Our Story
Crafting something that endures takes time and character. Youāll find plenty of both in the people and history that make JM Tobacco.
A birthday gift from a 17 year old to his father, California jeweler John Mahroukian, led to the creation of Los Angeles-based JM Tobacco, Inc. Anto Mahroukian, president of JM Tobacco, delights in recounting the story.
āIt was my dadās birthday in 1994,ā Mahroukian recalls. āI bought him an expensive cigar. I donāt even remember what it was, but it cost about $20. He smoked it and he liked it. He asked how much I paid for it, and when I told him, he was shocked.ā
John Mahroukian ā the āJMā in the companyās name and on its cigar bands ā saw an opportunity with cigars selling for such a premium. The elder Mahroukian owned a jewelry factory in the Dominican Republic and told his factory foreman to check out the local cigar factories and ship him some samples. āHe found a factory that would make private label cigars for us and my father ordered 10,000 cigars at about a buck each,ā Anto recounts. JM Tobacco was bornā¦
Still, John Mahroukian wasnāt quite sure about his pending business venture. āWe had a bunch of cigars, but no name and no band,ā Anto says. āAnd my father was a daily cigar smoker. Thatās why heād say after he ordered the cigars that if we didnāt even sell one stick, he had enough cigars for the rest of his life at a dollar apiece.ā
“It’s safe to say, it was a wise investment.”