Régis Broersma will remain in charge of General Cigar Co.

Scandinavian Tobacco Group—parent of General Cigar Co., Cigars International and others—announced that it would be reorganizing following the integration of Agio Cigars, which it purchased  last year. Crucially, the company will close a variety of non-premium cigar factories including STG Moca in the Dominican Republic and the Duizel and Eersel factories in the Netherlands. All told, it will result in around 800 people losing their job.

“The changes we announce today are a step further in our transformation of Scandinavian Tobacco Group,” said Niels Frederiksen, ceo of STG, in a press release. “They impact most parts of our organisation as we build a more competitive and profitable business with a powerful brand portfolio, strong market positions and robust supply chains. It is an investment in our future and addresses the need for continuous optimisation to remain competitive and succeed in tough market conditions. Regrettably, the changes also necessitate that we part ways with a number of hard-working and valued colleagues. I would like to thank everyone of them for their efforts and dedication over the years.”

The company also announced that it would be reorganizing its leadership into three commercial divisions, down from four, by integrating the Smoking Tobacco and Accessories Division into two existing divisions.

Régis Broersma, the most recent head of General Cigar Co., was heading that division. He announced that he would be leaving his post at General and moving back to Europe last year. Broersma moved back to Europe before STG found a replacement for him at General and has been leading both divisions from Europe, something he will now do permanently as the company has announced his new title of senior vice-president of North American Brand and Rest of the World. That job also includes being the president of General Cigar Co.

“I am excited to be back in charge of STG’s Handmade Cigars division,” said Broersma, in a press release. “My great passion for handcrafted cigars and the industry hasn’t changed, and I have missed the organization, our customers and business partners. Our company has retaken its leadership role in the industry and the future looks bright for General Cigar. I’m looking forward to working again alongside the talented General Cigar team to pursuing various areas of untapped opportunity in North America,”

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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.