PCA 2021: Day 1 Recap

This year’s PCA Convention & Trade Show has been very different and very familiar for me all at the same time. It is different in the sense that I haven’t sat down with anybody in the cigar industry for the sole purpose of enjoying a cigar together in well over 18 months. It’s also different in the fact that while there are many people here and there are many people that aren’t here as well. It’s usually overwhelming with how many people you know that you are splitting your time with, this year I would call it much closer to manageable.

The familiarity however is a thankful respite. We’re back to our yearly coverage. I’m getting to see familiar faces. I’m getting to do familiar PCA (IPCPR) things.

Familiarity is comforting. Familiarity is nice.

But to the specifics of the trade show. Here are three things that I caught after one day on the trade show floor.

1. The People Here Are Here To Do Business — Historically, there is a flurry of activity on Day 1 of the show. People rush to their favorite (or closest) manufacturer first thing, which with how the show floor is usually laid out, means a lot of the bigger companies at the front of the show get slammed as soon as the doors open. This year it seemed whatever booth I visited in whatever quadrant of the show floor I was in, there were retailers in booths doing business. The way I took it was despite having fewer manufacturers and retailer attendees, the people who are here are eager and prepared to purchase products.
2. The Year of the Little Guy? — We can sit here all day and discuss what classifies a “boutique” cigar brand, but whatever your definition, we can all agree there is a difference between the big little guys and the smaller little guys. With the herd thinned this year, so to speak, there is a void that the smaller little guys have an opportunity to fill. I definitely got a sense of urgency and drive from a number of manufacturers today that was directly associated with the fact that there is a large chunk of manufacturers missing this year and they want to take advantage of that.
3. The Show is Smaller And Not Just Square Footage — There are so many companies that had palatial booth structures in previous years that opted for a much more minimalistic approach this year. Gone are the 20-foot walls which have been replaced with displays or small banners along the edge of the booth space. The open-air approach seems to be much more the norm rather than the walled-off fortresses of years past. Honestly, I think it’s nice. Sure, the big booths always caught me by surprise at first at how elaborate they were, but once I was past it, it seemed to be more the focus of the booth than the actual cigars. It’s nice to get back to what we’re all here to see — premium cigars and cigar accessories.