Michael Giannini is back.

Kretek International has announced that Giannini is the new creative director for its Ventura Cigar Co. brand.

Giannini most recently served as the director of innovation and creative director at General Cigar Co., a role he served in until September 2016. At his time at General he served as both the creative director, but also the face of La Gloria Cubana and later Foundry.

“Michael Giannini is a key addition to the VCC team, we’re excited that Michael is back doing what he does best” said Jason Carignan, chief marketing officer at Kretek, in a press release. “His vast industry knowledge and creative prowess are resources that we are excited to tap into and use to further develop the brands and products within the VCC portfolio. He is a true visionary with a business mind, and we are pleased to have him aboard.”

Ventura includes the PSyKo Seven lines of cigar and more recently Archetype and Case Study.

“I’m super excited to be joining the team at Ventura Cigars,” said Giannini. “This is a brand that has been flying under the radar, and I know people are going to love what we come up with next.”

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Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.