Jared Ingrisano Takes Control of Favilli Brands, Production Moving to New Factories

There are major changes underway for Mombacho Cigars S.A. and its cigars, which are sold in the U.S. under the Favilli name.

Most notably, Mombacho Cigars S.A. has entered into an agreement with Jared Ingrisano that grants him and his company, Favilli Trading LLC, the exclusive rights to develop, market and sell the Favilli brands in the U.S. and international markets. Coinciding with that agreement is a change in how the Favilli brands are being made; going forward, they will no longer be made at the Mombacho-owned Favilli Mansion, also referred to as Casa Favilli, a converted house located in Granada, Nicaragua.

This week, Ingrisano announced that he has resigned from his role as president of Mombacho Cigars S.A. so that he can focus on Favilli Trading LLC, a U.S.-based cigar sales, distribution and marketing company. Ingrisano launched the company earlier this year as part of the rebranding of Mombacho Cigars S.A.’s portfolio to Favilli S.A. Since that change, Ingrisano has been handling U.S. activity for the Favilli brand through Favilli Trading LLC.

Ingrisano has announced that he will be revamping what had been Mombacho Cigars S.A.’s cigar portfolio, including moving production of the cigars to new—and as of now, undisclosed—factories. The announcement signals a change that is the effective end of widely distributed cigars being produced at the Favilli Mansion. Mombacho Cigars S.A. has decided to focus its efforts on cigar tourism and hospitality, and is shifting to what the company calls “specialty cigar production.”

“With growing sales we cannot meet demand with Favilli production and need to add manufacturing partnerships,” said Cameron Heaps, founder of Mombacho Cigars S.A.

The Favilli Mansion is currently undergoing renovations and improvements, it is set to reopen as an experiential cigar factory destination in January 2023 ahead of the Puro Sabor festival.

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Ingrisano leaves Mombacho Cigars S.A. just under a year after he was announced as the company’s new president in February 2022. Prior to that, he served as the company’s director of global sales, a position he started in January 2021. Before joining Mombacho Cigars S.A., Ingrisano held sales and brand management roles with Drew Estate and Debonaire Tobacco Co., and was president of Tobacco Tours, a company offering experiential trips to Cuba.

The promotion to president came shortly after Mombacho Cigars S.A. announced that it would be changing the name of its products in the U.S. to Favilli as part of a trademark dispute with AGANORSA Leaf over the use of the Mombacho name, a dispute that was resolved in February 2022. Ingrisano developed the Favilli brand prior to his appointment as president, pitching it to Mombacho Cigars S.A.’s leadership as a transition away from the company’s previous branding.

As the branding change came about, Ingrisano launched Favilli Trading LLC in early 2022, telling halfwheel it was at that time he began doing all internal fulfillment center warehousing for Mombacho Cigars S.A., among other things. As part of the launch, a separate but related entity named Favilli S.A. was created for Ingrisano’s Nicaragua-based operations. It will also serve as the name of a new location for production, though Ingrisano has not yet said where he is making cigars. Sales and other staff members in the U.S. have transitioned to work under Favilli Trading throughout 2022, while some staff in Nicaragua have also moved over to Favilli Trading’s operations.

Ingrisano told halfwheel that the news announced this week was not initially part of the plan when he joined the company, though it eventually came into focus as Mombacho Cigars S.A. began evolving into its next steps.

“After transitioning the brand and totally remodeling the mansion in Granada the vision for Favilli was very clear,” said Ingrisano. “I resigned as president of Mombacho Cigars S.A. and we came to an agreement solely for the cigar side of the business.”

As part of that transition, the Granada Line, which is made up of the Isletas, Tierra and Lava lines, will be getting new branding, Ingrisano said. The trio began shipping to retailers in the U.S. and Canada in May 2022, with Isletas and Lava launched as new blends, while Tierra was a rebranded and updated version of Tierra Volcan, Mombacho Cigars S.A.’s oldest brand.

Also joining the Favilli Trading LLC portfolio will be the Cafe line, which features a combination of coffee and cigars that was developed with Fabian Ziegler, as well as The Factory Blend Arrangement and Ladrillos lines. More lines are in the works, and there could be a return of discontinued brands and marks from Mombacho Cigars S.A.’s history.

“The company is excited to see the Favilli brand prepare for global distribution under the watchful eye of our former president,” said Heaps in a press release. “Jared has been instrumental in the brand’s development to date, and we are excited to see him take Favilli further in production, global sales, and marketing under his own leadership.”

According to a press release, Favilli S.A. will have some existing products available immediately, with new products produced by Ingrisano scheduled to be available beginning in February 2023, which is when the company plans to fully re-enter the American market with a revamped sales force and company structure that Ingrisano described as being more retailer friendly.

The Favilli Mansion, also referred to as Casa Favilli, is currently undergoing a series of improvements and renovations that includes the completion of two new bar-restaurants as Mombacho Cigars S.A. transitions the building to become an experiential center centered around cigars for visitors and tour groups. With his departure from Mombacho Cigars S.A., Ingrisano is no longer involved with the operations of the Favilli Mansion, though he did indicate what the future holds for the facility as part of the announcement of his departure.

While the facility will no longer produce cigars for sale outside of Nicaragua, it will offer what Ingrisano described as “small luxury production solely for Nicaragua and specialty markets,” and he expressed optimism that he’d be able to work with the Mombacho Cigars S.A. team on cigars in the future.