When I was in Las Vegas for the PCA 2023, I talked with Chris Turco and Ricardo Ortiz about Drew Estate’s international business.
TRANSCRIPT:
Hans Rijfkogel: All right guys. I’m here in Las Vegas at the PCA, talking with Chris Turco and Ricardo Ortiz from Drew Estate. Just wanted to get an update on what’s going on in the world of Drew Estate. So first of all, Chris, what’s been going on with Drew Estate this year? How has the business been doing?
Chris Turco: Very good. Thank you for asking, Hans. Ricardo and I have been working hard to bring Drew Estate’s fantastic cigars to the entire world, especially Asia, with Hans, our representative in Asia. And we’re here for the PCA Trade Show in Las Vegas to meet with many of our customers, including our Asian customers. We’ve seen tremendous growth in all of our brands, from Herrera Esteli to Undercrown to our new value brand, Factory Smokes bundles.
So, it’s going extremely well, and we look forward to sitting down. It was great to meet customers in person. Zoom worked right through the pandemic and a little bit afterwards, but to sit down and meet with the customers, and have a meal with them, and talk about plans for the future, and what’s working and what will work in the future, is a great opportunity. So, we are really happy to be here with you.
Hans Rijfkogel: Okay. Well, thank you for the kind words about Asia, of course. That’s very kind of you.
Chris Turco: I’ll say it again.
Hans Rijfkogel: Okay. But that leads me to the next question: which areas in the world, because we were talking about the international business, have done well? Which areas have outperformed? Chris Turco: Well, I will mention Asia again, because I know you like me to. Asia has always done well for Drew Estate. Drew Estate has really gained a lot of traction all over the entire continent. I have my laptop open just so I don’t miss anybody. Would you like me to mention all the markets?
Hans Rijfkogel: Go ahead. No, you don’t need to mention all the markets, but maybe a few which are doing well.
Chris Turco: Hong Kong, of course.
Hans Rijfkogel: Yeah.
Chris Turco: Hong Kong, of course. So we’ve had tremendous success and a wonderful relationship with our customer in Hong Kong, and it continues to grow and expand business year over year, and we couldn’t be more happy. He does a wonderful job representing our Drew Estate portfolio in Hong Kong.
Hans Rijfkogel: Okay. All right. Ricardo, if we look at the products from Drew Estate: any products, SKUs, brands, which are doing well, which are outperforming?
Ricardo Ortiz: So as a whole, all Drew Estate products are doing very well across all markets. The ones that stand out the most for us currently, at the moment, are a few, which is Undercrown 10, celebrating the 10 years of Undercrown; Herrera Esteli, which is a great… you know, we use, in the States, it’s a Cuban style cigar; and the great value brand is Factory Smokes, which is a great product for great value. You can’t miss it. I want to say those are the major products that are standing out against all the products we have.
Hans Rijfkogel: Okay, all right. Well, thank you very much guys. It was good to see you here in Vegas, and I hope you have a successful show this year.
Ricardo Ortiz: Thank you.
Hans Rijfkogel: And guys, I will see you in the next video.
Chris Turco: Thank you, Hans.
