We heard the latest news from Havana, Cuba: “Raul Castro confirmed Friday he is stepping down as the head of the Communist Party of Cuba, the most powerful position on the island.” As far as I am concerned, however, he and his brother Fidel are criminals who should have been thrown out of power 60 years ago. The Cuban Communist Party has done more harm to more people than anyone else in Cuba’s history …

I know this is kind of a frivolous point , I would argue that the Communist Party also destroyed Cuba’s cigar industry.
Yes, there’s a lot of money to be made in the Cuban cigar trade. Cuban cigars remain one of the most coveted tobacco products in the world. However, their cigars are somewhat stagnant. Meaning they lack the push for innovation. This mainly due to a highly concentrated market due to the main player being a state owned corporation. The truly interesting, innovative, and arguably higher quality cigars are coming out of Honduras, DR, and Nicaragua. Due to the fact that the above listed countries allowed for the proliferation of boutiques, this significantly increased competition and innovation.
*** Full disclosure — Former cigar smoker with an affinity for smaller scale Nicaraguan brands***