Interview with Vincent from Vicente blends: Im old school my friend… am quick and get shit done

I can probably only say that my contact with Vincent was an experience. From the first email I wrote via Instagram to the time we had an interview was a journey I was not prepared for. It was 11:25 a.m. when I contacted Vincent and asked for an interview, at 7:00 p.m. the same day we started the interview. I thought I was lucky to get the opportunity but in fact it was his attitude to life that made it possible. There was a gap and Vincent wanted the interview already the same day. I thought I would have to wait a week or so. The answer I received in the email was

“ I’m happy to do an interview with you, I’m old school my friend… am quick and get shit done“

If you want to do something why wait. An attitude I really feel is missing in society, a drive to make things happen and not just make plans.

Vincent from Vicente blends cigars

It’s a bit difficult to explain and I think only a person who had the pleasure of speaking with Vincent will fully understand. His way of speaking and the energy he gave off was incredible. An energy that almost made me want to go out for a run to drain the excess energy he conveyed.

Table of Contents

A dissatisfaction with cigars and how it all began

Vincent started his career as an engineer and since he can remember has run businesses. A true entrepreneur you could say. For several years he lived in Bangkok, Thailand and Hydrabad, India and developing software and operating several call centers. In Bankok at thet time only Cuban cigars were available. During his years in Asia, Vincent often visited the Marriot hotels lobby/piano bar that was also a cigar lounge to enjoy a cigar. After a approx. 7 years abroad, Vincent chose to move home to the United States for a period but quickly moved to the Dominican Republic to start up a new call center project. During his time in the Dominican, his distaste for current cigar standards grew. The pull was far too tight and he felt he wasn’t getting the pleasure he wanted. Vincent of is all about the experience enjoying a cigar. So he set out on a mission to create the perfect cigar for himself, never intending to start a business. And Vincent quotes;

“ Fuck it I’m an engineer and something I should be able to do. I went to a cigar boutique and asked if they could teach me how to roll cigars. To my great joy, they accepted me and when the time was right, I sat and rolled. My thought was never to start a brand, but to create a cigar that was perfect for me. Once I got my knowledge I began to question why the cigars were made the way they are, with such a tight draw. The answer i got was that they have been rolled the same way for 80 years and nothing they wanted to change. I wasn`t looking to create my own blends either. I just wanted to find a way to get better airflow and lighter drag in the cigar. They looked at me like I was crazy and questioned me, but I strongly felt that there was room for improvement to have a better experience. While I think it’s great that the industry has old traditions, there is room for improvement. I am a disruptor, so I started experimenting and rolling in my own way. I was marked by failure after failure and learned from my mistakes time and time again. After each failed attempt, I found new skills that led me one step closer to my goal. It took about 6 months of experimenting with new techniques to find the perfect way. After finding a way that met all my criteria for the draw, i began experimenting with blending cigars. The idea was to make cigars that suited my pelette and would not go on sale. It took about a year before I managed to make a blend that was totally to my taste. Of course I thought it was the best cigar in the world, who doesn’t think their cigars are the best, but this was made according to my taste preferences. When I told friends it was my blend and said it was the best cigar on the market they looked at me and said of course you think so, until they tried the cigar. After they smoked the cigar, they understood what I was talking about and why.

Although my thought was not to sell cigars or create a brand, I was curious what others thought. When I came back to the US for a visit, I gave them out to friends I knew who were die-hard aficionados without telling them it was my blend. It was like a blind test and the response I got was absolutely incredible. After they smoked the cigar, I told them it was my blend and they were stunned. I got the answers I was looking for, if they knew it was mine the opinion could be biased, now when I did the blind test it was unbiased and genuine. They also asked for several and paid for them.“

How Vicente blends became a reality

” It was close friends and industry connoiseurs who put a seed in my head to start selling the cigars and start my own brand. A little later I started analyzing the market to see where my cigars would fit and quickly realized where. It was not among the world’s 10,000 brands of traditional cigars but rather among the top 50 premium of the world. My goal was not to make a classic everyday cigar, but a cigar that really gave that little extra edge to the moment you have with the cigar. I really wanted every detail to be perfect and unique from the blend and the band (ring) and the box (vault) to give the smoker a special experience. Cigars should not be consumed but enjoyed, then all parts must be perfect. Our entire process means that we currently produce 5,000 cigars per blend per year which in total is 25,000 total cigars per year, at the moment.”

Is the box a cigar box or a cigar vault?

Calling the cigar box a vault has never occurred to me. Although I think cigars are an incredible craft that should be respected, I gained a whole new view and respect for the box they are in. Vicente’s cigars are not sold in boxes but in vaults. Why?

“My cigars are not sold in regular boxes. To say a box of cigars is completely wrong and almost disrespectful I felt. Like a vault of gold that is respected and cherished, cigars should be treated in the same way. The entire process from seed to finished cigar is a craft that takes hundreds of days and goes through the hands of several experts before we have the opportunity to smoke them. It is a craft, any my work of art and engineering. I analyzed different vaults to see how I could make my own vault for the cigars. It would be elegant and at the same time simple like a vault. When you see the vault, you should feel that there are valuables inside that are worthy of one’s respect. The vault has 13 layers of varnish that gives it a depth, cedar on the inside, golden feet and a button on the side that opens the vault and a medallion in the lid. Elegant but simple. We live in a society where complexity has blinded everyone, and I did not want to continue with such complexity.“

I want to highlight just one extra detail with the box. On a car, you rarely apply more than 2 layers of clear coat and the box has 13 layers. Applying varnish to both furniture and cars takes time, between each turn it must dry and the process is time-consuming and detailed. Too little varnish and it gets a rough dry feeling, while too much varnish causes it to start to run and leave small, long bumps. I think the vault alone makes an incredible impression.

The ring around the cigar reminds me of a wedding ring

One of many detail that distinguishes Vicente Blends is the metal ring around, let’s ignore the appearance for a short while. A cigar after being pressed into the mold after the binder has been applied expands and shrinks in different environments after being removed from the mold, putting a band around a cigar is an art in itself in a factory, one person puts thousands of bands on cigars daily which is absolutely incredible. Vicent blends took it to its own level.

Vincent explains

“ A paper band is flexible and expands with the cigar and no problems arise. Making the cigars fit the band (ring) is something unique where the art form has been taken to its own level. Therefore, I had to engineer a method to limit cigar expansion to ensure our metal rings will fit. We only have a .25mm tolerance which naked to the human eye. In a normal factory, the cigars sit in the mold for 4-6 hours before being rolled in with the wrapper. The more time they sit, the less cigars are rolled. With us, a higher quantity is not the decisive factor, with us we press our cigars for least 24 hours to maintain their size afterwards. We invest in higher quality rather than quantity. The journey here was not easy though, we had been trying to find a way to make them fit for a long time and we did experiments on a couple of 100 cigars before we succeeded. It took time and thought but the journey there was worth it. I had a goal.“

Just the work behind getting the ring to fit the tobacco says something about the passion behind the cigars. When we talked about the rings, I got the feeling of marriage. A newly in love couple about to get married chooses their rings with care so that they will fit for life. I got the same feeling with the rings around the cigars. The effort to get the rings to fit was like a wedding, they must be perfect and show their love for the craft. You don’t throw them in the ashtray when the cigar is finished, but can sit on the humidor to decorate it and to remember the moment you had with the cigar.

Is Vicent blends a Boutique or Live style brand?

One thing that I was a little fascinated by was Vincent’s way of talking about his brand as a lifestyle brand.

“Today, all cigars that are under 250,000 cigars a year are nowadays seen as a boutique brands. Although we only manufacture 25,000 cigars per year, we are not. Our cigars are uber luxury that should not be produced in the highest volume. We want people to feel that it is a special lifestyle. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, work in an office or in a workshop. You choose your style and we want to celebrate that. I myself am from a blue collar family. Our cigars are for enjoying and celebrating the life you have. You should celebrate the lifestyle you have and this most important.“

Not everyone is allowed to sell Vicente blends

When we entered the sales section of the interview, I was a bit shocked and at the same time pleasantly surprised. When you are a seller, you want everyone to buy your goods in order to earn more.

” We don’t want everyone to sell Vicente Blends cigars. We have some criteria and it has to feel good for both us and our resellers. When we choose resellers, we also make sure that they have geographic exclusivity. We do not want our resellers/partners to compete with each other. We want them to benefit from having us there and not feel the competitive pressure. It should be a pleasure to sell our cigars and not a pressure because the shop next door has them the same. Our goal is not to sell a lot, but to give the best quality and customer service we can to the aficionado and the retailer who sells our cigars. The moment they take should be a moment they enjoy and remember.”

What is your best advice for those who want to follow their dreams?

“– Following your dreams can have many meanings and consequences. First, you need to understand your dreams and feel if they are worth following. Following your dreams means that you sometimes have to make sacrifices in your regular life. Are your dreams worth making sacrifices for? What sacrifices are you prepared to make? These things are never spoken about and I believe just to try and follow your dreams, seems a bit naive without planning.

– When you reach your dreams, what happens next? Some people crash when they reach their goals and feel they have achieved what they want. Have a plan or new dreams to follow ready.

– Life should have a meaning. – Once you have decided to follow your dream, it is good to write them down so that they are visible. Do it in baby steps and have patience and tolerance. If it is only in your head, it is easy to put it aside. You are reminded your dreams if they are visible. Having them written down provides focus.

– Write down goals and sub-goals. Be realistic, it’s easy to give up if it gets too hard. Entrepreneurs, like me, are prepared to sacrifice everything. What are you willing to sacrifice. Are they worth sacrifices to follow?“

One thing that stuck out was his thoughts on how humans have become too comfortable. While being comfortable is nice, getting too comfortable causes a person to lose focus and drive. When we live and have a lighter comfort, we continue to strive to be better and develop. It is what gives us goals and something to fight for. Imagine if you had everything and sat at home with nothing to fight for, would you appreciate what you have? Maybe after a while the drive to keep going would disappear and everything you have achieved loses a little of its meaning.

Our conversations continued and I don’t actually know how we got into the conversation we had but they showed Vincent’s personality and attitude to life.

“Being visible on social media can be a way to keep in touch with friends. But most of the contacts are just social media friends that you have from a distance. If you think about it, how many people congratulate you on your birthday on social media? I’m guessing that there are many, but how many do you have contact with otherwise during the year via phone or meet? I’m guessing incredibly many fewer. The personal wholehearted contact has somehow disappeared and those who really care will contact you to see how you are doing and tell you about their life. They want you to have a part in their life and not for the world to see.“

One thing that Vincent told that really says a lot about his mindset o. It tells you that he wants to be where it makes a difference. In some way I can’t remember, we got into conversations about life and funerals. Vincent refrains from going to funerals, not to be disrespectful but to help the person who is grieving.

“The person who lost a relative already has hundreds of people there who show their grief. That they would have me who will be 101 is really unnecessary. One more person to be polite to and thank for coming. I prefer to go the days before or after to the person and be able to take the time they need and be there for them. When you can take the time to listen, that’s when you can make a difference in a person’s life.“

Criticism

Then one thing I really want to take from our conversation is the words we had about criticism. This is a subject that is really close to my heart and that I think many people should take up. Criticism can have two sides. One positive and one negative.

“I like criticism if it is constructive, constructive criticism is when a person wants to help you improve something. Helps you flip the coin to help you move forward with your goals. The negative criticism is when people gnaw at your ideas and thoughts for no reasons whatsoever, other than jealousy or the attempt for someone to be significant. Social media has permitted people to basically shit on others at an arm’s distance, “keyboard gangster”, because they have no real positive approach on offering their opinion.”

These very parts that we talked about I feel are important in today’s society, it is easy to get caught up in online whining and hear people’s negativity. But if a person offers positive criticism to help you along, then you also find a person who cares about your success. This is something I also think you should teach your children. Criticism can help one if it comes from the right person and help one develop as a person if it is wholehearted.

I really want to thank Vincent for the time he gave for the interview. When you look at his life’s attitude about dreams, life’s attitude and thoughts, I feel that there is a lot to learn out there for many. The words I got at the beginning before the interview “Im old school my friend… am quick and get shit done” are not about getting things out of the way, but if you do things right away instead of constantly waiting, you move forward towards your goals. I personally tend to use the words – why do things tomorrow that you can do today. If you are going to take something with you from the interview, the words Get shit done are the ones I think you should follow. If you want to build a stronger future, get things done. Something else I want to increase is the energy, with a positive attitude to life I think the energy comes almost automatically.

Vincent I really can’t thank you enough for taking the time and so quickly. It was an honor to hear your story and thoughts on life. I think many parts can help many people to a better life, the thoughts around dreams, getting things done and attitude both towards criticism and social media.