It is no secret that Smoke Inn is one of the biggest and most popular cigar shops in the United States. Owned and operated by Abe Dababneh and run by his fantastic team, Smoke Inn has been making moves for some time now. However, in 2021 they were able to pivot the pandemic the best with the way they rolled out certain projects, were able to stay ahead of the curves and challenges and most of all for how their flagship annual event, “The Great Smoke” was pulled off.
“The Great Smoke” or simply “TGS” is an annual Smoke Inn event held in West Palm Beach, Florida that is perhaps one of the hottest cigar events in existence. Exclusive event-only cigars, manufacturers and brand owners, food, drinks, entertainment, and over the top antics and extras that have thousands of people flocking down to Florida from all over the country. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2021 an in-person attendance was just not possible. TGS 2020 took place just before the pandemic took hold in the US and therefore was not an issue.
As a result, Abe and his team came up with an all virtual TGS. Once again partnering with manufactures for event exclusives that would be sold online, creating the best experience in a box I have ever see by shipping out tons of swag and over forty cigars and an event travel humidor, and partnering with a profession film and broadcast crew of the likes of some of the biggest award shows on national television. In this way, Smoke Inn presented a truly kick ass eight-hour long video show with interviews with some of the hottest people in the industry such as Carlito Fuente, Rocky Patel, Nick Perdomo, Pete Johnson, Steve Saka and Terence Reily. Hosted by Michael Herklots, owner of Ferio Tego, and co-hosted by Kim Keeney and Melanie Sisco, there was an energy that couldn’t be found anywhere else that day.
As announced at the end of TGS 2021, TGS 2022 will take place next month in West Palm Beach, Florida once again only this time it will feature an in-person attendance portion as well as a virtual event like last year. The theme this year is “The Last Luau” a Hawaiian theme which will feature not one but two volcanoes. Once again, the event will feature event-exclusive cigars which have already begun to rollout on the TGS website from manufacturers such as Room101, ADV, Espinosa, Aganorsa Leaf and Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust.
In addition, Smoke Inn rolled out their Holiday Cigar Advent Calander which grew to become a huge hit. Pete Johnson of Tatujae claims to have come up with the idea for himself years ago but has only since attempted his own last year which has already been pushed back to 2022. Some other manufacturers such as Oliva had introduced one at the 2021 Premium Cigar Association Trade Show in addition to Tatuaje but the Smoke Inn Calander was one of the best since it has more diversity in its collection rather than being from one brand.
To wrap it all up, at the end of the day and in the simplest form, Smoke Inn provides legendary customer service, has a great inventory of cigars, does some great events and creates some amazing content. Their stores, especially Boynton Beach, are so elegant and spacious. They truly define what a classy cigar lounge is. They also have great online engagement with their fans and customers, especially via their Smoke Inn Social page where their members are known as “Smoke Inn Socialites”.
We had the opportunity to visit a few locations in May, including Boynton Beach and we had one of the best times of our lives there. Thank you to Abe and his team for the amazing hospitality. We cannot wait to return in February and if you havent been you should get yourself down there as soon as possible. One last thing, if you do find yourself in the presence of Big Delicious in his castle in Boynton Beach get the coffee, you will not be disappointed. I guarantee it.
