Cem Erten - El Lector from Turkey
Dear Cem, we’d like to learn more about your journey with cigars. What’s your story with finest premium tobacco?
I have first started seeing a cigar on TV, in most cartoons back then, characters had cigars in their hand. I also knew the smell of fine tobacco because my grandfather use to smoke pipes. I still have his pipes.
For me it really became a ritual during university times in Switzerland, where I had good access to great cigars. After the exams – to let off some steam, relax and enjoy the end of a stressful time, we used to gather with a bunch of friend, light’em up and reflect on the past year, whilst planning ahead.
Years later, I wanted to share the passion and try to build up a community in Turkey around cigars, hence started my journey with El Lector Blog. I also became a tasting panelist for Cigar Journal Magazine and for CigarSense.com.
And now, I am excited to be the ambassador for Light ’em GO and experience where this journey will be taking me in the future.
Speaking of experiences, what does a great cigar experience look like for you?
I guess a great cigar experience depends on what you are expecting from that particular instant. A cigar experience among friends, talking, eating, drinking, might be equally great to an experience you have alone.
I believe every time, every occasion has a great cigar to be paired with and enjoyed. You may be having a great evening with friends and you may think you are having the best smoke, or sometimes just isolate yourself either to think things through and the best ideas on things may pop up in your mind, making it the best smoke for a long time.
“... the cigar is a great tool and culture that brings people together. It has always been one of the great attributes of enjoying a cigar.”
What made you become ambassadors for Light ‘em Up GO?
In my opinion the cigar is a great tool and culture that brings people together. This is the reason why I started to cover and share my knowledge through my blog, and this is the same reason I wanted to become an ambassador for Light ’em Up GO.
Obviously, this is a unique initiative, simply because it is being lead by someone like Reinhard, who is so passionate about cigars and everything around them. The contributions you make to this ecosystem are enormous and it is a great pleasure and honour to support you with this endeavour as well.
Do people often ask you “Where can I smoke”, or “Where can I buy”?
Yes, I do get that question a lot due to various reasons. First of all because cigars and cigar places are very scarce in Turkey, especially after LCDH closed a year back people would like to avoid buying fakes.
Furthermore, there are somewhat limited places for real cigar smokers worldwide and the laws against tobacco products are not making it any easier for us either. I travel a lot due to my job and therefore am aware of multiple places in various other cities where you can buy or enjoy cigars.
Who do you think should know this?
I believe anybody who has a passion for cigars should know about Light ’em Up GO, because those are the people who enjoy a cigar among friends, who search for a place to buy a cigar during their travels. who do plan their travels around cigars, for example finding the best hotel near the best lounge or better yet a hotel with a lounge.
…people who are seeing cigars as a way of meeting like-minded comrades,
We live in a time, when enjoying a cigar is becoming more and more difficult, but we as cigar lovers have to make sure we build our network, take every opportunity to come closer together and grow our community. With this goal in mind, the more people use it, the more success it would have. And for us as ambassadors, there is a great responsibility to contribute to the achievements of this wonderful journey.
You already had a look at the app, what do you like about it and which features (to come) are you hyped about?
From what I’ve experienced on the app so far, I am excited about the HERF feature to kick-in. This will further enhance the use of the app immensely, simply because it will give users the chance to engage with their fellows more frequently.
Everyone has a favourite place to smoke and buy. Even though we all love to explore new things, we usually go to places we know we can trust and that are recommended by our peers.
Cem, thank you so much, it’s fantastic to have you on board and we are looking forward to creating something BIG together with you and your amazing community!
PS: Feel free to follow Cem and his cigar blog on IG or through his website: El Lector
Interested in becoming an ambassador yourself? We’d love to get to know you!