The Premium Cigar Industry's Obsession with Heritage - and How It Can Hurt Innovation

By, Jonathan Lipson | Founder & President | The Cigar Profit Consulting

Let me be clear: I'm not here to take shots at legacy. Legacy matters. It tells us where we came from, honors the roots of craftsmanship, and provides a narrative people can believe in. In the premium cigar world, history and tradition have a rightful place - they’re part of the romance that draws us in. But when the entire industry leans too hard on heritage as the default branding play, we start running into trouble.

Too much heritage can strangle innovation. In this industry, knowing when to cut the rope is everything.

Here's the uncomfortable truth: not every cigar brand can or should hang its hat on the past. Yet you'd never know it from the way so many brands talk. In a crowded humidor, it seems like every other label is clamoring to tell you about century-old roots or a grandfather’s secret recipe. When everyone tries to wrap themselves in the same sepia-toned origin story, the value of that narrative gets diluted fast. If every brand is “special” in the exact same way, then nobody actually stands out.

In today's market, "heritage" isn't just a descriptor – it's a marketing weapon. Everyone wants to be the heir to something, the spiritual successor of someone. Newcomers launch with elaborate backstories, and even established players double down on tales of yesteryear, all hoping to tap into the cachet of tradition. But that kind of thinking creates noise, not value. When every cigar on the shelf is trying to sound like a page from history, it becomes background music consumers eventually tune out. And in the worst cases? This backwards-looking obsession keeps innovation in a headlock.

We need to talk about this heritage fixation – because it's not just a quirk of marketing, it's a strategic liability. Overreliance on heritage is diluting brand differentiation, undermining consumer trust when the story doesn’t hold up, and all the while it's sidelining the very innovation that could carry the industry forward. So how exactly does leaning too hard on the past backfire? Let’s break it down.

You Can’t Differentiate If Everyone's Telling the Same Story

Here’s the playbook we see on repeat: every new brand reaching for the same tired heritage tropes to prop up its image. It's almost become a checklist:

• Sepia-toned packaging and antique-looking logos designed to evoke some 19th-century nostalgia.

• Handwritten labels and rustic fonts that imply the product comes straight out of your great-grandfather’s era.

• A charming backstory about a long-lost relative who rolled cigars in a tiny village (bonus points if the village name is hard to pronounce).

• Constant references to “tradition” and “time-honored methods,” as if no good cigar has been made in the last 50 years without a century-old tale attached.

If that heritage angle is real - great. Run with it. But when a dozen brands show up pushing the same grandfather-in-a-cigar-factory fantasy, the whole narrative collapses. Consumers tune it out. Retailers stop caring. And the brands that actually know who they are? They weaponize that sameness. It becomes easier to box out the copycats when everyone’s pitching the same recycled romance. If your story could be swapped with the brand next to you and no one would notice, you're not building credibility - you’re handing out ammunition.

This is the brand equivalent of showing up to a job interview with the same résumé as everyone before you. You might be good. You might even be better. But no one will notice if your story is indistinguishable from the rest. When every brand is echoing the same narrative, it blurs the lines between them in the consumer’s mind.

Remember, differentiation doesn’t happen when you blend in with the crowd. It happens when you lean into what makes you different, right now. If your brand’s identity can’t be told apart from the next brand’s except by the band on the cigar, you’ve got a problem. The solution isn’t to shout your heritage louder - it’s to find and amplify the aspects of your brand that truly set you apart.

The Problem with "Borrowed Heritage"

Let’s call this out directly: there are brands out there whose connection to heritage is about as sturdy as a house of cards. In their scramble to sound venerable, some companies resort to "borrowing" heritage that isn’t truly theirs. It usually plays out in a few ways:

• Stretching the truth: Taking a sliver of family lore - like a great-uncle who once grew tobacco as a hobby - and puffing it up into a founding myth.

• Tenuous name-dropping: Claiming lineage or mentorship from a famous cigar maker or a legendary factory with only a paper-thin connection (if any at all).

• Outright fabrication: Simply making up a romantic backstory from whole cloth, hoping a poetic tale will do the heavy lifting that actual strategy and quality should be doing.

This isn’t just a branding problem. It’s a trust problem. Sooner or later, people ask questions. In the age of information, cigar enthusiasts have no trouble digging around to verify a story. And when those answers turn out fuzzy or full of holes, your brand’s credibility goes up in smoke. Consumers don’t like feeling duped. Once they sense that your supposed legacy is more fiction than fact, they’ll walk - and they won’t be quiet about it, either. In a tight-knit community like premium cigars, a damaged reputation spreads fast. And rebuilding trust after you’ve been caught fibbing is an uphill battle that most brands won’t win.

And let’s be clear: this issue isn’t limited to fresh-faced startups. Even some long-standing brands lean a little too hard on dusty glory days when they should be talking about what they’re doing today to keep customers engaged. A storied past can’t excuse a stagnant present. Heritage should be a chapter in your story, not the whole book.

“Borrowed heritage” is like trying to pass off someone else’s credentials as your own. It might get you in the door with a retailer or earn you a brief look from consumers, but it won’t keep you there. Sooner or later, the truth comes knocking. And if all you have to show is a pretty story with no substance behind it, the fall will be hard and fast.

The Real Cost: Innovation Gets Left Behind

Here’s where this obsession with the past does real damage: it sidelines the innovators. While everyone is busy polishing their origin story, truly forward-thinking players often struggle to get a word in. These are the brands experimenting with exotic tobaccos to unlock new taste profiles. They’re testing bold new formats and unconventional cigar sizes that challenge tradition. They’re embracing smarter inventory management to keep stock fresh, and doubling down on experiential engagement in an era where community and convenience matter. These brands are hustling to push the cigar industry into the future - but they often get ignored or dismissed.

Why? Because they don’t have the sexy lineage story. They don’t have black-and-white photos of their great-great-uncle standing next to a curing barn in 1930. In an environment so obsessed with looking backward, a brand that looks forward is branded as “too modern” or “not traditional enough.” I've seen it firsthand: truly creative brands unveiling groundbreaking blends or techniques get side-eyed by old-school gatekeepers simply because they don’t fit the vintage pedigree mold. Those words are practically an indictment in an industry that has equated tradition with quality for generations. It’s ridiculous if you think about it: when did doing things better become a liability?

And here’s something I saw firsthand - and broke down in my analysis of The Audit: What PCA 2025 Really Revealed: too many newer entrants, while claiming to move away from traditional heritage narratives, are simply replacing one branding uniform with another. Instead of sepia tones and family farm tales, they’re dressing their booths and boxes in minimalist fonts, earth-tone palettes, and packaging that wouldn’t look out of place in a reclaimed-wood café in Williamsburg. On the surface, it looks like a break from the past. But look closer, and you’ll see it’s just a new form of heritage - a curated hipster aesthetic designed to imply craft, cool, and authenticity. The problem? Too many are using the same visual cues, the same modern-artisanal lexicon. What’s being sold as innovation is often just a shift in design language, not a real evolution of product or positioning.

If that’s your lane - fine. But don’t confuse style with strategy. Derivative branding, whether it’s built on dusty legends or cold brew culture, still leads to the same dead end: a sea of sameness. Innovation means creating something distinct, not just rebranding the past in flannel and matte foil. So if you're a new brand staking your claim on being “different,” ask yourself this: does your box, your booth, your story actually look and feel different? Or are you following a new formula that everyone else is also chasing? Because if you're trying to create a new heritage, but it already looks like the guy next to you did it last year, you're not innovating - you’re inheriting someone else’s trend.

We need to stop framing tradition and innovation as mutually exclusive choices. They’re not opposites; in fact, the best brands find a way to honor the past while still pushing the future. A commitment to craftsmanship and quality can coexist with a drive to evolve and improve. But achieving that balance starts with being honest about what your brand really is - and what it isn’t. If you’re a new player, own it and excel at being new and innovative. If you have one foot in tradition and one in experimentation, say so. The point is, clinging blindly to the past at the expense of progress helps no one - nor should customers care. All it does is keep the industry stuck in a time capsule, while the rest of the world moves on. And in business, standing still is just another way of falling behind.

Know Your Position Before You Compete

Branding is war. And too many brands step into it armed with nothing but wishful thinking and a romantic backstory.

They assume a legacy tale or some sleek, artisanal packaging is enough to make an impression. It’s not. In fact, it’s almost guaranteed to get you ignored if you don’t know what territory you're fighting for. You may think you're telling a meaningful story - but if that story looks, sounds, and feels like five others in the same humidor, you're not positioning yourself. You're blending in.

The truth is, most brands don’t know their position. They don’t understand what space they occupy in the consumer’s mind - or what space is already taken. So they build messaging in a vacuum, throwing money at content, booths, influencers, and artwork - without ever asking the only question that matters: what do we stand for that no one else can claim?

And this is where things get ugly. Because without clarity, you’ll chase gimmicks. You’ll jump on bandwagons. You’ll borrow looks, tones, and phrases from brands you think are “working.” But here’s the dirty secret: a lot of them are just as lost as you are. It’s branding by echo chamber.

If you're not absolutely certain where you fit, how you're different, and why that difference matters - you’re not competing. You're just showing up. And showing up is not enough anymore.

So if you're guessing? You're losing. Quietly, slowly, and expensively. And your competitors - especially the ones who do know their position - will thank you for making it easy.

You Can Honor the Past Without Being Trapped By It

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about tossing heritage in the trash. Heritage matters – it’s a beautiful thing when it’s genuine and done right. Legacy can provide a strong foundation and a sense of identity. But heritage should be part of your brand’s foundation, not the entire blueprint. You can honor tradition without being handcuffed to it.

The premium cigar industry desperately needs new ideas, new approaches, and new blood. That won’t happen if we keep insisting that every newcomer produce a hundred-year-old backstory - or a venti caramel macchiato served in a biodegradable cup made from bamboo - to be taken seriously. Clinging to the past - or latching onto a ‘new heritage’ - as gatekeeping mechanisms is a surefire way to scare off innovation and fresh talent. We should welcome brands that break the mold, not side-eye them for daring to do things differently.

If you have true legacy behind you, by all means use it – celebrate it, leverage it, but also live up to it through your actions and quality today. If you don’t have a built-in heritage, don’t ever fake it, and don’t waste time chasing it. The fastest way to lose credibility is to pretend you’re something you’re not. Instead, stand tall and be transparent about who you are. Build your brand around what you do best – not just around what your great-grandparents might have done.

At the end of the day, consumers respond to authenticity and value. They can sense when a brand is confident in its own skin versus when it’s wearing someone else’s ill-fitting costume. So carve out your own identity. Honor the past, yes, but put just as much energy into innovating for the future. Remember: today's bold moves become tomorrow's legends. If you want to create a legacy worth talking about in 50 years, focus on giving people something amazing now, not just retelling what was amazing decades ago.

And if you're not sure what your positioning is or how to break out of the heritage-heavy noise? That's where I come in. The Cigar Profit helps premium cigar brands cut through the tradition-heavy clutter and build strategies that reflect who they really are and what they’re truly capable of.

Let’s talk. Schedule you Exploratory Call with The Cigar Profit Consulting today.