64 TOBACCO BUSINESS | SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER | 22 PREMIUM CIGARS Almonte Francisco launched DBL Cigars in 2013 and has followed a business strategy that requires him to continually get better at what he does while producing the best premium cigars possible. By Antoine D. Reid Photos courtesy of DBL Cigars and Ben Duran Better and Best Have you heard of the “pipe” cigar?Or howabout the cigar that’s shaped like a small baseball bat? These are just a few of the interesting releases that have come out of Dominican Big Leaguer (DBL) Cigars in recent years—and reasons the Dominican Republicbased manufacturer is gaining the attention of retailers and consumers worldwide. At the head of DBL Cigars is Francisco Almonte, who has worked in the tobacco industry since the age of 7. He started off deveining tobacco leaves for his father, and by the age of 12, Almonte was rolling cigars. It’s important to point out that this wasn’t necessarily viewed as work to Almonte but rather a discovery and exploration of what quickly became his passion. Almonte loved creating premium cigars, and it soon developed into a mission for him, one that required lots of practice and hands-on experience over the years. Living in the Dominican Republic offered Almonte the opportunity to workwithand learn fromsome of the best in the tobacco industry. Heworked under two well-known cigar makers: Carlos Fuente of Arturo Fuente Cigars and Litto Gomez, founder of La Flor Dominicana. Almonte refers to both men as being mentors who taught him a great deal about cigar making and tobacco handling, as well as how to run a business. All of these things came in handy when Almonte launched his own brand, DBL Cigars, in 2013. With DBL Cigars, Almonte has taken an organic approach to marketing. In the place of a lot of paid advertising, he’s instead chosen to use in-store events and social media to build brand awareness. He’s also chosen to define his own entrepreneurial path. Though he seeks the advice and input of other people, such as his father, he never lets the opinions of others completely steer him in business. Instead, he’s found what works for him and has doubled down on those things, knowing that growth may be slower but the results of his efforts will be that much more fruitful and satisfying. Here’s how Almonte’s quest to be better has resulted in him creating what he considers to be the best tobacco business and cigar brand possible. Entering theBig Leagues Almonte is fromtheDominicanRepublic city of Tamboril, known bymany as being the capital for cigarmanufacturingaswell as cigar rollers. Generations H
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