Habanos S.A., the Cuban cigar company, has announced the appointment of José María López Inchaurbe as the company’s new development vice-president.

López is an agricultural engineer who joined Corporación Habanos, S.A. in 2000, coming from the Tabacalera Company, where he was a finance controller. From 2003 to 2007, he held the position of vp of finance for Diadema S.p.A., the distributor of Habanos products in Italy.

Upon his return to Habanos S.A. in 2007, he was the market supervisor for southern Europe and the Mediterranean before being appointed to strategic marketing director in 2011, a position he has held since.

López replaces Javier Terrés de Ercilla, who had been in the position for the past 17 years. According to a statement issued by Habanos S.A., he will get new responsibilities within the premium cigar division of the Imperial Tobacco Company.

The promotion was approved at the May 4 meeting of Corporación Habanos, S.A. shareholders.

Image courtesy of Habanos S.A.

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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.