Hi FoH'ers,
I was hoping that some of you can help shed some light on a debate that I had with a friend of mine. He claims that a few of the bigger NC producers are making big inroads into Europe and taking significant market share away from CCs.
I asked him where he was getting his info from and he told me it was from a NC producer. I mentioned that this would be a biased source, but he was adamant.
From what I can find, CC hold about 70% market share globally in units and 80% in revenue. Has there been any significant shift in the market in Europe, where some of the NC producers have been trying to increase their share? I know that Ashton, My Father, Padron and Fuente are all selling cigars in Europe, but to my understanding, it's a very small share of the market.
Personally, I find NC cigars to be quite different from nearly all Habanos, with the Nicaraguan cigars being the strongest and the largest difference in flavor profile. I just don't see the demand for NC cigars outside of the US, so I figured the community here could give me some insight on that, as I am in the US and have not visited cigar shops in Europe.