One of the only cigar stores in the Lake Houston area, Top 10 Cigars opened more than two years ago near master-planned community Fall Creek.

The shop offers more than 350 cigar options, a smoke lounge with seating and televisions and event hosting for parties with as many as 45 people, co-owner Rose Gipson said. Gipson owns the cigar shop with her son Royce Starling and his friend Patrick Fields.     

“We did some research and found that there was not a shop in this area, and we decided we would open here,” Gipson said. “Our goal is to try to carry most of the cigars that are rated in the top 10 by Cigar Aficionado [magazine]. We have quite a few that are in the top 25.”

The tobacco shop carries cigars made by popular brands, such as Oliva Cigar Co., Houston-area manufacturers, such as El Cubano Cigars, and specialty options dipped in alcoholic beverages, such as Hennessy, she said. Top 10 Cigars also offers a selection of mild cigars for those who are new to this form of tobacco, she said.

“For a person who hasn’t smoked before, we try to start them with a mild cigar—something that’s not going to make them sick and get them turned off to cigars before they get started,” Gipson said. “We will probably recommend something with a Connecticut wrapper or
[coffee] flavored.”

The store opened after Starling and Fields, longtime cigar aficionados, asked Gipson to forego retirement and join their venture into the industry.  

“I retired three years earlier and was looking for something to do,” Gipson said. “I’m not a stay-at-home person. So my son and his friend approached me because they had this idea about opening up a cigar spot, a retail shop, and wanted to know if I was interested in managing the day-to-day operations.”

Since opening its doors in 2014, the cigar shop has continued to grow thanks to customer input, Gipson said.

La Flor Dominicana is a customer favorite at Top 10 Cigars.[/caption]

“When we first opened in 2014, we had less than 100 different types of cigars,” she said. “Now we have 350. Part of the way you [build] that inventory is by customer request. Someone comes in and says, ‘Can you get this cigar?’ Then we do the research. We bring it in. If it does well, we keep it. If it doesn’t do too well, we may end up phasing it out of our inventory.”

Top 10 Cigars

9502 Beltway 8, Ste. 111, Humble
281-506-8461
www.top10-cigars.com
Hours: Mon. 11 a.m.-7 p.m.,
Tue. 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Wed.-Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Sun. 12:30-6 p.m.