Boutique Brand

/ boo-TEEK /
Industry & TradeFrench
Definition
A small-production cigar company, usually without its own factory, that contracts production to an established fabrica. Annual output may be a few hundred thousand cigars or fewer.
Why it matters
Boutiques drive much of the innovation in the non-Cuban market, but their small scale makes them the most exposed to regulatory compliance costs and to distribution problems.
In context
"The boutique put out four blends a year and sold most of them through a dozen shops."