I remember when our entire office staff was huddled-up in our conference room at CAO just about a year ago. We were waiting for a video presentation from one of the higher-ups at ST Group to begin. Moments later, the recognizable face greeted us on the video screen by saying, “Welcome to Day One….”
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A Do-Over
Last week, I went into a certain retail establishment (that is best known for their little blue boxes) in order to purchase a Valentines Day gift for Laura. When the kind sales lady pulled up my customer profile, she noticed my former email address–you know, the one with the “C-A-O” in it. She then asked if I worked for CAO and I told her I had. She relayed a story of how she had recently called to arrange for a tour of CAO for her and her boyfriend (apparently a big CAO fan), and she was told that the company had left Nashville and relocated to Virginia. She expressed that they were sad to learn that CAO was no longer Nashville’s very own.
THE One
Things continue to move along at a good pace….the buildout of the new headquarters is progressing nicely, the first round of ‘CH’ merch is in the queue, “The Decision” video is in the can (whether it will ever see the light of day is another thing altogether), and we continue to debate pros v cons of various manufacturing scenarios.
Social Media
Flying back to home-sweet-home Nashville this morning from Tampa. I’m still in my hotel room…been up for 2 hours already–coffee, calisthenics, shower, blog–then meeting MC for breakfast before we head to the airport. I gotta think that yesterday really brought us closer to where we’re supposed to be. Very positive meetings with Johnito (Oliva) and Gus (many thanks to our long-time friend, Cigar Dave, for brokering that meeting).
Fun Stuff
The past 48 hours have been productive ones. We’ve created and finalized a company logo, a secondary logo, secured and purchased our domain, created a PR timeline/strategy for the next 7 weeks, and have booked our tickets to head down to Tampa next week for meetings with Cigar Dave, John Oliva, Jr., and others.
Back in the Studio
…So by the time this blog gets uploaded to the worldwide web, word on the street will probably be out that we’re ‘back in the studio’ again, diligently working to take our premium cigar vision to fruition, and share it with you. Can’t tell you much more than that–right now. But I can tell you that it feels damned good to be free of the corporate chains and chokehold that was our dear friends we knew and loved (I say that with tongue firmly planted in cheek) as “ST Group.”
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