm interested to see where they go with this. I do wonder how is willing to pay Lost City prices for a new smoke from DE...

What's REALLY funny about some of those LP lovers, is they are the exact same guys that talk about Apple people jumping to buy anything with an Apple logo, and they can't buy anything with a DE logo fast enough.