Keep in mind, with UF-13s, Dirty Rats, and Casa Cubas stores often only get one box, and they often have to put through an order of a lot of Ligas or Fuentes just to get access to those HTFs. It ends up costing them a good amount of money to get that one box. So, I understand why they overcharge for the HTFs. Also, if they only get one box then they're not making a lot of profit off one box of 20 cigars. They're trying to pay their bills just like anyone else.
I don't necessarily agree with that. Sure they may only get one box here and there. As you said, to get some of these they have to order a bunch of regular product. If you are selling enough to get them, then you don't need to gouge 1 or 2 boxes, that little tiny bump in profit will do more to hurt your reputation than anything else. You said "it takes a lot of money to get that one box", when in fact the stores make a lot of money before getting that one box. HTF cigars aren't the ones keeping the doors open of most shops, the core lines are.
well said. fuente nerd that i am, i understand that you buy thirty boxes of something stupid at special times, you get to buy some 858 and hemmi SG, or some odd opi, or something else cool. you have to go deep to get there, BUT if you are trying to get cool fuente, you should already be flipping the magR's, the hemmis, the don carlos, and others. if you are buying just to get at odd stuff, and not flipping regular stuff, you are NOT doing it right.
as an analogue, i like when we get cool bourbon at work, but if i wasn't flipping the well stuff and the regular top shelp on the regular, i couldn't in good conscience spend the owner's money on the HTF shit. and i wouldn't blame them when the sales reps told me to shove off for cherry picking.
to the point, craig is spot on. they should have already made profit on the stuff they bought TO GET TO that stuff, and killing it on the special releases is, to me, dishonest.
