Speaker: 00:00:00

Welcome to another episode of Box Press. I'm

your host Nate Beck and I am your other host JP

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Awad. What's up everybody? Thanks for joining

us. We have on today Raquel Quesada and Juan

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Martinez. Raquel Quesada is with Quesada

Cigars and Juan is with Joya de Nicaragua.

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And we are super excited to be able to have a

great conversation and get to know more about

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both of their brands today on Box Press.

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00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:36,480

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So JP, what are you going to be lighting up today?

I am smoking the Joya de Nicaragua Cinco de Cinco,

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which I am super excited about. I've had one in

the past. Incredible cigar, like incredible cigar.

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And then I'm going to be representing the

Casa Magna Robusto which I believe Raquel

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you are smoking right now. Yes. Juan, what are you

smoking? I'm smoking a Cuatro Cinco Secret Cask

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that we launched last year. A very special blend.

And I need to get my hands on one of those. They

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look awesome. Okay, so first things first,

we always we always love to just talk about

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the brand is the brand speaks for itself. One of

the coolest things about both of these brands is

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there's a lot of history behind these brands.

And your histories are intertwined, right?

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And so obviously Joya is the oldest is the oldest

tabacalera in all of Nicaragua, right? Based in

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Estelí. Yes. Yes. And yes. And I believe it's

fifth generation for Quesada, right? Totally. God,

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that is awesome. Wow. Fifth generation of the

Quesada family. That is so cool. So obviously

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both of your families have a lot of history, a

lot of legacy. They're icons, right? Your parents

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are icons in this industry. So the first thing I

always like to talk about is like what was it like

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growing up in this industry? Like seeing all of

it, right? Obviously when you're a child, right?

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You might have core memories that come to mind,

you know, that you're like, "Holy [ __ ] like this

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was like you think now, right? Thinking back on it

now, you're like, "Oh my God, I remember like this

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was transformative for like these are the things

that like kind of stick in your mind your entire

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life, you know, as you move forward, you know,

essentially blazing your own path and creating,

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you know, a legacy for yourselves as well. So,

like what are what are some things over the

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years that have really stuck out to the both

of you growing up with such awesome parents?

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Yeah, awesome parents and also grandparents.

Yeah. Well, for me, this has been my whole life.

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As I said, I have it in my veins. It's something

that if I wasn't I mean happy with it, I wouldn't

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have been doing it because if you come to this

industry and you don't love it, you can't be in

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it. Yeah. But a lot I have a lot of stories, but

for example, my grandfather used to smoke in the

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car with the windows up. Oh, man. And for me, that

was something that marked my youth. I imagine.

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like seven or eight years old and your grandfather

likes smoking with the windows up and then you

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and then like one time I decided that I wanted to

comment some on that and then that was the rest is

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history. It's like you do not say anything about

cigar you do not say anything about the smoke

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that's something that is like in your life in your

in your legacy in your history and you cannot say

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anything about it rather than something good.

Yeah. So after that it was something that I had

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to you know I was over it and just actually at the

end it was like even great. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And

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also running around the bales in the warehouses

was something that comes to my memory all the

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time and we talk about it as as with me and my

sister Patricia were always reminding us that it

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was something that we used to run out and some of

the cigar makers that are as of now in the factory

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used started working when the factory opened in

'74. before. Yeah. So, imagine that they would

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they would see us running around and and they

would always always comment to to up to now saying

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that, "Oh my God, I remember you both like blonde

girls running around our tables and now you're

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the ones that are running the show." Yeah. So,

that's something that for me it's like an entirely

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different kind of running. Exactly. Yeah. That's

awesome. That is so cool, boy. Hearing you talk

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about running around the bales of tobacco brings

back fond memories for me. I have five now grown

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adult daughters and for a lot of years I sold

shoes and when they would come to visit me they

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got great enjoyment out of running into the back

room and hiding under the shelves of shoes. So

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my my story is is a bit different. You know, I I

didn't grow running around tobacco bales or under

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the shade of a tobacco plant like Raquel and a lot

of my colleagues did. Actually, my my family, my

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father got involved in the business in the early

1990s because the company already existed, the

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brand already existed way before before us. It was

established in 1968, but it wasn't until the 1990s

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that my family got involved. And for the first

stretch of my life, I didn't plan to come into the

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cigar business or the tobacco business. In fact,

when I came out of university, I was planning

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to do my own thing, you know, as a as a good

Nicaraguan revolutionary at heart that had studied

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under the Jesuits. My goal was to do my own thing,

to change the world in my own way. Mhm. And my

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father was doing his thing and I admired that. I

saw him working very hard trying to sell cigars in

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a very competitive world you know traveling and

doing nights long long travels selling cigars.

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And I thought you know this is this is his thing.

I'll do my own thing until a point where I started

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seeing and appreciating the impact that his work

was having.Going to the factory and seeing more

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than 400 people that work with him. Knowing that

at that time the cigars that they were making

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were being enjoyed in more than 50 countries

around the world. You know it was it was it

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was impactful. It was impactful to be honest.

And it was at that point that I say, you know,

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maybe maybe I could do more by joining this team

instead of trying to do my own thing. Definitely

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I would have much more fun than working at at a

bank or at a consulting firm which was something

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that I was doing before. And I decided to join him

and I gave him five years. I told him I'll I'll

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I'll be part of this for 5 years and here I am 17

years later dedicating you know my my whole life

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to this beautiful to this beautiful trade into

this beautiful industry allowing ourselves to

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tell our story throughout the world. It's it's

a privilege. It's a privilege. Now I have to say

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that at some point I do remember Raquel Quesada

Patricia Quesada Vega as being part of our lives

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because in the early 2000s the distributed Joya

de Nicaragua in the US. So my father has had

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a very close relationship with Manolo and they

work closely together. Yep. And I remember them

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traveling going to the at that time RTDA trade

show and talking about the Quesada sisters,

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the Quesada girls and I would always I was a bit

younger at that time. So I would always look at

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them, you know, all this these girls working with

the family. I always admire that persistence and

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that commitment that the family had. But it

ultimately that brings us to the reason why

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we decided to work together, right? That family

values. Yeah. Commitment. The core values that

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drive this business. This industry, this trade are

also shared between us. We have from Nicaragua,

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we have a tremendous admiration and respect for

what the Quesada family have done in the in the

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Dominican Republic. They are humbler because

to be honest as as as Joya de Nicaragua was an

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igniting point for the Nicaragua cigar industry,

Quesada was an igniting point for the Dominican

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cigar industry. And they played such a relevant

role in building what the Dominican industry is

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today that it's nothing other than respectful and

honored to be joining hands with them and with the

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Quesada family. That's awesome. Can you two talk

a little bit more about this because this is this

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is in January of this year. So this is very new

that essentially this this is a collaboration,

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right? It's not a merger. It's nothing like that.

It's just a collaboration between the two of you.

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Ultimately, it's kind of a a a an intertwining

of like marketing and sales together, right? Yes.

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Well, actually, so as as Juan said, go ahead. So

I was just going to say something quick. As one

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said, this is the first time that we are together

talking about our journey together back again

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now in 2026. Raquel and I traveled a lot both in

the US and internationally and we would see each

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other quite often. We developed, we reignited a

family relationship through our work. You know,

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doing events, traveling, going to trade shows,

and we would go out to dinner, we would sit down,

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have drinks, have cigars, and we always be sharing

our lives histories, successes, and mishaps,

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and we develop a friendship. So actually this

is a partnership that results from a personal

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relationship that has been growing for many,

many years and that it has transformed now into

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an opportunity of doing things together in the

business area in the business space. So this is

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a partnership in which we try we're trying to

give each brand, each history, each heritage,

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each family the deserving space that they require

in the United States. And we're working together

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because at the end we're very similar. We're

family-run businesses family-oriented businesses

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with very strong family values with similar

challenges in a such a large market as the

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United States. And it was only easy to say, you

know, we should join forces and do things better

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together. At the end of the day, the the sum

of both brands and the sum of both families is

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more than each one by itself individually.

Yeah, that's awesome. I love that. Yeah,

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it's a great message. And having each each brand

with its own characteristics and its own beauty of

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each other. I think it was a great a great merge.

That's awesome. And a great opportunity for both.

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Yeah. Can you two touch a little bit more on like

kind of how this unified, this unified model that

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you're now sharing together, right? How what that

means for distribution in the United States and

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outside of the United States? And, and I think

how does you know how does that relationship

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and that partnership directly impact your end

consumer and how they're going to now be able

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to find your cigars more readily, you know how is

that all going to play out the first phase of our

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of our partnership began in Spain. So a couple

of years ago Joya de Nicaragua started its own

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distribution platform in Spain and we were looking

for partners also to add to the portfolio and the

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the most obvious one was Quesada. So we started

a while ago already working together in Spain,

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specifically in the in the Spanish market and

that's been going really well and in the US we

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decided to do something more collaborative more in

terms of a partnership as I said before in which

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we both develop and have an equal say in how

the brands are promoted managed and brought

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to the end consumer through the different you

know retail shops as national accounts and so

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on. I would I would like to mention though this

is not like previous collaborations that you've

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had in the past. This is not a merger. Yep. Yep.

This is not a you know a collaboration in terms

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of product in which you know two manufacturers

come together and develop a product and then one

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of them sells them. This is not like this. This is

not to be honest something that we've seen in the

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past. Although there are a couple of companies

that have a long-lasting partnership together

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and in which each one of the brands has their

voices, their space respected and appreciated

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and the mission of the team that is now in charge

of the US is to uphold and cherish each of the

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brands from what they are. One from Nicaragua

and one from the DR. Both legacy brands. Both

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legacy families that have contributed so much

in building but that are in the space in which

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we are not the largest but we're not boutiques

either. So we are in this weird middle space where

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you have to fight a lot. And so we just simply

came together to develop complementary efforts

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in terms of sales, having people on the street,

having our voice representing our our our values.

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Developing stronger relationship with the the

largest and most important accounts in the

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country and most importantly developing programs

that allow us to connect better with our consumers

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through engagement through communities that we

are building. You know, we have different type

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of consumers. The smoker of Joya de Nicaragua

is not necessarily the same smoker as Casa Magna

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and Quesada and we don't necessarily compete with

each other but complemented strongly totally with

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a solid offering of Nicaraguan original Nicaraguan

cigars and original legitimate Dominican profiles

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together. So we're taking advantage of this

opportunity on making it work and what it

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basically means for the retailer and for the trade

is that we now have one coherent alliance. You

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will get they will get the opportunity to buy both

brands from the same supplier. Y for the consumer

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is that they will see us together in some events.

We will have individual events in which the brands

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promote themselves individually. But we also have

joint events, joint partnerships where you'll have

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access to the story of both brands together

and how this have contributed of making this

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industry such an exciting dynamic and beautiful

experience as it is today. That's awesome.

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That's fantastic. Yeah, it's really really cool.

Yeah, we're obviously very excited for you both.

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It sounds like you're both very passionate about

this this collaboration with one another. We could

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speak more highly about your two brands

and and your families in the legacy that

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you all have and that you're still continuing

to build. You know, this is actually a pretty

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good segue into the next thing. How obviously,

you're you're both very international brands,

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right? You're in dozens of countries. What

has what has humidity meant to you? Namely,

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Boveda. Obviously, you both are packaging with

Boveda, which we obviously appreciate very much.

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It means the world to us that you trust us. But

what has it meant for you? Like at at what point

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did did your families realize, okay, a Boveda pack

needs to go into these boxes as they ship out?

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In my in my part, I think

this comes from my father.

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From the very beginnings that you started

innovating with the system, I think he was

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very passionate about it and very willing

to collaborate with you both companies

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because he understood at that time and we

understand now because we continue using it that

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it's very important quality and the consistency

of the cigars in order for the consumer to get it

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in intact in an in an amazing way. Yeah. So I

think for us has been an amazing collaboration and

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we have evolution I don't know evolution

on not even in the boxes but in packs also

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and in different ways to make the cigars get

to the consumer in a in an in a quality and

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consistency way. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. That's

awesome. Yeah. And if if I'm if my numbers are

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correct, I believe Quesada has been packaging

with Boveda for over 10 years now, right? It's

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been over a decade. I'm saying it goes way back.

Way back. It really does. It really does. Yep.

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In our case is is a little bit additional to that.

I always respected your product and your business

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because you guys come to solve a concrete problem

that we have as manufacturers. The reality is that

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once we ship our cigars from our factories,

you know, they're frozen, they're ready,

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they are shipped into a distributor or an importer

in, you know, 80 countries around the world. They

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go through shipping either by air or by sea and

they go to a a warehouse that is no longer ours.

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And from that warehouse, we trust that it's doing

the best to maintain the quality of the product.

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But then from that warehouse to the retailer also

you have shipping and then the retail you trust

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that they have the best conditions to showcase

the product. And then you have the last leg which

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is from the retailer to the shop from the shop to

the consumer. We lost control of our product from

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the moment we ship that. Right. So, correct. Yeah.

But at the end of the day, if someone complains,

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oh, this cigar is too dry or too moist, whose

responsibility is it? They don't care about the

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importer, right? They don't care about UPS or the

shipping. It's our problem. It's our issue, right?

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So you guys came to fixability that is legitimate

to our to our industry on how to at least mitigate

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the risk of over or under humidification

of our products which is so essential and

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historically we've never had it. So you come you

guys come to solve a functional problem. I think

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it's that's the beauty of your business and I I

admire and respect for you for that because you

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come to compliment us in a way, plus giving us the

opportunity to say to the consumer we are doing we

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have a commitment to the quality of this product

because we have this seal on it. We are investing

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to make sure that whatever happens in the way

to your hands this product is kept in the best

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possible conditions using this instrument

that we call the Boveda pack. Right. Yeah,

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so it gives us trust, it gives us legitimate

legitimacy for the consumer and for the trade,

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too. So I think even if we don't have any issues

let's say even if all of our partners do their

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work well and control for humidity at least

we have that final step of giving credit to

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the effort that we're giving to ensure to

our consumers that the product that they

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receive is at the highest standard possible. Well,

speaking to that, Nate and I are both smoking our

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cigars and it is an absolutely perfect burn on

these. We took them right out of the boxes. So,

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smoking beautifully. They are smoking beautifully.

So, bravo, Boveda, you did it. Yeah. And I think

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it's really, it it speaks to the collaborative

element of your relationship between your

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two families in the way that both. Yeah. Both

companies include Boveda and we're able to help

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you in that collaboration by providing a product

that protects your cigars to the end consumer.

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And one of the things that I've enjoyed over the

last oh it's been the last three or four weeks,

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my good friend Jerry, who you have now on

board on your sales team has been spreading

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my information to all of your reps and to your

national sales director. And so I have been

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as quickly as possible making sure that all of

the cigars that your sales team have with them

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and on their person and in their vehicles is now

properly protected by Boveda. So we got everybody

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covered. So it's it's been fun. Cuz, Jerry's one

of my favorite people and now I get to see him

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at the trade shows along with you guys. So it's

been really fun to see that that grow. Let me,

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let me tell you an anecdote, a personal anecdote

with you guys. One of the first things that I did

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when I was a young kid, actually quite small,

for my father, I was responsible of taking care

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of his humidors at home. And the main function

was to refill the humidification in his humidors,

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right? You remember the the bricks that we used

to have with a sponge that you needed to fill with

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the distilled water? That was my That was my role.

That was my role. And, I remember struggling with

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that and eventually coming into the business and

having a bunch of this bricks laying around and,

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you know, filling them in with the distilled

water. It was a pain to do this. Yeah. And when

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you guys came, I know it was called differently

before it was called Boveda. It was like, wow,

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this is innovation. This solves a problem for

the consumer. And that's where I started. I, we,

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I started using you guys before using it in our

products at a personal level and giving it away

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to my friends and family who smoke. Hey, how

do I take care of the humidity? You know, hey,

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you put a sponge in there. No, no longer that. You

just get one of these packs, and I would hand them

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over the Boveda packs, and that that would be

it, man. So, it's it's a functional thing and I

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admire you guys again for that. And then you came

to solve a very concrete problem for our business,

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which was that we were expanding in duty-free

shops around the world travel retail but most

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of these shops don't necessarily have humidified

displays. Right. So we were forced, in a way,

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to add our first step was add Boveda packs to

every single box to be sold at duty-free travel

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retail spaces and from there on we just added them

to the Obras Maestras. You know we had one or two

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complaints of oh the cigars are too dry in this

shop in somewhere in Asia Pacific. So we said,

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okay, let's solve that problem using Boveda

packs. Yeah. So there you go. And would you

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say Juan that's where it started for you? Like

is that where is that where packaging with Boveda

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started? It we started exclusively for the spaces

where we decided where we knew that we could not

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control the humidity. It wasn't a traditional

tobacconist or specialty shop. It was those places

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where we knew that the product could be affected

by humidity changes. We actually, our pilot was

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down here in Nicaragua at our duty-free shop and

from there on we expanded to almost every single

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duty-free item and duty-free shop that we had.

That's fantastic. That's awesome. And would and

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would you say that since that time any any issues

with dryness of cigars that all of that dissipated

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and essentially vanish? Vanish. Absolutely.

Yes. That is awesome, man. Fantastic. That's

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really cool to hear. Nate and I always like to

ask everybody that we have on as a guest to tell

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us some funny stories. They could be trade show

stories. They could be at the factory. It could

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be anywhere. It could be at a shop. Tell us like

a story that you tend to tell people as being like

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one of your more comical or funny stories that

you like to bring up to people that's happened,

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you know, whatever happened 20 years ago, last

year at, you know, a TPE or PCA or something.

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But we always want to hear funny stories, cuz we

want people to be able to share with us. Well,

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I have one. I don't know how funny it is to be

honest, but it's it's it's it's clever and it's

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interesting and it talks a little bit about

our trade and our craft. So, when I started,

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one of the first things that I started doing for

my family, for my for the company was looking

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over our processes, production operations-wise.

And one of the things that I noticed was that

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we always had quality issues on certain days of

the week. Productivity and quality issues. So,

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I went, you know, double click on that and

like, so what's happening? I'm an economist,

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so I I look at numbers a lot. Yeah. And, obviously

numbers don't tell you anything without a life

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behind those numbers, right? So, we would I would

see that Mondays and Fridays quality would issues

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would spike. And I went back to Leonel who was

our factory manager at that time and it's like

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yeah well you won't believe this but you know

Mondays people are just hung over and Fridays

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people are just waiting to go. To get it over.

Yeah, this is a handcraft product, so what do you

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expect people just want to go home on Fridays and

have their drinks or whatever go party and that's

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reflected on the quality of our cigar. Oh my God.

I was like, Wow, too much Flor de Caña , huh? So

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it's it's it's sort of funny. Not not too funny,

but it tells you a lot about the relevance of the

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human aspect to this. Absolutely. Of course. The

humanity of each person happens here. So I have a

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I have a funny one that's happened. We hired back

in 2010. I don't know if you remember or you know

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him, José Blanco. We hired him as our master

blender for a while for a couple of years and

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he came down with a lot of ideas and he would do

all of these crazy testing tasting panels with our

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team and he would makes us smoke like 20 cigars in

one sitting, right? And we would go dizzy and try

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to experiment with different blends so on. And

he did a lot of teaching for us down here with

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a different perspective that he came and we were

in one of those panels smoking for a new release

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that we were going to do and it's like ah he's

always complaining he was always complaining oh my

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first third it's always too spicy first third is

always too spicy first third of the another cigar

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too spicy and the youngest guy of the group just

comes up and you know looks at him and he says,

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"Okay, so let's just cut 1/3 of the cigar

and that will solve the problem and we'll

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chop 1/3 of every single cigar and we'll solve the

problem." It's like, "Oh, makes sense." You know,

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and everybody's like, "Wow, it's so obvious,

you know, if it's the first third, let's fix

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that." Yeah. Did he ever say why he thought the

first third was spicy? Like, what was it on his

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palate that made it feel like it was spicy? I I

think it had to do more with his experience coming

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from the DR that, you know, Nicaraguan cigars tend

to always start a little bit bolder, spicier. So,

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it was more of his palate getting used to the

the the Nicaraguan profile, but it it actually

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solved the issue, you know. Yeah, totally. That's

great. Oh my God, I love that. So, Raquel, okay,

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we're talk we're talking funny, funny stories,

funny anecdotes that could have happened in the

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factory. They could have happened when you were

like hanging out with friends at a lounge. We

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just want, we always want to hear funny stories

that like stick out to you. Yeah. Oh. Well,

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funny stories. From the top of my head, I only

have stories with my father that are not funny.

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That. That was funny. Yeah.

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Oh my God. He was very tough, very tough with us,

you know, especially the girls as he calls us.

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So I don't know. I really have my my story since

forever with my father, which is not funny at all,

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was that he was he was the only one that he

could do the blends, right? So he would write in

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a little piece of paper that that time we were it

was like the 2000s. So we were in another factory,

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not the one that we are now. We were at factory

that we were there for 38 years after we moved to

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this one that we've been here for 14 years or

15 years. So, we were, so he was the one that

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did all the blends and there was like, like,

I don't know how you call like, altoparlante,

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altavoz del fono, and the whole factory. So, he

would call like a speaker phone. So, he would call

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everyone on that speaker phone and that was like

really loud and you thought he was like really mad

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and the world was ending. So, so one day he he's

he gives me this blend and it's a little piece

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of paper with his handwriting and I go to the

floor and I changed the I tweaked it a little

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bit. I didn't change the whole I just tweaked

it a little bit. So I come back and I put it on

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his desk and I leave. So like 10 minutes later

or 15 minutes later he's like, Raquel Quesada,

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231, which was the extension of his office. And

I'm like, oh my God, I'm dead. I'm not going to

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survive. Not one more hour. This is the end of

my days in the cigar industry. So he's like,

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"What did you do to my blend?" And I'm like,

"Well, I tweaked it a little bit." He's like,

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"Well, this is the best one. So we're going to

take your blend." So it was the at that time it

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was a Cubana Limitado Fonseca. So the boxes came

out saying made by Raquel and Manuel Quesada. Oh,

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that's awesome. That's great. So, at the end,

I almost died that day or didn't survive. Well,

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because we all know we all know when your

parent like shouts at you or you think they're

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shouting at you and they're angry, you just think

they're angry. Oh, no. I don't know if you know,

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but my dad went to Vietnam. So, in my house, it

was like if we were at at the at the center of

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the situation. So like the lights had to go out

at one time, the doors had to be kept closed,

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you know, there was like a whole itinerary of

things that we had to keep on going. So it was

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really tough. He says he doesn't remember any

of this. Of course not. Yeah, of course not.

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Of course you remember. They conveniently never

remember. Yes, exactly. I'm Raquel. I'm a little,

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I'm a little worried on the things that I'm going

to conveniently not remember with all five of my

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girls. I'm a a little nervous. Oh my God, you

have five girls. I I'm really sorry for you. He

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had two girls and he thought he was in trouble.

Yeah. No, we have and a set of twins. So yeah. Oh

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my God. Yeah. Juan has two, so he knows. I only

have boys. I have a boy. So I have a boy. Well,

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it's very interesting when you like work can often

be even with a lot of people around can be very

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quiet, but when I'd go home for dinner, it would

be literally six people. It's like conversation

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turns into combat. Just trying to get a point

across or something, you know, just iterated.

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And so I'd just half the time just sit there and

eat my dinner and just listen. And it was very

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interesting when my girls were small. I mean,

it was it was fun and it was a little crazy

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all at the same time. And I remember when my girls

were, you know, in their kind of early teen years,

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I remember like the Jonas Brothers and Hannah

Montana were very popular. And so they would ask

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us to put that music on while we had dinner and it

was absolute chaos. And so my wife and I would go,

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absolutely not dancing around. They were insane.

And so we would then put on Frank Sinatra,

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Dean Martin, you know, the Rat Pack, and

everybody would mellow out. And so we had to

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put a moratorium on any of their current music cuz

they would turn into complete psychopaths. Yeah.

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You've got to put something on that they don't

really enjoy. They'll be quiet. Let Let me Let me

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tell you that at least you're not on the Bad Bunny

era, man. In the Bad Bunny era. Taylor Swift. Oh,

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we got Taylor Swift. We did get that one. Yeah,

Taylor. We still have Taylor. Well, I have get

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Bad Bunny with boys. Raquel, one of my twins, is

on the autism spectrum and she is a real character

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and can be quite spicy. But when she takes a

shower, she likes to turn music on her phone

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and play it in the bathroom. And we went through

probably a 2-year stretch where it was non-stop

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Taylor Swift. And she's singing at the top of her

lungs in the shower to Taylor Swift. Yeah. So,

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it's it's been Juan can relate. Yeah, Juan can

relate. Yeah, you're there. Every day in my house,

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man. Every day. I mean, and now we have the, you

know, the Taylor and Travis wedding that's coming

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up. That's going to be just all the rage in our

conversations. Oh, yes. Yes. Yes. Yep. Okay. So,

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we could go for hours. Yeah. Right. All right. So,

on the topic of family, right, a multigenerational

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brands, right? What what would you two say were

like like non-negotiables? What were things that

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were essentially you know taught to you two about

the business that you two still kind of carry

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through the business that you now run and what

are things that ultimately like what's your brand

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evolution going to look like for this generation

into the next generation and do you hope that you

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know your children you know, nieces, nephews or

whomever take over after you've retired? Yeah.

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Well, well, for me, my father was always about

quality and consistency. That was something that

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was not negotiable. If we're going to put our

brand, our last name in our brand, we really have

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to make sure that the quality and consistency is

on the right. If there's a cigar that is not meant

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to be taken out of the factory for many reasons,

then it's not negotiable. We don't we don't do

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that. We take care as I said for the quality and

consistency that we work that he he worked for

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for so long and that he was truly committed to and

that was something that he always passed on to us.

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Our cigars are weighted on the tables of the cigar

makers, are gone through the draw master. They're

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weighted when the production is being entered into

the computer. I mean there's so many different

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quality and consistency levels that we implemented

because he was the one that always taught us that.

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So that is something that and as he has retired as

we all know he lives in Spain now because of his

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health issues. He still is on a day-to-day basis

with us. He's our mentor. We're always gonna be

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grateful for that and to have him still here is

also that we're grateful for because we almost

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missed him two years ago and he's still with us

today. Juan was we had a meeting and he was there

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with Juan's father also all participating in the

meeting. So that's that's something that for us

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it's like we're really, really grateful for that

to have them both either I mean Juan's father and

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mine, too participating in the day-to-day

things that we are doing as for me as the

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fifth generation and Juan as Mr. Martinez's son

is something that it's it's amazing for me. I

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have a sixth generation that is very interested

in being a part of this. Yeah. He's 18 years

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old. He's a very important amateur golfer here in

Dominican Republic. Oh, cool. That's awesome. Yes,

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I know. He's like on the world amateur ranking.

He's on the 400s out of 6,000 people. Wow. Wow.

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That's incredible. That's incredible. Congrats to

him. Congratulations. Yes. That's something that

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I've worked also very hard for. Yeah, of course.

Yes. But he's very interested and he started

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smoking cigars once he turned 18. He he's going to

be coming to the PCA maybe this year or maybe next

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year has participated in Pro Cigar. Oh, we'd love

to meet him. And let me tell you something, he's

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he's always on the tours with golf with a backpack

full of Quesada cigars. Is he really? God, that's

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awesome. Yeah. Good for him. Yes. You couldn't

ask for a better ambassador, right? Yeah. He he

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can become the next Miguel Ángel Jiménez. Yes. Oh,

yes. Yes. Smoking on the course. Smoking on the

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course. Yeah. He's always smoking on the course.

I love it. So are we. Nate and I golf regularly.

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We're always smoking on the course. Yes. I mean

that's the best ambassador that we could have cuz

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Rodrigo is traveling from Europe, to the islands,

to the United States. He has, as 18 years old,

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he has traveled to a lot of countries and he has

good been with the Quesada brand. Spreading the

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word. It is one of my goals, Raquel, to at least

have one of my five girls enjoy cigars with me.

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And I I have high hopes for one hopes high

hopes for one of my twins. She, for years,

362

00:39:00,400 --> 00:39:06,400

when I would smoke on walks we would take or if

we'd go to like a you know an antique car show or

363

00:39:06,400 --> 00:39:12,160

things like that, I'd always have a cigar and she

would walk behind me and then try to guess like if

364

00:39:12,160 --> 00:39:18,160

it's a cigar that I'd had already or like what she

was smelling or if it smelled good or and she told

365

00:39:18,160 --> 00:39:22,800

me probably about 6 months ago, we were sitting

around a fire in our driveway and she said, "Dad,

366

00:39:22,800 --> 00:39:27,120

I for sure want to try a cigar with you." And I'm

like, "You just you tell me when." You made my

367

00:39:27,120 --> 00:39:32,400

day. You made my day. All I need is one because

like I love sitting outside and my wife doesn't

368

00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:37,760

smoke but she'll sit with me and the smoke doesn't

bother her. So I at least have company but to have

369

00:39:37,760 --> 00:39:42,000

someone in my family I could enjoy cigars with

because. Well, let me tell you something. Out of

370

00:39:42,000 --> 00:39:48,080

five, I think you have a high percentage. I hope

so. I hope so. And we have time. And it's it's one

371

00:39:48,080 --> 00:39:54,560

of my favorite things about the cigar industry

is how how many brands and how many companies

372

00:39:54,560 --> 00:40:01,440

have family lineage in the in the industry. It's

a really special thing and I was fortunate my kids

373

00:40:01,440 --> 00:40:05,600

got to work with me for a business that I ran for

a lot of years and it's it was my favorite thing

374

00:40:05,600 --> 00:40:11,200

being able to have family there with me. Yeah,

it's it's a beautiful thing. So, Juan, how about

375

00:40:11,200 --> 00:40:19,040

for you? Well, my kids are still young, so we'll

see that how that goes in terms of cigar smoking.

376

00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:29,600

Yeah. You know my father is obviously 78 years

old, very healthy and very smart and wise. We

377

00:40:29,600 --> 00:40:37,360

always get a lot of inputs from him. But not only

from him but from everybody at the factory who has

378

00:40:37,360 --> 00:40:47,280

come before us. There are a few key messages that

stuck on everything that we do. First is that we

379

00:40:47,280 --> 00:40:54,240

we say what we do and we do what we say. We need

to be consistent on our word as you know persons,

380

00:40:54,240 --> 00:41:02,080

individuals but also as business people. So we

try to be congruent in everything that we do,

381

00:41:02,080 --> 00:41:07,760

our promises to our customers to our partners but

most importantly to the people who dedicate their

382

00:41:07,760 --> 00:41:13,600

life to supporting and making this this brand and

this product possible. Yeah. And the second of one

383

00:41:13,600 --> 00:41:22,000

which was for me a life-changing perspective came

in when I began working at the factory and Leonel,

384

00:41:22,000 --> 00:41:27,120

back then who was our factory manager, and had

more than 40 years of experience doing this thing

385

00:41:27,120 --> 00:41:32,880

he came up to me and said you know it's very

easy to get confused in this in this business

386

00:41:33,600 --> 00:41:40,720

but you need to understand something is that

our mission here at the factory is to make sure

387

00:41:40,720 --> 00:41:49,440

that when people retire, dedicate their life

here, their life is substantially better than

388

00:41:49,440 --> 00:41:56,480

when they first started. Wow. I love that. So,

our issue is revolves around the well-being of

389

00:41:56,480 --> 00:42:02,640

so many people. Obviously, we are on the market

and consumer-facing stage. So you know quality,

390

00:42:02,640 --> 00:42:10,320

consistency they are a priority and delivering

a a product that satisfy everybody's wants and

391

00:42:10,320 --> 00:42:17,120

needs is a priority but also on the back side on

the factory level where so many people depend on

392

00:42:17,120 --> 00:42:23,440

what we do on our successes and our failures

that's also very important. So having the

393

00:42:23,440 --> 00:42:33,440

humanity of what we do present always was part of

our let's say our stamp of approval of a stamp of

394

00:42:33,440 --> 00:42:39,760

beginning. Everything that we do we measure

it with respect to the impact that that has

395

00:42:39,760 --> 00:42:45,520

on the people on people's lives on people well of

people's well-being on their family you know so

396

00:42:45,520 --> 00:42:49,920

that's that's sort of some of the non-negotiables

that we have down here. Yeah I love that. I have

397

00:42:49,920 --> 00:42:54,880

something to say before we go to this other

point. Yeah. Something that my father always

398

00:42:55,440 --> 00:43:00,960

encouraged us was that there always has to be

a Quesada because you are the one representing

399

00:43:00,960 --> 00:43:10,400

the brand and everything. But with Juan, I have

learned that getting to have a good team, good

400

00:43:10,400 --> 00:43:20,640

people beside you and getting them involved and

getting them to be involved in the brand and the

401

00:43:20,640 --> 00:43:27,200

family and all the legacy is something that I have

learned throughout the years because of Juan has

402

00:43:27,200 --> 00:43:31,440

taught me that and not because my father said you

always have to be there. I mean, you don't always

403

00:43:31,440 --> 00:43:36,480

have to be there. If you have a good team beside

you that also has the same values that you have

404

00:43:36,480 --> 00:43:42,480

and that you can share with them that feeling,

then they could also represent you the same as I

405

00:43:42,480 --> 00:43:48,160

could do it for myself. Yeah. Cuz at that point,

it's a very it's, you know, like corporations,

406

00:43:48,160 --> 00:43:52,080

right? Large corporations will talk about like,

oh yeah, when you work here, you're family. But in

407

00:43:52,080 --> 00:43:58,720

your in the instance of of your two brands, your

two companies, it seems as though the familial

408

00:43:58,720 --> 00:44:05,520

feeling really like it hits close to home for the

both of you because Juan, I I noticed you talk a

409

00:44:05,520 --> 00:44:11,120

lot about like the the human element of your brand

and the people who work for your brand. Raquel,

410

00:44:11,120 --> 00:44:17,040

you were talking about it as well. Juan, would

you say that like a lot of that is grounded in

411

00:44:17,040 --> 00:44:23,600

the fact that the brand basically survived through

a revolution, through nationalization, through an

412

00:44:23,600 --> 00:44:28,240

embargo, through a civil war, and it, you know,

essentially the factory got burnt down, didn't it,

413

00:44:28,240 --> 00:44:33,760

at one point, like many years ago, and then it had

to be rebuilt by by the employees. And, you know,

414

00:44:33,760 --> 00:44:37,920

essentially in the grand scheme of things, when

you really think about it, it's not you're nothing

415

00:44:37,920 --> 00:44:43,040

without those employees and probably previous

generations of, you know, that probably worked at

416

00:44:43,040 --> 00:44:48,880

Joya de Nicaragua, right? Yeah. Yeah. Well, it's

it's it all goes back to what Raquel was saying.

417

00:44:48,880 --> 00:44:55,440

You are as good as the people you surround

yourself with. Yeah. Right. You have great

418

00:44:55,440 --> 00:45:00,480

people around you, people who are committed, who

people who are passionate, people who can share,

419

00:45:00,480 --> 00:45:06,800

be empathic. Then you will be better not only

as an individual as a professional but also as

420

00:45:06,800 --> 00:45:15,280

a team and as a company eventually. So we are a

reflection of the people who use this emblem in

421

00:45:15,280 --> 00:45:22,400

their shirt and that wear our brand and yes our

we are very distinct from Nicaraguan companies

422

00:45:22,400 --> 00:45:28,240

in in the sense that our brand does not carry

our family name. Yes, we are messengers. Yes,

423

00:45:28,240 --> 00:45:34,000

you will see my father in pictures and and

and and my involvement. But the brand existed

424

00:45:34,000 --> 00:45:39,600

before us. The brand does not exist because

of us. It exists now. We are messengers and

425

00:45:39,600 --> 00:45:46,400

the brand will exist even if we are not here you

know. So for us it we are just a transitory stage

426

00:45:46,400 --> 00:45:53,520

that can last a long time but the brand should

be more than us as family as individuals. So

427

00:45:53,520 --> 00:45:59,440

that's why we focus a lot on getting good people

representing the brand and working together to

428

00:45:59,440 --> 00:46:06,880

build something that is more than just a family or

or or individuals. That's our specific experience.

429

00:46:06,880 --> 00:46:12,640

But obviously everybody has their own trajectory

to to to walk. Yeah. Yeah. And that's something

430

00:46:12,640 --> 00:46:19,520

that as I said that's something that me and my

sister that now are the ones leading the company

431

00:46:19,520 --> 00:46:26,240

how to do it differently but successfully. Yeah.

And I have I have a question like it's not it's

432

00:46:26,240 --> 00:46:34,800

in the same vein I think but shifting gears just

a tiny bit. So, Puro Sabor and Pro Cigar have now

433

00:46:34,800 --> 00:46:41,840

kind of they're relatively close to each other at

the early part of the year and you get, you know,

434

00:46:41,840 --> 00:46:46,960

I would imagine a large volume of people that come

down, see your factories, they're participate in

435

00:46:46,960 --> 00:46:55,840

those events. How does, how does that, spotlight

affect not only your, you know, you and your

436

00:46:55,840 --> 00:47:00,720

families, but also the people that work for you?

Is that a positive experience for them? Does it

437

00:47:00,720 --> 00:47:04,960

create sometimes some stress? You know, cuz not

everybody wants to be in the spotlight and have

438

00:47:04,960 --> 00:47:10,240

to be, you know, in front of a lot of people doing

what they normally do just, you know, day in and

439

00:47:10,240 --> 00:47:16,720

day out. But how does that experience and how do

those festivals impact your businesses? For us,

440

00:47:16,720 --> 00:47:21,600

I think everybody's just waiting for that time of

the year. Is that right? Okay. Yeah. Yeah. For us

441

00:47:21,600 --> 00:47:25,600

and our team, everybody's just like waiting for

that because like Christmas for us. Yeah. Like

442

00:47:25,600 --> 00:47:30,080

Yeah. Like you're going to Disney World. Oh,

I love that. That's great because the thing

443

00:47:30,080 --> 00:47:39,200

is like you get to see so many people together.

This year Pro Cigar had a new modality which is

444

00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:46,640

have an afternoon with retailers only. So we got

to meet all the retailers that were coming not

445

00:47:46,640 --> 00:47:52,640

only the press or the final consumer but the

retailers that came to the festival. So that

446

00:47:52,640 --> 00:47:58,400

was something new for us. So my team was really

excited. We had an amazing afternoon with a lot

447

00:47:58,400 --> 00:48:04,160

of meeting people and getting to know new stores

and introducing Quesada Cigars to them. So,

448

00:48:04,160 --> 00:48:13,360

also the the nights are endless and they're very

they're very people like remember them, you know,

449

00:48:13,360 --> 00:48:19,040

so well because they're so they're so great. I

guess it's a little different because we have

450

00:48:19,040 --> 00:48:24,400

the infrastructure from for Santiago is a little

different from Estelí. We have new hotels going

451

00:48:24,400 --> 00:48:31,200

on. We have a lot of restaurants, all the chains

for like Hyatt, Hilton are all I mean all these

452

00:48:31,200 --> 00:48:37,280

chains for hotels are already established

in Santiago. So, Santiago has grown a lot

453

00:48:37,280 --> 00:48:43,280

throughout the years. Sure. And that makes the

festival much better in in many ways. Yeah. And

454

00:48:43,280 --> 00:48:49,920

how to handle the logistics of everything. It's

very smooth. I love that. So the the festivals

455

00:48:49,920 --> 00:48:56,800

the festivals are beautiful because they give us

at the DR and in Nicaragua also the opportunity to

456

00:48:56,800 --> 00:49:05,280

share with our customers from all over the world.

A lot of the culture the you know the the intimacy

457

00:49:05,280 --> 00:49:10,880

the personal touch that most of the times we lack

because we do business you know at throughout

458

00:49:10,880 --> 00:49:17,360

the world. Yep. But they are also a symbiotic

thing right. This is just not a celebration for

459

00:49:17,360 --> 00:49:23,680

the people who come over and enjoy the parties

and the dinners and the lunches and the tours,

460

00:49:23,680 --> 00:49:29,440

but it's also for the benefit of the people down

here. They get the opportunity to engage and to

461

00:49:29,440 --> 00:49:35,840

meet the people who enjoy their products from

all over the world. And it's a it's a testament

462

00:49:35,840 --> 00:49:43,280

and a show of respect having people coming

over and celebrating with them you know with

463

00:49:43,280 --> 00:49:46,560

the cigarreros, with the tabaqueros, with the

teams down here that most of the times they don't

464

00:49:46,560 --> 00:49:52,560

get the opportunity to travel but it's bringing

them home and they they enjoy it. They see it,

465

00:49:52,560 --> 00:49:58,720

you know, from them for their it's their work,

their handcraft, the things that they do every

466

00:49:58,720 --> 00:50:05,760

single day to come to have people pay a lot of

money to travel back and just to meet them and say

467

00:50:05,760 --> 00:50:12,160

thanks and learn from them. It's it's a beautiful

thing to see and I think that's for us down here

468

00:50:12,800 --> 00:50:19,360

not only the value on on having the company

showcase their their their beautiful facilities

469

00:50:19,360 --> 00:50:24,560

and all that, but also for the people to get to

receive that love from abroad. It's priceless. I

470

00:50:24,560 --> 00:50:29,920

love it. And also like for us, we like many of our

employees or our collaborators have been working

471

00:50:29,920 --> 00:50:37,120

there for 40, 30, 25 years. So also like having

the opportunity to see that it's it's it, you

472

00:50:37,120 --> 00:50:42,320

know, tells them that this is family. Yeah. Cuz

they've been working there since my father started

473

00:50:42,320 --> 00:50:48,560

the company in '74 51 years ago. There's there's

many of them and and it's impressive and then for

474

00:50:48,560 --> 00:50:54,880

them to see that also is also very impressive.

There has to be like a great deal of pride for

475

00:50:54,880 --> 00:51:01,680

your employees to be able to see people come in

with mass I can't even imagine smiling ear to ear

476

00:51:01,680 --> 00:51:07,920

you know being captivated by the stories of your

companies being able to see people rolling cigars,

477

00:51:07,920 --> 00:51:14,000

working with the tobacco and like really immersing

themselves in it with you know and again it's

478

00:51:14,000 --> 00:51:19,680

funny, Raquel you talked about this it feels like

they're going to Disneyland right or Disney World

479

00:51:19,680 --> 00:51:23,680

and let me tell you something I always say like

there's the before and after of going to a cigar

480

00:51:23,680 --> 00:51:30,160

factory. Everybody makes cigars and does the same

thing, but everybody has their little touch and

481

00:51:30,160 --> 00:51:35,520

magic. Yeah. Yeah. So, so if you go to Juan's

factory and you go to mine, it's going to be

482

00:51:35,520 --> 00:51:39,760

beautiful and you and it's going to be an amazing

experience, but you're going to see like the his

483

00:51:39,760 --> 00:51:46,240

touch and then our touch. Yeah. Yeah. That's it's

really awesome that your staff gets to essentially

484

00:51:46,240 --> 00:51:53,360

share in the joy for the end consumer, right? And

and and be able to essentially, you know, for that

485

00:51:53,360 --> 00:51:58,560

time period, for that weekend, be the star, right?

That everyone's looking at and saying, "Oh my God,

486

00:51:58,560 --> 00:52:02,000

like this person's, you know, an all-star,

an all-pro or, you know what I mean?" Like,

487

00:52:02,000 --> 00:52:07,280

this is the person who is making is is essentially

enriching my life when I smoke a cigar and enjoy

488

00:52:07,280 --> 00:52:15,360

a cigar, you know? I think that's awesome. And

making my life happy. Yeah. Yeah. 100%. So when

489

00:52:15,360 --> 00:52:19,760

when people when we start the tours, we always

ask people, you know, feel free to take pictures,

490

00:52:19,760 --> 00:52:27,440

videos, talk to anybody you want. But there's

only one requirement that you have to do. It's to

491

00:52:27,440 --> 00:52:34,800

give thanks to the people. You know, a smile or a

simple gracias in Spanish, it goes a long way for

492

00:52:34,800 --> 00:52:39,920

the people who who are committed to making your

life a little bit better. So that's sort of our

493

00:52:39,920 --> 00:52:44,640

our key message for people who come over. I love

that. I love that. Amazing. Yeah, I love that.

494

00:52:44,640 --> 00:52:50,880

Yeah, because you know, of course you take pride

in things that you create or in things that you

495

00:52:50,880 --> 00:52:57,600

do or make and and there's enjoyment in that, but

when other people affirm that and appreciate that

496

00:52:57,600 --> 00:53:03,120

and are able to say thank you to that, that's a

whole another level of appreciation and I think

497

00:53:03,120 --> 00:53:07,760

that's really special. Yeah. Showing thanks, words

of affirmation, I think go a long way for like

498

00:53:07,760 --> 00:53:13,600

we're human, right? Like I think I think we all

want I think we all want to have that feeling that

499

00:53:13,600 --> 00:53:19,120

what we do and especially the amount of pride that

probably goes into their everyday, right? Their

500

00:53:19,120 --> 00:53:24,400

their roles and responsibilities, I think probably

means the world to them. So to have somebody visit

501

00:53:24,400 --> 00:53:29,520

the factory and tell them how much it they

appreciate it, I have to hope goes a long way

502

00:53:29,520 --> 00:53:35,680

for them. Yeah. And also encourage them to make

it better. And also something that we do together

503

00:53:35,680 --> 00:53:42,640

with what Juan said is that if we get a prize or

if we have a good rating or something, we always

504

00:53:42,640 --> 00:53:48,160

put it like a bulletin board so they know that

what they're doing is being appreciated. Yeah.

505

00:53:48,160 --> 00:53:55,280

That they were part of that. Yeah. That's so cool.

All right. So, one thing that we really we always

506

00:53:55,280 --> 00:54:00,400

want to ensure we give you two the opportunity to

talk about is what does the next six months look

507

00:54:00,400 --> 00:54:03,840

like for you? Like what are you excited about?

that's coming down the pike, you know, or coming

508

00:54:03,840 --> 00:54:07,360

down the pike, like what what what's going on

in your worlds that you're like, "Oh my God,

509

00:54:07,360 --> 00:54:11,440

I cannot wait for people to see this." It could

be a PCA release. It could be whatever you two are

510

00:54:11,440 --> 00:54:18,000

like super excited to tell the world about. Floor

is yours. What is it? Well, in my in my in our and

511

00:54:18,000 --> 00:54:28,240

me and Patricia and Quesada Cigars, we are getting

a rebrand for the whole you know, the rebrand for

512

00:54:28,240 --> 00:54:33,600

the whole company. No way. And that's awesome.

That's awesome. So, when's this happening? That's

513

00:54:33,600 --> 00:54:39,680

got to be exciting and terrifying. Well, let me

tell you something. It's it's two ways because me,

514

00:54:39,680 --> 00:54:44,720

I'm very sentimentalism and then my sister, it's a

little bit more bold. So, for me, it was a little

515

00:54:44,720 --> 00:54:51,040

harder. For her, it was a little easier. Sure.

But at the end, now that I see it and now I'm

516

00:54:51,040 --> 00:54:56,000

really I'm loving it and I'm really I identify

myself with it. It's just a little bit of,

517

00:54:56,000 --> 00:55:04,000

you know, that sentimentalism of 26 years with

the same, you know, yeah, logo and with the same

518

00:55:04,000 --> 00:55:13,600

labels and the rings and everything. Now it's

a totally modern and more unique and you know,

519

00:55:13,600 --> 00:55:19,600

like modernization of the brand, right? Yeah. I

love it. But let me tell you something. We're very

520

00:55:19,600 --> 00:55:24,800

excited about it. It's going to be launching

at PCA. Oh, that's awesome. And we also have

521

00:55:24,800 --> 00:55:31,360

two new lines that are coming for PCA also. One

that is something totally totally outside the box

522

00:55:31,360 --> 00:55:41,360

for Quesada Cigars with a lot of color and with

a system that we have never have made before. So,

523

00:55:41,360 --> 00:55:51,360

and with the new rebranding and also we're going

to have my father's 79-year anniversary because

524

00:55:51,360 --> 00:55:57,360

he's going to be 79 next month, but he said I

don't want 80, cuz I'm I'm like that. I want to

525

00:55:57,360 --> 00:56:02,800

celebrate my 79. I love it. So, we're going to be

celebrating 79. Oh, yay. That's awesome. And so,

526

00:56:02,800 --> 00:56:08,480

are you doing a celebration at PCA? Uh-huh. We're

just launching it for PCA. That's awesome. That's

527

00:56:08,480 --> 00:56:14,240

so cool. That's really cool. Congratulations, in

advance. That is. Yeah, that's really So, you'll

528

00:56:14,240 --> 00:56:20,400

see that you'll you'll see our new rebranding and

everything that comes along. Sweet. Can't wait. I

529

00:56:20,400 --> 00:56:25,840

can't wait. Juan, what about you, dude? Well, I'm

actually quite excited about Quesada's rebranding

530

00:56:25,840 --> 00:56:33,760

to be honest. Because, no, to be honest, I I've

seen how hard Raquel and Patricia have worked

531

00:56:33,760 --> 00:56:42,320

in redefining their own future and their own path.

And I think that rebranding is always a monumental

532

00:56:42,320 --> 00:56:49,680

moment not only for for the brand but also for

us as as participants of the brand because it

533

00:56:49,680 --> 00:56:57,760

showcases your intent to move forward to you know

renew yourself in an industry that tends to be

534

00:56:57,760 --> 00:57:05,200

very slow in change. I think that change is always

good. not necessarily means it's going to be fully

535

00:57:05,200 --> 00:57:12,480

successful at the beginning, but change is a it's

it translates to everybody that you have your own

536

00:57:12,480 --> 00:57:18,080

vision to that you want to share with the world.

And I'm super excited that Raquel and Patricia are

537

00:57:18,080 --> 00:57:24,720

now taking the lead in in in sharing that with the

world. And I'm I'm super excited to see the the

538

00:57:24,720 --> 00:57:30,720

final result. And I think it's going to be, you

know, groundbreaking for such a legendary brand

539

00:57:30,720 --> 00:57:35,760

as Quesada to be able to move forward with a

new stage. Now, that that doesn't mean that

540

00:57:35,760 --> 00:57:42,400

things in the past didn't work. It just means

that we evolve and that we learn from our past,

541

00:57:42,400 --> 00:57:48,000

from our mistakes, from our successes. And

a rebranding is a reflection of that. So,

542

00:57:48,000 --> 00:57:54,160

I'm excited about that. And I'm also very excited

about this work that we're doing together as

543

00:57:54,160 --> 00:58:01,440

partnership. This is the first time that Joya has

been able to gather control of its identity in

544

00:58:01,440 --> 00:58:08,880

the United States. So we are excited to sit down

with our retailers, our partners in the US to be

545

00:58:08,880 --> 00:58:14,560

able to share it from our own voice, from our own

heart, from our own soul and and do it together

546

00:58:14,560 --> 00:58:20,480

with with the with the Quesada family. That for

me is that's the highlight of the year. We'll have

547

00:58:20,480 --> 00:58:26,080

new products. Yes, we'll have introductions.

But for me, it goes to the core of being able

548

00:58:26,080 --> 00:58:33,040

to to joint partnership with with Raquel and

Patricia and Manolo in building something new

549

00:58:33,040 --> 00:58:39,920

together that has hopes for for the long time.

We're very excited to That's fantastic. Yeah,

550

00:58:39,920 --> 00:58:46,880

you you two are awesome. I you know I got to tell

you like the conversation with you two it's very

551

00:58:46,880 --> 00:58:51,520

your thoughts on the industry your thoughts on on

your brands and moving them forward but also like

552

00:58:51,520 --> 00:58:56,640

paying homage to your you know your predecessors

right like your you know your family the people

553

00:58:56,640 --> 00:59:02,800

that came before you is very profound and really

touches home for me. So thank you for that like it

554

00:59:02,800 --> 00:59:07,520

really does mean a lot. We really appreciate it.

Now, now now that you mentioned it, let me share

555

00:59:07,520 --> 00:59:14,720

share our our aspiration together as as partners

is that we are in this road together to modernize

556

00:59:14,720 --> 00:59:21,360

without losing our soul. We want to be, you know,

better companies, better teams for our partners,

557

00:59:21,360 --> 00:59:26,880

but we don't want to lose who we are, our identity

and the essence of our souls, of our families and

558

00:59:26,880 --> 00:59:32,720

of our forefathers. And that's sort of the core

of what we're doing. Yes. Prevailing the past

559

00:59:32,720 --> 00:59:37,840

and just moving on with the future. Yeah, it's

a lovely message. The world changes pretty fast

560

00:59:37,840 --> 00:59:46,480

these days and and the more we can adapt while

still maintaining that core those core values

561

00:59:46,480 --> 00:59:53,680

and and the fact that that's it all stems from

humans and people that we get to spend our lives

562

00:59:53,680 --> 01:00:00,800

with. I think that's a beautiful thing when we

can kind of marry those two. So kudos to you guys.

563

01:00:00,800 --> 01:00:09,040

So my a very wise man always tells me that for

the future it doesn't matter how smart you are.

564

01:00:09,040 --> 01:00:16,000

IQ's don't matter anymore now what it matters

is AQ your adaptability coefficient right so

565

01:00:16,000 --> 01:00:22,880

how fast and how a agile can you adapt to the new

world to the new reality how fast you can adapt

566

01:00:22,880 --> 01:00:28,640

as an individual with your family, with your kids

that will be the future and not only just the the

567

01:00:28,640 --> 01:00:34,800

intellectual coefficient Yeah. Yeah, that's a hell

of a viewpoint. Yep. Well, look, we we love you

568

01:00:34,800 --> 01:00:38,960

guys. We appreciate everything. Uh thank you so

much. Yeah. Thank you for spending your time with

569

01:00:38,960 --> 01:00:44,080

us. We know you have busy lives and you have a

lot going on right now, but yeah, we we genuinely

570

01:00:44,080 --> 01:00:50,080

would not imagine we genuinely feel honored that

we get to be the, you know, the first conversation

571

01:00:50,080 --> 01:00:56,000

with this new partnership. It's that's very

special for us. So, thank you for uh gifting us

572

01:00:56,000 --> 01:01:01,920

with that. It really means a lot and we appreciate

your support. not only of Boveda but of us as

573

01:01:01,920 --> 01:01:07,920

uh individuals and people and uh we can't wait to

see you both uh at PCA and appreciate it. See you

574

01:01:07,920 --> 01:01:17,200

there, guys. Thank you very much for having

us. Thank you so much and we'll see you soon.