4 ms·

I Started a $20K/Mo Cigar Subscription Business as a College Student

4 points by patwalls 7y ago

greenyoda 7y ago
> I always felt like subscription boxes for something non-consumable, like socks, wouldn’t work. After a few months, you would have enough and cancel the subscription. Socks and underwear are definitely consumables - they wear out from regular wear and washing. And they have a definite advantage over cigars: they don't give your customers horrible diseases. (I watched someone die of lung cancer. It's not a pleasant way to go.)
- eesmith 7y ago
  "Socks and underwear are definitely consumables" The border between a consumable good and a durable good is somewhat vague, but socks and underwear are usually considered durable goods because they can be washed and re-worn many times. "Durable" does not mean "does not wear out". For example, household appliances are considered highly durable goods because they typically have a usable lifespan of many 10 years. However, they do wear out. I have no disagreement with your point about how they give customers horrible diseases.
- flukus 7y ago
  Heavy smokers have a ~25% chance of getting lung cancer (plus various other horrible things), it drops to ~15% for light smokers, that's people who smoke many cigarettes a day every day. This service sends out 4 Cigars a month, the lung cancer risk from that is minuscule.
  - eesmith 7y ago
    Another way to view it is that they encourage people to start smoking ("new hobbyists"). In addition, while they currently send out 4 cigars a month, from the article: "We haven’t been extremely active in the larger cigar community because the hardcore fans generally buy in bulk cigars, which isn’t really our customer. Our customers are generally beginners/novices who are interested in getting started. This is an area we are interested in jumping into soon, however." (Emphasis mine in the last sentence.) It therefore doesn't seem like they are limiting themselves because of any concern about the health of their customers. When would the disease risk be high enough that you think it would be unethical for you to sell/distribute cigars?

4 points by patwalls 7y ago

> I always felt like subscription boxes for something non-consumable, like socks, wouldn’t work. After a few months, you would have enough and cancel the subscription. Socks and underwear are definitely consumables - they wear out from regular wear and washing. And they have a definite advantage over cigars: they don't give your customers horrible diseases. (I watched someone die of lung cancer. It's not a pleasant way to go.)

eesmith 7y ago
"Socks and underwear are definitely consumables" The border between a consumable good and a durable good is somewhat vague, but socks and underwear are usually considered durable goods because they can be washed and re-worn many times. "Durable" does not mean "does not wear out". For example, household appliances are considered highly durable goods because they typically have a usable lifespan of many 10 years. However, they do wear out. I have no disagreement with your point about how they give customers horrible diseases.
flukus 7y ago
Heavy smokers have a ~25% chance of getting lung cancer (plus various other horrible things), it drops to ~15% for light smokers, that's people who smoke many cigarettes a day every day. This service sends out 4 Cigars a month, the lung cancer risk from that is minuscule.
- eesmith 7y ago
  Another way to view it is that they encourage people to start smoking ("new hobbyists"). In addition, while they currently send out 4 cigars a month, from the article: "We haven’t been extremely active in the larger cigar community because the hardcore fans generally buy in bulk cigars, which isn’t really our customer. Our customers are generally beginners/novices who are interested in getting started. This is an area we are interested in jumping into soon, however." (Emphasis mine in the last sentence.) It therefore doesn't seem like they are limiting themselves because of any concern about the health of their customers. When would the disease risk be high enough that you think it would be unethical for you to sell/distribute cigars?