CAO Cigars: A Look Back On Its Beginnings

CAO cigars can be considered one of the hottest brands in the market. It is manufactured by C.A.O. International Inc. – a company that started out with pipes and humidors, before eventually plunging into the cigar business.

The founder of C.A.O. was Cano A. Ozgener. He immigrated to America in the year 1961. From New York, he moved to North Carolina in 1964, then to Nashville in 1968. It was in 1968, leaving his engineering job at DuPont, that he started his business – which then mainly concentrated on pipe products.

It was only in 1980 that he ventured into the cigar business – and his very first cigar offering was the Casa de Manuel – and it was not a hit. As he put it then with that experience, he learned everything what not to do.

So then, he went back to his pipe business and humidor offerings. It was only in 1995 that he reconsidered his cigar business and started selling cigars again. This time his cigars were made by Nestor Plasencia - a Honduran smoke. These cigars were then simply called C.A.O. For this second try unfortunately, it wasn’t a hit in the cigar market either.

It was only with the Maduro line that put C.A.O on the right track. And this was made possible with the help of the owner of Tabacalera Tambor in Costa Rica – Douglas Pueringer. Douglas produced the spicy black Maduro for Cano A. Ozgener.

With Pueringer, the company seemed to have found the right business ally for its cigar business, but a sudden ending of Pueringer’s services due to his retirement of the business - C.A.O. was faced then with a predicament, as majority of their sales were coming from the Maduro line that Pueringer manufactured.

As luck would have it, C.A.O. was able to meet with Nick Perdomo on the same year. Perdomo began to take over where Pueringer left off. With Perdomo, C.A.O was able to come up with a Cameroon-wrapped cigar that was then introduced in a trade show in 1999.

CAO cigars also include Brazilia, Gold, Double Maduro, L’ Anniversaire versions and flavored cigars. For better control of the quality of their cigars, C.A.O has also its manufacturing aspect of its cigar business.

With CAO cigars, one would be happy with the thought, that unlike other manufacturers who may take out some cigar lines in the market for not probably selling well – C.A.O. believes in each cigar they put in the market. They will re-launch it and will find ways to make people appreciate the great blend they have put into it.

CAO cigars are here to stay. The company has also been very active with its marketing campaign. And by providing the market with quality CAO cigars – one will be able to sit back and relax – and enjoy a fine cigar only a C.A.O can make.