Doug Bocock and his brother, Bryant, have lived the cigar life for nearly three decades. Natives of Honduras, it all began at a nightclub with the idea of drawing a crowd in Tegucigalpa. The brothers built a humidor and created a house blend, and the rest is history. Recently, they became the first cigar company to be licensed by a university. Doug talked to Cigar Life Guy about his start in the business, the creative process of blending a cigar, and why he invites everyone to kick back, light up, and be cocky.
First Premium Cigar Experience
Cigar Life Guy: Tell me about your first premium cigar experience.
Doug Bocock: I’m originally from Honduras, so we grew up around premium cigars. For us, every cigar was just a cigar — we didn’t even know it was considered premium. A cigar with a label that I remember clearly as an older teenager was a 1999 Vintage Rocky Patel. I loved that cigar at the time. It was nice and mild. A beautiful, decadent cigar. It was at a club in Tegucigalpa called 360, which we owned and managed at the time. We had a humidor and carried that particular cigar, among others. I picked that one up, and I smoked it. At that point, I knew what a premium cigar was. We had obviously smoked cigars from local producers and blenders, but that was my first experience with a premium branded cigar. It drew me into the whole premium cigar experience, including its marketing and lavishness.
Discovering Cigars as a Business
Cigar Life Guy: Your brother discovered cigars while managing a nightclub. How did he get you involved in the industry?
Doug Bocock: As I mentioned, we are originally from Honduras and had a humidor in Tegucigalpa in the 2000s. It was an event center that included a nightclub. To be honest, we needed something different to bring folks in to keep the lights on. Honduras is a huge tobacco producer and the hub for people traveling to Danli, so we decided that a humidor would be a good solution to add additional revenue to our event center. So, we built a walk-in humidor on the 18th floor of the tallest building in the city. At the time, there was a lot of turmoil in Honduras. The humidor and event center was the only place where U.S. embassy folks and military personnel could go and enjoy a cigar.
We learned a lot about the U.S. palate — what the U.S. customers liked. Do they want a flavor-forward or mild cigar? Do they like heavy-smoke cigars? We started to understand and cater to that market, which was more of an international U.S. market. We understood at that point that we had something special only an hour and a half away from Danli. That lit a spark. We realized we could create a blend of our own.
In 2001, we created a blend for our humidor. That was the first time we put something together on our own, but we didn’t really think we were going to create a full-throttle brand of our own. We did something locally and then fell in love with that process.
Bobcock Cigars Blending Process
Cigar Life Guy: Tell us about your blending process. Why should the average cigar smoker at least have some knowledge of how a cigar is made?
Doug Bocock: I can’t tell you what the average smoker should and shouldn’t do. Honestly, what’s important about what we do is being big advocates of what our country produces. The biggest difference is we don’t look at what everybody else is doing. We created our “lane”. When we created our cigars, we visited Danli and found a really good producer and manufacturing facility — San Judas Tadeo (SJT). They opened the doors for us when we were only producing batches of fifty cigars.
At the time, the blender wanted to have fun and create. He understood that we were from Honduras and could potentially take this product into the international market. He believed in our passion and knew we would return. That’s been the most critical part of what we do. We’ve stayed loyal to the factory, to the master blender, to the process. We’ve grown together. It’s not only the tobacco leaves but also our box and label makers. Those are all folks we have worked with from the start.
We are the largest tenant of SJT. He is the cousin of Nestor Placencia, so we get most of our products from Nestor. Our security supply is backed by the Placencia family. For us, that is very special.
Lighting up and Being Cocky
Cigar Life Guy: You have a distinct logo and a catchy slogan. “Be Cocky!” How do you want cigar smokers and consumers to see your brand?
Doug Bocock: Of course, our last name is Bocock. We honor our last name with our logo and slogan. It’s more of a call to action to be yourself. To not be afraid. To grab a stick, smoke it, and enjoy where life takes you! In this world, we’re constantly told what to do — where to smoke and not to smoke. But being cocky, grabbing a cigar, and lighting one up is what embodies our nature. And it has nothing to do with arrogance. It’s mostly about just being yourself. If you’re a badass and you’re working for the man, and you want to kick your feet up in the office and light up a cigar, that’s your “be cocky” moment. We encourage people to light up. Be cocky. Post it on our site. That’s the essence of it: a call to action.
LSU and Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: Your family has a long connection to Louisiana State University, and your latest endeavor is the LSU line. How did that deal come about, and were there any concerns about affiliating the university with a premium cigar line?
Doug Bocock: Talk about creating your own path. We’re not looking to make any noise. We’ve been working with LSU on many different events and fundraisers. Cigars have been part of the day-to-day and many college events in the past, including Joe Burrow’s signature smoke and the College World Series. So, cigars are a way for LSU and other schools to celebrate championships.
Before us, it was already a trend in collegiate and professional sports.
The university embraced what we were doing as a company and decided we were the right partner to represent them. LSU is not the first school to celebrate with cigars, but they are the first school to license with a cigar company.
The Cigar Community
Cigar Life Guy: What is the biggest challenge facing the cigar industry today?
Doug Bocock: The biggest challenge is opposition. By that, I mean folks always looking to feel offended by cigar smoke. In general, the opposition from folks who are against smoking cigars without understanding what it’s about. There is a very special bond between smokers. People that don’t smoke and don’t understand it don’t understand that love. That’s the biggest thing. “Live and let live” is what should be enforced when it comes to smoking cigars (laughs). I understand if you’re in a cafe and blowing smoke at someone who doesn’t smoke; I get that. But those folks that try to shut down humidors and lounges because they’re in the vicinity of a place or smokers not being able to have a cocktail in a lounge. You see those things more and more. That’s an issue. That’s the tough part.
Douglas Bobcock: Favorite Part of Cigar Community
Cigar Life Guy: What is your favorite aspect of the cigar community?
Doug Bocock: When you start a business like this, you never know where it’s going to go. We started with our Legacy Bocock Brothers and moved on to our Collegiate Division. We’re excited about the next chapter. It’s been a great year for us, launching the football centennial box to commemorate 100 years of Tiger Stadium, along with our two LSU Purple and Gold Cigars.
We realized Louisiana is so supportive of their school that it is an emotional purchase for them. They want to try out a product that has their logo. When they try it for the first time, they realize how good a premium cigar is. When they pair it with their favorite drink, or when the weather turns nice, or when they’re with good company sharing stories and tailgating, the cigar enhances their experience.
For some, it may be something they never thought of doing. You have your day-to-day smokers, but we may be turning someone who was vaping or smoking cigarettes into a cigar smoker. Someone who says, “I’m going to give this LSU cigar a try because it represents my school.” It builds community. It’s a big win not only for us but for the whole cigar community. So I feel we’re providing good service to our industry. But it has to be with a cigar that offers an experience. If the cigar is not up to par, it won’t give the desired experience, which is why we’re so meticulous about the quality of our products.
Douglas Bobcock’s Passion Outside of Cigar Life
Cigar Life Guy: Cigars aside, what is the one passion you have that most people don’t know about?
Doug Bocock: I really enjoy sports in general. That’s a huge passion. I love playing golf and racquetball. When I say sports — I’m a big college football and baseball fan. And we just signed and secured a deal with LSU’s baseball coach, Jay Johnson, making it the first-ever deal of its kind! We’re currently making a limited release, and it will be called the Jay Johnson Signature Series. It’s pin-striped, and the coach’s signature is on the box itself. So, for me, it merges two passions.
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Photo credit: Bocock Brothers Cigars