It’s now official. The IPCPR Convention and Trade Show will be moving from Sin City to The Big Easy next year for IPCPR 2015.

Finnie Helmuth, President of the IPCPR Board of Directors, said that “we just signed a contract for 2015 with New Orleans and are still working out a lot of the details.” The announcement marks the first time that the event has been in New Orleans since 2010. It was also held there in 2009.

Since then, Las Vegas has seemed to become the preferred site in recent years, having hosted it in 2011, 2013 and 2014, with Orlando playing host in 2012. While Las Vegas earns points for being friendly to cigar smokers and having an abundance of dining and entertainment options that don’t require much travel, there have been concerns expressed about the costs of hosting the show in Las Vegas, partially attributable to labor as well as the significant prices for hotel rooms, meals and entertainment.

Helmuth said that the IPCPR has begun looking at sites for 2016 and beyond, and hopes to have more information to report at this year’s trade show, being held July 19 – 23 in Las Vegas.

Davidoff is the official sponsor of halfwheel's coverage of the 2015 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show.
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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.