Cigarettes may be out in India, but cigars are still in

(Tehelka) Cigarettes manufacturers' loss could be cigar manufacturers' gain. Thanks to the curbs on cigarette manufacturers, the main driver for the $13.5 billion Indian tobacco market (excluding bidis) could be high-value cigars and cigarillos (a narrower version of cigars) that until last year were all imported brands.
In January 2010, however, ITC Ltd, the country's leading cigarette manufacturer with a 70 per cent of the share of the market, introduced Armenteros hand-rolled cigars through an exclusive tie-up with La Aurora, one of the oldest cigar manufacturers in the Dominican Republic.
Before that, Godfrey Phillips India Ltd (GPI) was importing Altadis cigars and discreetly pushing the distribution of Café Crème and Villiger brands at select outlets. Continued