Quote Originally Posted by logan37 View Post
Why waste your time with a Hookah lounge? Learn more about cigars and the cigar business laws, save money for it and open a cigar shop. You should learn ALL the laws and regulationg before you even attempt to open any type of establishment be it tobacco or anything else. Not doing this research prior will only lead to disaster or at least, large fines...

Also you said that you don't care for smoking hookah so why bother investing so much of your time and money into something you don't like.

If you must open a Hookah lounge first I think you should name it, "My Other Business is a Cigar Lounge"
Yes, all very valid points. I never see any endeavor in life where there is potential to gain knowledge a waste of time. I have been mulling this over for quite some time now, and the biggest reason being a push with the hookah lounge is simply money. Not the best way to phrase that, but.... Money is the single greatest factor. With a cigar lounge I am looking at a very substantial initial investment. With very specific trade fixtures that can not be recouped should the business fail... The hookah lounge can be opened with a fraction of the cost of the cigar lounge, also the customer base is much larger with the hookah lounge. Using some break even models I have created based off of what I believe to be a fair market assessment, the hookah lounge would pay for itself nearly three times before the cigar lounge even turns a profit.

Also, I am becoming very familiar with the retail tobacco sales laws here, and I am simply using a much lower cost alternative to establish a successful tobacco business, while learning more about retail sales, marketing, and service. In the cigar business, and this is simply an opinion, the customers you will rely on for a majority of sales would be turned away from some newb who didn't have his shit together.... Where as if I piss off a 19 yr old college student, I might only loose a small portion of potential sales... The learning curve for cigar sales is to me, a much steeper one.

This is also a way to establish my name as a credible business owner in the retail market. Which will help financing and marketing a future cigar lounge much easier...

So does this mean I can count you in as a potential customer?