From breaking the no-smoking rules in the seminary to playing guitar in a band, Jeremy McDonald has lived the cigar life for nearly thirty years. After working for decades in cigar retail and as a sales rep, McDonald started Wildfire Cigars in the spirit of sitting around a campfire shooting the shit with a premium cigar. McDonald talked to Cigar Life Guy about not burning bridges, his aim to make Wildfire part of the next generation of great cigar brands, and how Wildfire saved him from burning out and met his need to be more expressive in the cigar industry.
Jeremy McDonald: First Premium Cigar Experience
Cigar Life Guy: Tell me about your first premium cigar experience.
Jeremy McDonald: The first premium cigar was not obviously the first cigar experience- the first cigar experience was a White Owl from 7-Eleven (laughs). The first premium was gifted to me. I was working at the Courtyard by Marriott, and one of the guys came in, and he smelled like cigars, and we started talking.
He tipped me, and he gave me a Henry Clay. So that was my first premium cigar, and it was in ’97. After that, I started finding cigar shops, but I didn’t know there was such a thing. I thought you just found cigars at liquor stores. I didn’t know there were shops for premium cigars.
Music and Religion Before Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: You tried being a musician and joined the seminary for a time before working in a retail shop. How did all those experiences and your time in a retail shop help inform starting your own cigar line?
Jeremy McDonald: When I was in the seminary, I was smoking cigars but had to hide them because it was against the rules. Working in retail opened my eyes to the passion of tobacco. Meeting guys like José Blanco and Benji Menendez – all these old school guys- the old guard of the industry.
Fortunately, I worked in a premium store, so it had events with all the bug guys. I loved cigars – this cigar and that cigar- and the smoking experience, but seeing these guys and their love for tobacco opened me up to the idea that this is a form of artistry.
Over the years, I made relationships with different manufacturers, reps, and consumers and learned from them. I loved it when a customer would come in and not know what they wanted, so I could curate the experience for them and tailor it to exactly what they wanted. Regardless of what the cigar was. It was finding the right cigar for that person at that time. I loved that aspect of it.
When I got into working for different companies, I started thinking it would be cool to do this for myself. I could write a song on my guitar, write lyrics, and turn it into a complete thing, but I couldn’t do that with tobacco, and I wanted to. So it was a slow burn. I didn’t wake up one day and say, “I’m starting a brand.” It gradually got to the point where I was finished.
I accomplished what I wanted with Caldwell, and then I had to do something for myself. Starting my own brand was the next logical step. In 2001, when I started in the industry, I never thought it was a career (laughs). I’m a poster boy for the kid who doesn’t finish college and works in an industry long enough where you become good at it.
Cigar Life Guy: You also worked as a sales rep for C.L.E. Cigar Company. What’s the most important lesson you learned?
Jeremy McDonald: Another rep I was close with -even before I started- gave me some advice. He told me, “Don’t overpromise. Do what you say you’re going to do. Don’t give one guy something and give another guy a different deal. Be consistent, and you can have a career in this industry.” I remember thinking, “That’s all it takes?”. He said, “You wouldn’t believe how many problems come just from those things.” I carried that with me. So, not having any bridges burned with any of the companies I’ve worked with has been good.
Just be fair. Show up and do your job (laughs). It’s certainly not rocket science, but there’s still quite a bit of shit in this industry.
Jeremy McDonald: Starting Wildfire Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: You have a lot of experience within the cigar industry. What finally led to your decision to start your own line?
Jeremy McDonald: Around two years before I left Caldwell, I had gotten to a point where I was burned out. I was getting offers to do the same thing- like lateral moves for more money- but I didn’t want to be that guy who bounced around from company to company. It’s like, “Oh, this is the greatest cigar ever!” and then you’re with the next company saying, “Oh, this is the greatest cigar ever!” that whole spiel.
So, I would try to create my brand or be totally out of the industry. I had conversations with Robert Caldwell about it, and he was supportive. If I could get funding, I would do it, and then I got funding, and I did. I didn’t want to do what I was doing anymore. I had lost the love. It was clocking in every day. Yeah, it was the cigar industry, but it was like any other industry. I needed to do something where I could be more expressive of myself. So I was going to do the cigars, or who the hell knows what else I would have done.
Inspiration for Wildfire Cigars and More
Cigar Life Guy: You clearly have a good sense of humor. What was the inspiration for the name Wildfire and your camp counselor video?
Jeremy McDonald: I knew that I wanted something based around a campfire, so the logo was designed before the name was there. I like to be outdoors and camp. It’s more so just the thought behind cigars. You’re sitting with someone. Whether you know them or not, sit long enough, and you’ll have a conversation.
My worldview completely changed from being in this industry. I grew up pretty sheltered with one train of thought. Most days, while working in retail, I just listened to the people. Where they came from or where they were going. Political views. Religion. All of it. It opened my eyes to a whole new world. Sure, there could be tension and arguments, but smoking a cigar was a great neutralizer. It didn’t matter where you came from, what you were into, or how much money you made. I loved that element, so I wanted to incorporate the concept of just sitting around the campfire shooting the shit.
I had another name I was pursuing that was more fitting to the campfire. Then, a shop opened, and I didn’t want to come out of the gates in litigation. I just changed it. I had it trademarked, but it wasn’t worth it. And I had a gentleman’s conversation, but it didn’t go well. So, I just told my lawyer, “Let them have it.” I’m in California, and I think the wildfires were going on then, so I said, “I like that“ (laughs). So I took the name. I trademarked it and went with it.
The Wildfire Portfolio & Building a Brand
Cigar Life Guy: Tell us a little about the Wildfire portfolio.
Jeremy McDonald: I launched with a Limited called The Single out of Joya de Nicaragua. My first core line was the Revivalist. Those were the first two to market, and then I went to another factory to diversify. I went to FTC (Fabrica Centroamericana de Tabaco S.A.)- Cavalier’s factory. I’ve known these guys for years, so it was a natural fit. We had good chemistry there, so I’ve also done a few more things with them. I introduced Wanderer as the first core line out of there.
I started a three-part limited series. Now we’re on the second one. The first one was The Intro, and then at P.C.A. this year, I released The Hook, which is the second part. I released Artaois out of Joya de Nicaragua in July of last year. That was my second core line coming out of there. Next year at P.C.A., I’ll introduce another core line from F.T.C.
I’m just going to work with as many factories as I can. It gives you the ability not to get boxed into certain tobaccos. It allows you to create new flavors and profiles. I like not being tied to one thing.
I also introduced the B-Side. It is The Intro, but I inverted the binder and wrapper. It’s a play having a single and then having the other side. I wanted to show how different a cigar can be when you just change nothing other than rearranging the components. It would be a lot cooler if The Single was still out. Then, people could make a comparison between A and B. I did that for the cigar nerd in me. The blend stands on its own, so even if people haven’t smoked The Single, they’d enjoy it.
Jeremy McDonald’s Long-Term Goals for Wildfire Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: What are your long-term goals for Wildfire?
Jeremy McDonald: Build a name and build a sustainable business. I want to be around. There are so many guys, mentors, and people I respect who are all getting older, and I want to be a part of carrying on the next generation of manufacturers and brands. I want to one day be a mainstay brand, a household name, and just be a part of what people smoke and enjoy.
Cigar Life Guy: Have we missed anything? Please tell us anything else you’d like the cigar world to know.
Jeremy McDonald: Enjoy what you smoke. I always encourage people to try stuff. Try my stuff. Try Foundations, Cavelier, and Black Label. There are so many different profiles and styles of cigars out there. There’s something for everybody. That’s the fun of it. You don’t want to eat the same meal daily, so it’s the same idea.
The longer I’m in this industry, the longer Wildfire is around, and the more cigars we have, the more options we’ll have for different styles and palates. Just enjoy it. It’s leaves rolled together(laughs). It’s more about the experience of cigars that I love- meeting new people, hearing their stories, and enjoying it over a cigar.
Follow Jeremy on Instagram and check out the latest from Wildfire Cigars here.
Photo credit: Wildfire Cigars