Cigars on the Rails: Joe Pasquali’s Moving Target
Not long ago, I argued that the standard cigar event is running out of steam. Discount tables and punch cards are no longer enough. Cigar smokers are chasing experiences.
There are cigar events.
And then there are cigar events where Erik Espinosa is singing “Piano Man” in a restored railcar filled with cigar smokers.
That second one belongs to Joe Pasquali.
Joe has been in the cigar industry long enough to watch it evolve, and the biggest shift he sees is not just in brands, but in consumers.
“The customer base everywhere is getting more educated,” he says. “People are paying attention to industry news, trends, brands, really everything.”
As customers have become more informed, companies have had to become more innovative. Brands are constantly trying to attract customers in new ways.
At the same time, regulation has made everything more complicated.
“Federally, locally, I always feel like we are jumping through hoops to try and just do our jobs,” Joe says. “Oh, we can’t do free cigars because of this. Oh, you guys can’t do alcohol or smoke at that event because of this. You have to essentially have a law degree at the local and state level to operate tobacco events/stores anymore.”
Despite that environment, something else has changed. Consumers are willing to travel.
Not just to giant multi vendor events, but to experience driven local events. Even for brands they were not that familiar with.
“The willingness for people to get out of their comfort zone and TRAVEL to an event surprised me,” Joe says. “Then after the event they said ‘Oh wow I would have never fallen in love with this brand otherwise.’”
That willingness sits at the heart of the train.
What? A Train. Yep…that is what I said.
From “What If” to Whole Train
The cigar train started with a simple idea.
Kelly Lynch and Chris Homco run the Fort Wayne Historical Society, and they enjoy a good cigar. Sitting around one day over a smoke, the thought came up.
“We have a couple of open-air cars. What if you had some cigars available to smoke on one of our rides?”
That quickly escalated.
“What if we did a WHOLE TRAIN of cigar smokers?”
Joe ran with it.
Since then, he has done train rides with Erik Espinosa, Pete Johnson, Rocky Patel, Drew Estate, Micallef, and more. What started as a conversation has turned into a recurring event that continues to evolve.
Why a train?
“Because my friends have access to a freaking amazing train? I guess that is the long and short of it,” Joe says. “They have done so much work restoring these gorgeous train cars and let me work with them to throw some of the coolest cigar events you will ever be a part of.”
[Note: Sometimes the answer really is that simple.]
The Moment It Clicked
Joe admits he did not know if the concept would work until he was in the middle of it.
After the first big train event he did with Erik Espinosa, the moving parts somehow came together.
“It was probably on the train with Erik singing ‘Piano Man’ to a train car full of people that I thought ‘OK, we did it.’”
That was the moment it stopped being an idea and became something real.
The Hard Part Nobody Sees
If you think throwing a cigar event on a train sounds complicated, Joe agrees.
“Legal stuff really,” he says when asked about the first major obstacle. Working with the ATC on liquor laws. The logistics of staffing. Taking hundreds of boxes of cigars with a small staff to a train depot 50 minutes north of town.
“Throwing a massive cigar event on a train is about as hard as it sounds.”
The biggest pivot was not branding. It was setup and teardown.
“You are throwing a big event NOT at your shop, so every little thing you need for a bar/cigar retail event has to travel,” he says.
Butane. Cutters. Ash trays. Cups. Ice. Coolers. Drinks. Credit card machines. And cigars.
All of it has to move.
“If it weren’t for my dad, Rick Pasquali, none of these events would have happened,” Joe says. “He keeps me organized and on task.”
Joe describes himself as more of an idea-and-fun event guy. Rick is the one with the spreadsheets, checklists, and the stuff you need. That partnership made the difference after the first event.
What’s Different Now
For the upcoming Drew Estate Cigar Train on May 9, the model continues to evolve.
There is more of an a la carte ticket situation. And the bar side of the event has been handed off to Merigold Events, the event company working with the Train Society now handling liquor, catering, ticketing, and more.
“My job now is to work with the cigar companies and handle the cigar side of the event for the train,” Joe says. “Less stuff on my shoulders so we can focus on cigars!”
The focus is clearer. The roles are tighter.
Why Keep Doing It
After all these years in cigars, what keeps him excited enough to put people on a moving train with a lit cigar?
“Really the amount of people that haven’t got to experience it yet,” Joe says. “We have had people as far as Texas, Florida, California, and Alaska fly in for these train events which is INSANE.”
And it keeps growing.
“But, I run into people at every trade show that when they see the pictures of these events they say ‘I have to make one of these.’ And really, you do.”
A train. A cigar. A crowd willing to travel.
Sometimes that is all you need.
Joe Pasquali and the Cigar Train Experience.
For more info…
https://www.marigoldevent.com/event-list
About the Author: Fred Rewey
