Boutique Cigar Company Closes Due To FDA
A good friend of mine has closed his business before the Evil FDA closes it due to regulatory over-reach. Matt Booth of Room 101 is one of the most genuine and honest people in the Premium Cigar Industry. That's Matt and myself at a combo Room 101 and CRA event in 2010. He is warm, funny and personable and will treat every single one of his fans like a friend and a rock star. As someone who has known Matt since he started in this business, and I feel fortunate enough to call him friend, the loss of him in the industry will not only leave a well deserved big pair of shoes to fill it is just the tip of the iceberg for the industry. The FDA over-reach is unwarranted against the industry. you can search my site and that of Cigar Rights of Americas and find all the reasons. The fact that a gubment agency could cause a good business owner to close his business for no other reason than it is unpopular by the soccer-mom and commie-pinko-libtard crowd is a travesty. Matt recently said his good-byes in a letter to Cigar-Coop.
Upon my entry into the premium cigar industry in 2009 I had no idea just how deeply I would fall in love with the business, the craft and culture that many of us consider to be our home. I have forged some of the strongest friendships of my life here within the ranks of our beloved industry. In addition, I have grown a great deal as both a man and a businessman. This has come as a direct result of my connection to our community and my involvement in the industry. As I stand at the threshold of 2017, I face a great deal of both opportunity and obstacle within my business. Over the last few years our core business, the Room101 jewelry brand, has grown at a rate that is both very pleasing and all consuming at once. We have never been more pleasantly daunted by growing pains – and they are pains that promise to continue at a pressing rate through 2017 and beyond.
With all that said, it is with a heavy heart that I have decided to step away from my involvement in the cigar industry. I have done so to allow myself the crucial time necessary to focus my energy on the components of our business that do not face being regulated out of existence by the FDA.
I would like to say that I am grateful for the years of partnership and support from Davidoff. We are in talks to potentially create some form of farewell event tour and I look forward to seeing you all out there on the road.
Most importantly I want to thank the fans, family and friends of the Room101 Brand as none of this would have been possible without your belief and support.
Love & Respect.
Matt, as a friend, buddy, pal and overall great guy. You will be missed and the FDA should be ashamed just to have created the circumstance.