Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) has announced an expansion and restructuring of its marketing department. This has been triggered by growth in the brand’s portfolio, which STG said grew more than 20%.

The brands under STG include Macanudo, Cohiba, CAO, Punch, Partagas, La Gloria Cubana, Hoyo de Monterrey, Diesel, Punch, and others. Distribution for the brands is split between General Cigar Company and Forged Cigar Company.

In a press release, Chris Tarr, vice president of marketing for STG’s North American Branded and Rest of World divisions said, “Our focus on bringing excitement to the premium cigar category through innovative collaborations, out-of-category partnerships, and impactful brand engagements has met with a great response from the trade and cigar-smoking community. As the trajectory of our brands continues, we have bolstered the expertise of our current marketing team by shifting roles and adding new talent, which ultimately allows us to provide deeper support to our brands on a global level.”

The changes include the promotion of Steve Abbot to Director of Marketing, overseeing the marketing of all handmade cigar brands for STG. Steve joined the company in 2014 and for nearly eight years, has made his mark by managing brands including Cohiba, CAO, Partagas, and La Gloria Cubana. His accomplishments include the development and expansion of Macanudo’s Inspirado and M Flavors lines.  Steve has also been responsible for the relaunch and expansion of the CigarWorld.com worldwide.

Abbot will report directly to Chris Tarr and oversee the brand marketing team that includes Ed Lahmann (senior brand manager, CAO, and Hoyo/Excalibur), Matt Wilson (senior brand manager, Cohiba, Partagas, Sancho Panza), and two new appointments to the marketing team: John Hakim (brand manager, Punch, Odyssey, Chillin’ Moose) and Olga Koke (assistant brand manager, El Rey del Mundo, Bolivar, special projects).

Also reporting to Chris Tarr in the STG North American Branded and Rest of World division marketing department are Justin Andrews (new business development manager), Matt Davenport (marketing manager), John Pope (brand manager Bulger, Leaf, Kite), Max Stokkebye (marketing manager), Mark Renard (international marketing manager) and newly hired Jean Romanowicz (international brand manager).

Tarr will also manage the STG North American Branded and Rest of World design team led by Megan Jenkins (senior graphic design manager), who oversees Gooch Gulick (senior graphic designer) and Nikki Jordan (graphic designer).

STG also said it is recruiting a “manager of brand experiences” to support its event platform as well as an additional “assistant brand manager.”