Crowned Heads today announced that Tim Ozgener (of CAO fame) will be returning to the cigar industry after a 12-year absence, and will be introducing his Ozgener Family Cigars brand at the upcoming PCA trade show in Las Vegas.

The Ozgener family is known for founding CAO, with Tim’s father, Cano Aret Ozgener, starting the company in 1968, naming it after his initials. While originally a pipe and humidor manufacturer, CAO first attempted a move into premium cigars in 1980, later reemerging in the mid-’90s and eventually making a name for themselves with bold, contemporary cigars throughout the early 2000s. CAO was then famously acquired by what is now Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) in 2007, with Cano retiring and Tim staying on as president until 2010.

Ozgener Family Cigars Bosphorus cigars

With the acquisition, CAO was relocated from Nashville, TN to General Cigar’s (a subsidiary of STG) US headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. At this time, some of CAO’s key members made the decision to remain in Nashville and form their own company: Crowned Heads. Tim invested in the company, though has remained essentially out of the industry until now, with a press release noting, “after some pandemic-induced soul-searching, [Tim] found that his love for the premium cigar industry was a voice inside that could not be silenced.”

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“I’m thrilled to be joining Crowned Heads, seeing old friends, making some new ones, and launching my brand of cigars under the ‘Ozgener Family Cigar’ brand.” Added Crowned Heads co-founders, Jon Huber and Mike Conder, “When we learned of Tim’s desire to get back in the business and join Crowned Heads, it felt like ‘the band’ was truly getting back together. We’re excited to have Tim on board, and we’re looking forward to growing the OFC brand and Crowned Heads together in the years to come.”

Ozgener Family Cigars’ first release is dubbed Bosphorus, a box-pressed line of four sizes. The cigars make use of an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, a double binder of Ecuadorian Connecticut and Nicaragua, and all-Nicaraguan fillers. There will also be a more limited cigar known as Pi Synesthesia, which was inspired by artwork from Cano Ozgener. This cigar will be offered in a singular 6″ x 52 toro format and limited to 2,500 boxes of 12 cigars.

Ozgener will debut the brand along with the new cigars at next week’s PCA 2022 trade show, held from July 8–12 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center.

Ozgener Family Cigars Bosphorus cigars box open

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