Alec Bradley ~ Honduran & Nicaraguan Cigars
With a little bit of luck and clever marketing, Alec Bradley grew into the versatile cigar brand it is today. Their motto is “Live True”, a testament to the type of product they produce. Alec Bradley is an honest brand with apparent transparency.
Alan Rubin’s first move to start Alec Bradley was selling his father’s cabinet supply company, All Points Crew. Rubin’s father advised that a company’s name should begin with the letter A. Inspired by his father’s advice and his father’s previous company named after him, Gloria Alan Industries, Rubin named the company after his children, thus Alec Bradley was born.
Alec Bradley began in 1996 in the later part of the 90’s cigar boom. The brand struggled in its first venture, targeting golfers with Bogey’s Stogies cigars. Rubin found himself in debt and was looking for new undertaking to solve the financial issues.
Then Alan met Ralph Montero, in what they describe as a “10-second encounter”. Ralph was well liked but struggling just as Alan to make profits after the boom. Alan asked Ralph for help and they reached out to Henke Kelner, known for Davidoff and Avo cigars, to produce Occidental Reserve. They sent out about 500 samplers to retailers asked if they’d sell and 300 agreed.
Selling quick bundles Alec Bradley came out of debt and had gained a good bit of attention. Alan designed a triangle press, which despite not being the most notable innovation, drew in more attention to the young brand. In addition, Rubin introduced a new line Maxx featuring stout 50 gauge cigars, which helped the brand survive.
The cigar line, Tempus, put Alec Bradley on the map. Tempus is Spanish for “time”, which speaks to the fact the brand has grown and developed over time. Tempus is a strong blend which veered from the previous mild to medium strength range they normally produced.
Cigar Aficionado took notice of the brand. Now Alec Bradley has a few cigars ranked in the Top 25, including its Fine & Rare which won a spot on the list in 2012.
Their home base is in Dania Beach, FL and they allocate production all across South America. Alex Bradley follows a traditional Cuban style, including triple capping.
Alec Bradley’s varieties of cigars are sourced from a range of locations. Notability, they work with Raices Cubanas in Honduras, Henke in the Dominican Republic, and Nestor in both Honduras and Nicaragua. Contracting production gives Alec Bradley the flexibility it needs to be able to cater to a diversified fan base.
Alan’s vision for the future of Alec Bradley is “When you have an hour to smoke a cigar, that should be the best hour of your day. We want to be part of your best hour of the day.” Aiming to please all tastes Alec Bradley makes their intentions clear.