The fire in September of 2022 seemed like the greatest devastation at the worst possible time for ADVentura. Just when momentum was on the upswing for the brand, the entirety of what the team worked so hard for, was literally in ashes.
“I was shocked… but not for one second, did I feel like that was the end of ADV” said Marcel Knobel, Co-founder of ADVentura. This was a punch to the gut, and a long road ahead, but being stripped of everything ADV thought was best for them, would reveal a silver lining 8 months later.
The struggle to replenish orders (including 8 countries that were packed and wrapped, waiting for pick up the day the fire occurred) was mentally, emotionally, and financially tough. “I’m used to pressure, and being in a constant state of uncomfortable for the good of growth, but this was one of the hardest things I’ve been through” said Henderson Ventura, Co-Founder of ADVentura Cigars.
After months of being able to barely keep their heads above water, the time came to carve a path instead of wait for one to be repaired. ADV ripped the bandaid off and literally built an entire factory in just over 3 months. Ventura pulled long hours to take ADV out of “flight mode” and into “fight mode”
Tabacalera Mina del Rey has a philosophy of educating and training their rollers and staff to understand behaviours and nuances of tobacco, to see the factory as more of a university that recognises those for their efforts and progress. Ventura’s intention is to build brand loyalty from the very beginning stages of the process.
The ageing room is able to store up to one million cigars, with the goal to be able to age cigars for between five and six months before releasing them, which is more than double what would be considered the typical amount of rest cigars get before leaving a factory.
“We now have the opportunity and flexibility for more exclusives, small batch blends, and collaborations, with a team that is familiar with the signature ADV blends” said Knobel. 2024 will be a redeeming year for ADVentura Cigars Company.
