Check Out Brandon Marsh’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Marsh.

Hi Brandon, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Growing up in Montana, I have always had a passion for the outdoors! One would find me every weekend out hunting or fishing. Though I have always loved fly-fishing. It’s an experience that is hard to explain until one has done it. My mind just goes away and all I can think about is reading the water to where my next catch may be waiting.

How the story of Big Sky Cigar, Co. started though goes back to my business partner and I always throwing ideas off each other to start our own business. We would come up with these great ideas, but then get wrecked by Google because someone had already beat us there. ha-ha

One day Jess and I were fly fishing up by Fishtail, MT. We stopped for a break and lit up a cigar. Jess looked over at me and asked, “Why doesn’t Montana have its own cigar?”. I looked back at him and said, “No clue, but let’s do it.”. Fast forward almost five years later we are in over 24 states and 100 retail brick and mortar stores. Sold online to every state and three foreign countries. We actually have a guy from France that pays as much in shipping as he does for the cigars!

Now there have been growing pains, and this is like the cliff notes version of what it took to get where we are today, but I can say the juice has been worth the squeeze. After working in construction my whole life. I was finally able to go to Big Sky full-time this September. The transition was a little nerve-wracking but, I believe in what we have built. I am grateful for everyone that has been a part of our story. So, thank you to everyone that has supported our brand. I would not be doing this without you.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Obstacles and challenges we have faced. I would say that we both worked full-time. Sometimes six to seven days a week plus running Big Sky Cigar, Co. Jess really carried the team for the first four years before I was able to transition full-time to Big Sky. I was on the road working on different projects across the country and couldn’t be involved in the day-to-day grind. Thanks, Jess, for believing in this endeavor. I wouldn’t be here without your efforts.

This imbalance did take a toll on our friendship, but we were able to focus on the end game and grind through it.

Some of the other growing pains would be traveling to Nicaragua to make our cigars and learning lead times for bringing products to market.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My father was a welder growing up. So out of high school, I worked in the oil and gas industry. I started as a welder’s helper and worked my way up as I expanded my knowledge in the business. I ended my oil and gas career in the QA/QC field. If you were to ask someone that knew me, they would probably say I am a goofball, but I can turn on the switch and get shit done at the same time.

What are you most proud of?
I am most proud of the friendships that I have developed while traveling the country. I have met some amazing people.

What sets you apart from others?
What sets me apart from others is my ability to grind. People don’t have the hunger that built this country. I also care about my quality work and am a perfectionist. This can be a blessing and a curse, but it has kept me busy while other people have been stuck at the house looking for work.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
What makes me happy is direction, progress, family and my dog Copper.

I will start with Copper. Copper is my first dog, and has been an adventure with this good old boy. Hard to say “old boy” because I still see him as a puppy when I got him 12 years ago. Copper and I have traveled across the country together and have seen some pretty cool sites. He is starting to slow down and I have to remember his age sometimes but he can still get it when he wants to.

Family. I have always valued family, maybe because it is one thing I have always wanted. My parents split when I was a freshman in high school. It wasn’t pretty. I had to become an adult at that time and raise myself. I don’t blame my father for being gone. He was able to make my football games, and he left a toxic relationship. When he was gone, it was to provide for me and my brothers. Dad, if you ever read this, thank you and love you. It took me being on the road working for the last six years to appreciate your sacrifices. I hope one day to be a man that is caring and patient like you.

Direction and progress. I feel like a lot of our society has a lack of direction, and that is what is causing people to feel lost. What I will say about direction is that I did not have it in the beginning, but had to make mistakes to be where I am today. And truthfully, I am just getting started. There is no clear path in direction, but we have to get up every day and do the best we can then repeat the next day while keeping our end goal in mind. Progress to me is the reward of the grind. This is where we get to look back at the fruits of our labor.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.BigSkyCigar.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/bigskycigar
• Facebook: facebook.com/bigskycigar