As an investor and cigar lounge owner, David Swinburne has seen almost everything in the cigar world. However, his experience in the supply chain served him best in his role as CEO of Sans Pareil Cigars. David talked with Cigar Life Guy about the “intriguing” problems in creating a cigar from beginning to end, the beauty of simplicity, and his plans for Sans Pareil to go global.
First Premium Cigar Experience
Cigar Life Guy: Tell me about your first premium cigar experience.
David Swinburne: My first premium cigar experience was right after college when I started my supply chain career. It was a cigar shop in Midland, Michigan, and the owner handed me a Padron Natural 1964 Anniversary Series Torpedo. So, start me off with something fantastic (laughs). One thing that was extra special about this one was the age of the cigar. It was a box that had been aging for about five years. There was no turning back after my experience with that cigar. The nutty flavor and wood notes were remarkable. Age on a cigar allows flavors to come out while continuing to remove imperfections. The tasting notes of the cigar are no longer individual attributes but nuances of blended flavors. That cigar gave me an unforgettable smoking experience. I continue searching for cigars with unique and rare characteristics.
The Wide World of the Cigar Business
Cigar Life Guy: You’ve worked in various roles in the cigar industry. How did you get your start?
David Swinburne: I’ve been an investor in multiple ventures. I’ve done one in pipe tobacco, a supply chain consulting firm. Still, I immersed myself in the cigar industry while investing in a cigar retail lounge in Kansas City, La Cultura Cigar & Social. My business partner, Ben Gardner, and I wanted to provide Kansas City with a cigar lounge experience not found anywhere. We wanted to bring various tobaccos and not just legacy brands. There is a whole world of cigars that many cigar enthusiasts don’t know about. We also wanted to get a certain level of entertainment, rarely found in lounges. That includes billiard tables and an indoor putting green. You wouldn’t believe how many lounge members take conference calls while smoking a cigar and sinking a 10-foot putt (laughs).
The lounge opened in late 2018, and we just acquired a second shop, so there are two shops in Kansas City. The benefit of owning a lounge is understanding the customer journey firsthand. The lounges and retail shops are the foundation of our industry, and Sans Pareil truly values these relationships.
The venture that brings me the most joy is Sans Pareil. We have complex challenges like any cigar brand faces, but we have solved the most difficult one: making a fantastic cigar. The other challenges we face are supply chain, marketing, etc. The main reason I took a larger role in the company was my background in the supply chain. I have traveled globally, creating solutions for manufacturing plants to efficiently and cost-effectively bring products to market. It was the right time to become CEO when I heard feedback from customers explaining how much they enjoyed our cigars. I knew it was time to bring this cigar experience to more people.
David Swinburne: Sans Pareil Vision
Cigar Life Guy: You were recently named President and CEO at Sans Pareil. What is your vision for the company?
David Swinburne: COVID was difficult for all cigar makers, and Sans Pareil was no different. We had significant momentum, and then COVID hit stalling growth. Now that we’re out of COVID and in a better position with the supply chain, we are fortunate to expand the number of retailer partners.
The vision for the company is to continue growing in the United States, as it is the largest cigar market in the world. Sans Pareil’s goal is not to be in every retailer but to be in the right retailer who aligns with the goals and passion of the company and the cigars we create. We are growing our sales team to allow us to grow appropriately without compromising the quality of the cigars. Sans Pareil will grow selectively in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). When right, we will also expand in Asia Pacific (AP).
We are also looking to make a few changes on the marketing side. That will only enhance the smoking experience and allow Sans Pareil to be known more around the world. We will be looking for these changes as we implement them soon.
The Sans Pareil Brand
Cigar Life Guy: The name means “peerless, without equal.” Why is branding important to a cigar line, and how do you want the average smoker to perceive your brand?
David Swinburne: With the name of Sans Pareil, “without equal” means everything to us. Everything we do is to live up to that name. We don’t bring it to market if we cannot blend to the highest standard. It must be unique. It must be of the highest quality in every aspect. For instance, the tobacco Jochy Blanco, who manufactures our cigars out of Tabacalera Palma, reserves the top ten percent of tobacco yields for Sans Pareil. Someone must go through and sort these tobaccos just for us.
The tobacco age is also critical to the Sans Pareil experience. With the supply chain we have been building since 2017, all our tobaccos are aged well beyond 10 years, including the wrapper, binder, and filler, with multiple fermentations required in the processes. We call this putting the tobacco to sleep and only using it when the time is right. That allows us to remove many imperfections in “younger” cigars.
Tabalera Palma has some of the best rollers in the world, and Sans Pareil has access to them. We are blessed with highly talented individuals, which shows in our cigars’ construction. The best part is that the factory is entirely behind the brand. Everyone at the factory working on Sans Pareil projects highly supports what we are building. We cannot do it without them.
The Sans Pareil Portfolio
Cigar Life Guy: Tell us a little about the Sans Pareil portfolio.
David Swinburne: We currently have five lines: the Green, Blue, Purple, Red, and the recently re-released Gold. All these lines have unique characteristics which are pleasing to the discerning aficionado.
One thing Sans Pareil customers will experience with all our cigars is balance. There’s never “too much of this” or “a lot of that.” I compared it to the analogy of a Michelin star chef. If you taste something from a Michelin-star chef and say, “Oh, that’s a lot of garlic,” they probably didn’t do their best work. For Sans Pareil, it’s all about balance and looking for nuances across the entire cigar experience.
Challenges in the Cigar Industry
Cigar Life Guy: What is the cigar industry’s biggest challenge today?
David Swinburne: That’s an excellent question. You can take that question in many ways. When I think about the industry’s challenges, specifically Sans Pareil, it focuses on educating the retailer and their customers. What I mean by that is that there are so many different cigar brands on the market. Why should they select your brand? The number one advocate we have is the retailer and the tobacconist. We want to be able to partner with them so they can share the same experience they have with their customers. I can’t supply every single cigar shop with San Pareil. We don’t have the inventory due to the time required to age and the quality control we need. We select specific retailers who believe in what we’re doing and want to partner with us.
Embracing Cigar Culture
Cigar Life Guy: What makes cigar culture so unique?
David Swinburne: The cigar culture is the most unique industry I have worked in, and I can’t compare it to anything else. Cliché as it sounds, cigars are the ultimate equalizer. You share the same passion, no matter your background. You can if you want to sit down and talk with someone smoking a cigar. These conversations are priceless, and I have made dear lifelong friends because of cigars. I think that’s so important for the industry. We are all together in this group of lovers of the leaf.
Cigar Life Guy: Anything else you’d like the cigar world to know?
David Swinburne: Sans Pareil is exceptional due to the people behind the scenes of the project, the tobacco selected, the fermentation process, and the unique taste profile not found anywhere. If you find Sans Pareil at your tobacco retailer, I encourage you to take time to sit and enjoy the smoking experience. I promise it will be a smoking experience unlike any other you have had.
Follow David on Instagram and check out the latest from Sans Pareil here.
Photo credit: Sans Pareil