One of the most frequent, and often the first, questions I get when I introduce myself as a member of a cigar making company is, “Where is your shop”.
It’s an innocent question, as most people are only familiar with cigars in that setting, but it’s a question that goes right to the heart of who PAYNE-MASON is, and who we’re not.
PAYNE-MASON Cigars has, from the beginning, prided itself on the handcrafted quality of every cigar we produce. No machine will ever touch one of our cigars. In order to maintain this level of quality, we had to come to a decision early on – that we never wanted it to become necessary to mass-produce our product.
It isn’t about volume production for us. It’s about an art form… a tradition passed down through the centuries. It’s about making the finest cigar, not the highest quantity. That’s what motivated Bob Payne to start PAYNE-MASON, to make the finest cigar – period. He liked cigars, he knew cigars, he knew what made a good cigar, but he wanted to take it to the next level, returning to the boutique production methods of yesterday, bringing them to a limited market today.
We didn’t find local people who knew how to roll a cigar. We traveled and sought out the top Cuban Master Rollers, period. We did not choose to purchase tobaccos on the open market, but to establish independent contracts with the finest tobacco growers of the world and only hand select rare 5, 6, 8 and 10 year old tobaccos. Traditional distribution channels were not necessary, for our target market was not the retail store, but direct to the distinguished cigar consumer and the luxury destination properties they frequent.
PAYNE-MASON isn’t here to sell millions of cigars. We’re here to sell one to you… the best cigar you’ve ever had.
So how do I answer the question, “Where is your shop”? …..I smile and say, “We don’t have one”, and that says it all.
– Steve Payne
Image: Profiled Partner – La Descarga
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