If you want to start your own cigar lounge, you need to prepare. First and foremost, you’ll need seed money to get a location, products, and everything in between. The biggest draw of a cigar lounge is the ambiance, while the runner-up is the cigar selection. Perhaps the most notable reason people return to a certain lounge is because the shop staff are well-educated in the world of cigars. Other than a great staff and solid selection, here are some tips on how to start a cigar lounge business.
Decide on a style
Ambiance matters in a cigar lounge, so decide on your cigar lounge’s style. Knowing your target market helps greatly when designing a space. A mistake many first-time business owners make is tailoring the space to their taste rather than their customers’ preferences.
Develop supplier relationships
To have the best cigar lounge in town, you’ll need the best cigars. Do your research and find out what the most in-demand cigars are right now. Develop relationships with these suppliers and maintain them. Suppliers are great ins for up-and-coming cigar buying trends, and they can aid you in staying up-to-date and well-stocked. That way, your customers begin to associate you with reliability and consistency—two of the most important words customers can use when describing a successful business.
Brand and advertise your business
Once you have your store set up, you’ll need customers to remember your business and keep coming back. A big factor in return business is brand recognition. Getting people into your lounge once is an easy feat, but turning one-timers into regulars is an art form. Make sure you have plenty of branded features in your store. Custom cigar matchesare a must for any new cigar lounge business.Providing cigar matches emblazoned with your store’s logo and contact information is one of the best ways to advertise; plus, it’s a fun trinket for customers to remember your shop by.
Bonus Tip: Host a cigar lighting course and walk your patrons through the proper way to light a cigar using your branded cigar matches!