Two more cigar companies have announced price increases on cigars due to tariffs. CLE Cigar Co. and RoMa Craft Tobac join Perdomo Cigars in announcing that the companies will be increasing prices effective Monday, May 5.
The companies are citing President Donald Trump’s April 2 tariffs as the reason for the increases. In a letter sent to retailers and posted on Facebook, Skip Martin—co-founder of RoMa Craft Tobac—says that the increases are typically less than 5 percent, but there are some SKUs that are increasing by more than 10 percent.
“As the tariffs are assessed on our import price, and not on our wholesale price, the impact varies based on how much margin we have built into our wholesale prices,” said Martin. “In most cases we are absorbing some of the tariffs and not passing them on to the retailer knowing that the retailer will keystone any increase we pass onto them doubling the impact on our consumers… Given our more generous margins on LEs, these are generally affected the least. Given our very tight margins on Maestranza, this brand is affected the most severely.”
CLE Cigar Co., the maker of premium cigars including the Asylum line, will raise its prices again beginning May 5, 2025, citing the ongoing impact of U.S. tariffs on imported cigars. This marks the company’s second price increase this year, following a similar adjustment in February.
In a message to retailers, company founder Christian Eiroa explained that the latest pricing changes are directly tied to the escalating cost pressures caused by new trade duties.
“We have to increase prices starting Monday, May 5th,” Eiroa wrote. “We have waited as long as we could, optimistic that the tariffs would be reversed, but no such luck.”
Unlike flat-rate increases seen from other companies, CLE’s adjustments vary depending on cigar size. Wholesale prices will go up by 20 cents for cigars with ring gauges up to 52, while larger formats—54 ring gauge and above—will see a 30-cent increase.
CLE joins a growing list of cigar manufacturers responding to a 10% U.S. tariff imposed on handmade premium cigars from Nicaragua and other regions, a move that has prompted companies across the industry to reassess pricing strategies. With no sign of a rollback in tariffs, industry observers expect more brands to follow suit in the coming weeks.
Perdomo Cigars announced a second price increase of 25 cents per cigar earlier this week.
“As you may know, a new 10% tariff has been imposed on premium handmade cigars imported from Nicaragua, where every Perdomo cigar is proudly crafted,” said Nick Perdomo Jr., president and CEO of Perdomo Cigars. “This government-mandated cost affects every manufacturer in our industry, and once again, we are called to protect our customers, the end consumers, and our employees while navigating the challenging business environment we all face today.”
Interestingly, Martin told Halfwheel that RoMa Craft Tobac imports cigars every 10 days and does not keep a large amount of inventory on hand. He also says that he does not expect any relief for Nicaragua’s tariff rate and if the tariff’s were to be removed, the price increases would remain.
“Should the unlikely reversal of the tariffs occur, we will not reduce our prices as this would only devalue our retailer’s inventory,” he said. “It would delay any future price increase and could possibly allow us to do more in terms of discounts and free goods to support our retailer’s ability to drive sales of our brands.”
