Cigars and Rum, Flor y Joya – the flower and the jewel of Nicaragua, a fair trade gift box idea to create funds to benefit Nicaraguan women.
My idea for hand rolled cigar factory came from a visit to one of the many rolling facilities in Esteli, Nicaragua. Cigars are a bit of a novelty item, a fun image enhancing product. Empowered women every bit as cool as the men enjoying their after diner Cognac and smoke.
But by providing a job as basic as rolling cigars, can but food on the table and keep a roof over the heads of head of household women. A job is no novelty to a woman providing for her family, it can be just enough to make life pleasant and offer some security in developing countries like Nicaragua where the unemployment rate is about 35 %.
As you can see from the photos below, Vanessa and I enjoyed doing a little research on putting the WWTP brand on cigars. We thought the cigars could be marketed to professional Women Who Know How To Wear The Pants in their careers.
The short version: for a minimal investment, we could lease a small factory building, to house a humidifier room, and rolling tables and cigar presses. Higher a buyer for the tobacco leaf. A quality cigar can be produced for about a $1.00, the cigar would then retail for about $7.00. The project would provide adequate income for the women rolling the cigars, and my guess $3.00 profit to be returned to the community for education, health and welfare programs.
An idea for the original investor: Cigar affeccianado Arnold Schwarschenger would be good to approach. A little bit of an apology to Maria and women of the world?
Perhaps if it is successful, WWTP could then buy a tobacco plantation and produce its own organic tobacco.
A great George Burns quote: “Happiness? A good cigar, a good meal and a good woman…or bad woman; it depends on how much happiness you can handle”
I myself do not think sharing happiness, makes you a bad woman.
