Like many cigar smokers before her, La Keisha Howard’s first premium cigar experience was unpleasant, but that didn’t dissuade Howard, who is better known by her stage name Ke’Shay Love. The experience grew into a deep appreciation for flavor profiles, craftsmanship, and the cigar lifestyle. An MBA and a background in hospitality made the transition into the cigar industry and starting her own brand easy, but her creativity is what truly brings Éclat Noir Cigars to life. Love talked with Cigar Life Guy about not having to be an expert to belong in the room, creating a legacy for her family and grandchildren, and the “intentionality” behind her brand and her blends.
First Premium Cigar Experience
Cigar Life Guy: Tell me about your first premium cigar experience.
Ke’Shay Love: My first cigar experience was actually not pleasant at all! I was living in Dallas briefly, and a lot of the venues I went to had patios or outdoor areas where people would gather, smoke cigars, and have conversations. Most of the people I knew would be outside enjoying cigars, and after a while I started feeling left out. I finally said, “Okay, let me try this so I can be part of what everybody else is doing.”
One of the guys gave me a cigar. To this day, I couldn’t tell you what it was, but it had to have been something strong because I did what a lot of first-time cigar smokers do—I inhaled.
I experienced what I would classify as death! [Laughs]
It was horrible. I remember thinking, “Why in the world do y’all enjoy doing this?” But the experienced cigar smokers around me started coaching me on how to properly smoke a cigar and helped me find something more appropriate for my palate. Eventually, I found my way to flavored cigars, and that’s where I really began to enjoy the experience.
The funny part is that the experienced smokers used to tell me, “You’re not a real cigar smoker because you smoke flavored cigars.” At the time, I didn’t understand what they meant. Now that I’ve learned about tobacco, traveled to Nicaragua, worked with blenders, and become involved in creating my own premium cigar, I understand the distinction they were trying to make—although I wouldn’t tell someone they’re not a “real” cigar smoker because of what they enjoy.
Everybody’s cigar journey starts somewhere. Mine started with me nearly taking myself out with my first cigar, moved into flavored cigars, and eventually grew into a genuine appreciation for premium tobacco, natural flavor profiles, and the craftsmanship behind a cigar. Now I’m creating my own blends. That’s a full-circle moment I never could have imagined sitting on that patio in Dallas.
Life Before Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: How did you get started in the cigar business? What did you do before you got involved, and how does it help inform what you do now?
Ke’Shay Love: My journey into the cigar business is really an extension of everything I’ve built over the years. Before Éclat Noir, I had a career in management and working with people, but I also had another side of me that was very creative—music and entertainment. As Ke’Shay Love, my music and my image have always represented confidence, femininity, independence, and being a Boss Lady. Even my single The Real Mrs. Parker represents that sexy, youthful, confident woman who knows exactly who she is. So when I began developing my cigar, The Boss Lady wasn’t just a name I picked for a product. It naturally connected to a brand and identity I had already been building.
One experience that unexpectedly prepared me for the cigar industry was managing a wine bar. That’s where I really began learning about the different notes you can experience from something grown from the earth—sweet, fruity, earthy, woody, and so on—and how the final experience is influenced by the varietal, where it’s grown, and how it’s processed and aged. That experience gave me a familiar language for understanding how tobacco can also express different natural characteristics.
I’m very intentional about connecting the different pieces of what I’ve built. Ke’Shay Love, The Real Mrs. Parker, The Boss Lady cigar, Éclat Noir, and the experiences surrounding the brand all tell different parts of the same story. It’s about a woman being able to be feminine, sexy, sophisticated, powerful, and business-minded without having to choose just one version of herself.
But there’s also a much deeper reason I got into business: my grandchildren. Creating generational wealth is extremely important to me. We hear the words “generational wealth” thrown around a lot, but I had to really think about what that means. A job can provide for your family, but a job isn’t something you can pass down. I wanted to create a lineage—something my grandchildren and the generations after them can inherit, continue, expand, and make even greater than what I started.
That’s how I look at Éclat Noir. I’m not just trying to build a successful cigar brand for myself. I’m building something that can exist beyond me.
My professional background, my experience in hospitality and wine, and earning my MBA have all helped me approach that vision from different perspectives—customer experience, leadership, relationships, operations, and strategy. Then traveling to Nicaragua and becoming involved in the blending and manufacturing process gave me another level of education. I began learning the cigar business from the inside rather than simply experiencing it as a consumer.
For me, Éclat Noir brings all of those worlds together: the businesswoman, the entertainer, the Boss Lady, the cigar enthusiast, and most importantly, the grandmother who wants to leave her family something they can continue building long after I’m gone.
Women As Part of the Cigar Conversation
Cigar Life Guy: You wanted to create a brand that didn’t simply “look feminine”. What was missing in the cigar market that inspired you to create your own line of cigars?
Ke’Shay Love: What I felt was missing was intentionality. I didn’t want to take an existing cigar, put it in a pretty package, add feminine colors, and say, “This is for women.” I wanted women to be part of the conversation from the beginning.
When I started developing The Boss Lady, I approached the blend from my perspective as a woman who enjoys cigars. I wanted something sweet, spicy, bold, and smooth, with those characteristics coming naturally from the tobacco itself. When I went to Nicaragua and worked with the blenders, I was very specific about the experience I wanted to create.
The Boss Lady was created -intentionally- with women in mind, but it wasn’t created to exclude men. Men have embraced the cigar as well, and I love that. For me, representation doesn’t mean separation. It means being able to say that women deserve to have a premium cigar where we were considered during the creation process—not just during the marketing process.
Cigar Life Guy: Women in the cigar industry are often overlooked. What advice would you give to women entering the industry and women who smoke cigars?
Ke’Shay Love: My advice to women is: take up your space and learn the business. Don’t feel like you have to prove that you belong simply because you’re a woman. Learn the tobacco, learn the terminology, understand how cigars are constructed, ask questions, and most importantly, develop your own palate. You don’t have to smoke what someone else tells you a woman should smoke.
That was actually part of the reason I created Sip & Smoke with Éclat Noir. I wanted to create an experience that made cigar culture feel more approachable, especially for women who may be curious about cigars but don’t necessarily feel comfortable walking into a traditional cigar lounge by themselves. Sometimes you walk into these spaces, and they’re predominantly male, and if you’re new to cigars, that can be intimidating. I wanted to help remove that barrier.
Sip & Smoke gives people an opportunity to come into the culture through an experience—socializing, networking, music, conversation, and cigar education. It’s a space where someone can ask, “How do I cut this? How do I light it? What should I be tasting? What’s the difference between these cigars?” without feeling embarrassed because they don’t already know the answers. I remember being that person. My own first cigar experience showed me how important having someone willing to teach you can be.
At the same time, Sip & Smoke isn’t a women-only experience. That’s important to me. Just like The Boss Lady was created with women intentionally in mind but is enjoyed by both women and men, Sip & Smoke is inclusive. I want experienced cigar smokers sitting next to someone smoking their first cigar. I want women and men connecting, networking, and enjoying the culture together.
For women who want to enter the cigar industry professionally, I would say go even deeper. Visit factories if you get the opportunity. Talk to manufacturers, retailers, lounge owners, distributors, and other brand owners. Understand the industry beyond what you see on social media. Build genuine relationships and learn the business behind the lifestyle.
And for the woman who simply enjoys smoking cigars—enjoy your cigar your way. You don’t have to be an expert to belong in the room. That’s really part of what I’m trying to create through Éclat Noir and Sip & Smoke: a bigger room, where more of us feel like we belong.
Cigar Life Guy: What is your favorite aspect of the cigar community?
Ke’Shay Love: My favorite part of the cigar community is the connection. A cigar has this incredible ability to bring people together who might otherwise never sit at the same table.
I’ve met entrepreneurs, professionals, creatives, and people from completely different walks of life through cigar culture. Once you sit down in a lounge or at a Sip & Smoke, titles tend to disappear and conversations begin.
That’s one of the reasons the experience surrounding Éclat Noir is so important to me. It’s bigger than the cigar itself. It’s about conversation, relationships, networking, culture, and creating spaces where people feel welcome. Some of the best connections happen simply because someone sat down, lit a cigar, and started a conversation.
Cigar Life Guy: What is one of your passions outside of cigars? What would people not know about you?
Ke’Shay Love: Outside of cigars, the role I probably cherish the most is being NaNa. I have a 6-year-old grandson and a 3-year-old granddaughter, and I absolutely adore them. Being a grandmother feels so different from being a parent. You get to experience this love from a completely different perspective, and they are also a huge part of why legacy and generational wealth have become so important to me.
I’m also very big on family, and to me, family isn’t limited to blood. Family can be the people you’ve built lifelong bonds with—the people who have been there through different seasons of your life. I love bringing those people together. I love to entertain, so the holidays are definitely my time. Give me a reason to cook, bring everybody together, laugh, eat, play music, and just enjoy one another, and I’m happy.
But I’ve also realized something about myself over the years. If I had to put into words what I’m truly passionate about, it’s giving people something they can take with them. Sometimes that’s information they need to know. Sometimes it’s encouragement. Sometimes it’s a message that inspires somebody to see themselves or their situation differently.
That’s probably why speaking and music have always been so natural for me. Whether I’m talking to someone one-on-one, speaking to a room, sharing something I’ve learned, or expressing myself through music, I love words that move people.
People may see Ke’Shay Love, The Real Mrs. Parker, The Boss Lady, or the businesswoman behind Éclat Noir, but underneath all of that, I’m NaNa. I’m the one who wants everybody at the house for the holidays. I’m probably cooking, there’s music playing, and I’m making sure everybody is good. [Laughs]
And I think all of those sides of me are actually connected. I love creating experiences, but more than anything, I love creating moments that people remember and giving people something meaningful they can carry with them after the moment is over.
Follow K’Shay on Instagram and check out the latest from Éclat Noir Cigars here.
Photo Credit: La Keisha Howard