Jacksonville-based cigar maker Swisher International Inc. said Friday it will be cutting about 250 local jobs as part of a plan to transfer production of some products from its Jacksonville facility to the Dominican Republic.
“Regulatory pressures and the shift of cigar manufacturing to the Dominican Republic by both established competitors and new entrants to the market created price pressures we needed to address,” Swisher Senior Vice President of Global Affairs Joe Augustus said in a news release.
“These external factors forced us to reevaluate our business model from top to bottom in an effort to maintain our competitive advantage in the marketplace,” he said.
Swisher cut 150 jobs last year, but the company said it is committed to maintaining as many jobs as possible in Jacksonville. It said it will continue to employ more than 500 people at its facility at 459 E. 16th St., north of downtown.
Swisher was founded in Ohio in 1861 and moved to Jacksonville in 1924.
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