As a lifelong New Yorker, I’m very familiar with the saying “A dollar and a dream.” It was coined by the New York State Lottery years ago and now has become a popular saying with a bigger meaning than just buying a lottery ticket. A dollar and a dream now means taking a small idea and growing it into something much bigger, manifesting a vision.
When I look back on how Women of PCA started, that saying always comes to mind. This year marks my 30th year in business (you want to talk about a dollar and a dream). When I first started out, I spent every single day working, napping on the floor and taking odd jobs to keep the business going and make it a success. It was the mid-nineties and there were not a lot of women entrepreneurs in the cigar world. Even now I have people say to me, “You own a cigar shop?” Like they are surprised by it. Today, I am so happy to see more and more women opening shops and becoming a big part of the cigar and pipe world.
Six years ago, I became involved in helping my shop and all shops in New York by advocating for cigar rights with the New York Tobacconist Association. Being a member of the PCA for more than 20 years and wanting to get involved in advocating on a larger scale, I ran for a seat on PCA’s board of directors. I was elated to get elected and was looking forward to giving back to an industry that has been so good to me.
On the last day of the trade show of 2022, I found myself at the PCA lounge talking to the PCA photographer Mélisa Miranda. She is what I call a connector—a person who brings people together. She introduced me to some of the women attending the show that afternoon and that sparked the idea to start a networking group for women in the industry. A space where women could get together, tell our stories, network and help one another.
Thankfully, I met Teresa Wessling of Georgetown Tobacco. She was elected to the board the year after I was and we already knew each other from my multiple trips to Washington, DC. PCA has its headquarters steps away from the Capitol Building and I love to attend events there. Teresa was excited about working together to make this group a reality and quickly came up with a plan and the name “Women of PCA.”
At the 2023 PCA trade show—armed with a name, a logo and a mission to get women together—we set up a networking-meetup at the PCA lounge. Boveda welcomed us to their happy hour event. Through word of mouth and some gumption, we had 40-plus women at the event and we were elated.
Companies also approached us to help and to sponsor us for the following year. With a base to grow, we then worked with the PCA board of directors and the membership committee to become an official organization.
The 2024 PCA trade show launched our official Women of PCA Happy Hour and Networking event. The event was sponsored by Smoker Friendly, Boveda, S.T. Dupont, Micallef Cigars, Gurkha Cigars, United Cigars and Drew Estate Cigars. We had over 150 women and men in attendance. They enjoyed the event and discussed future endeavors and how we could grow the organization. Our event was held on the last day of the show, an hour before the show ended; so having that many people attend the event was thrilling.
Women of PCA consists of two committees—membership and events—with six amazing women chairing them. Membership is made up of Amanda Micallef of Micallef Cigars, Bianca Lopez of Gurkha Cigars and Mechelle Merkerson of Cigars with “M.” On the event committee are Heena Bee of Cigar World, Monique Jones of Mojo Consulting and Training, and Crystal Herbert of C&M Cigar Brokers. Another person who has been instrumental in the group is Maria Cervantes, program manager for the PCA.
Now, with an organized group and lots of members, we look toward the future. Not only do we want to offer networking events, mentorship and travel opportunities, we also want to help women advocate for the industry. Many of us love to travel and I think having group trips to cigar factories would be fun and educational. We are also planning events in Washington, DC at the PCA.
In addition, we want to hear from you and what you want from the organization. If you want to receive future correspondence about upcoming events, please email us at [email protected]. If you attended our happy hour mixer and we scanned your badge, we already have your email and look forward to reaching out and keeping you in the loop for our upcoming events.
So that is the dollar and a dream. The dream is a reality now and I look forward to the journey we are embarking on together.
– Article contributed by Kathleen Kelly, owner of Queensbury Cigar & Pipe, Queensbury, New York.
This story first appeared in PCA The Magazine, Volume 2, 2024. To receive a copy of this magazine you must be a current member of PCA. Join or renew today at premiumcigars.org/membership.