Ramón Zapata Perez, the founder, primary shareholder and chairman of Compañia Hondureña de Tabacos, the parent company of Kuuts, LLC, has announced that he is leaving the company. Zapata posted a message to his personal Facebook page on Friday saying that today is a very sad day for him as he has had to “abandon a project which I put high hopes, efforts and all my passion into.” In a message of certainty, he says “Hoy me he desvinculado absolutamente del proyecto,” or that “today I am absolutely detached from the project.” He goes onto say that his departure was voluntary and not some sort of lucrative exit, rather that he has “paid a high economic and sentimental price” as a result. While only recently being introduced into the U.S. market, Compañia Hondureña de Tabacos has been in operation for some 17 years, with a factory in Danlí, Honduras and a distribution company in Spain. Zapata’s name was used for one the company’s four main lines, Tabacalera Zapata. The company also distributes the Miró, Placeres Reserva and Kuuts lines in the U.S. Representatives from Kuuts, LLC did not immediately return a request for comment, and a message to Zapata has yet to be answered.
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