Summit Cigar plans to be ‘cigar heaven’

by Sheldon Ocker

Bob Jursich and Matt Waris are determined to prove that what is old can be new (and improved) again.

Jursich closed the deal to buy the former Havana House at 1924 N. Cleveland-Massillon Rd. on July 2. Almost a month later, he purchased the building next door, occupied by Today’s Bride. Together, these properties will merge to form Summit Cigar Company.

The renovation, Jursich said, will take more than a year. In the meantime, Summit Cigar is doing business as a cigar club and a retail location for all things cigar: lighters, cutters, humidors, other cigar paraphernalia plus coffee from Youngstown Coffee Company. Just like Havana House did for 12 years or so.

But Summit Cigar is going to be different, said Jursich. He said it needs rebranded with a new interior and new exterior with more space – the Today’s Bride structure – that will be used primarily for retail sales.

But this will take time. The recently hired architect must come up with a plan and construction crews will follow not only to spruce up the exterior and interior of both buildings, but also to join them physically. Two things Jursich can do immediately are pave the parking lot and improve the building’s air filtration system. Jursich expects the paving to be finished by the end of October.

The building that houses Summit Cigar dates to 1850, according to Jursich, who said it was a house. But the age of the structure will not inhibit the renovation, he said.

“We’re going to join the buildings,” he said. “We want to fit in with Bath’s vision, and we want the buildings to complement each other.”

When the project is finished, Jursich said, “We’ll have over 8,000 square feet of cigar heaven.”

Ambience is important to Jursich. “We want to have first class,” he said. “But we still want to be approachable, because that’s the magic of cigars. … You’ve got blue collar workers, white collar workers, doctors, lawyers, plumbers and electricians, all sitting down and enjoying the same thing and having a friendly conversation.”

Just who are Jursich and Waris?

Jursich bought his first McDonald’s franchise in 1986. Eventually, he owned six McDonald’s in Garfield Heights, Maple Heights and Cleveland. By 2018, he was retired and became a regular customer at Havana House, which was near his home. Jursich said he lived most of his life in Brecksville but moved to Bath about 10 years ago to take care of his parents. He met Waris at Havana House, where he was the manager.

“The previous owners were getting up there, and it was time to back off,” Jursich said. “I wanted to see Matt blossom and become what he could be, but he was overwhelmed with his responsibilities here. … So now we’ve partnered, and we’re going to take this to new levels.”

Waris and one other employee ran the business, which is open seven days a week.

Havana House was not a membership type of cigar club, but Jursich expects to develop the business in that direction and eventually have lots of members who enjoy smoking cigars and the company of others who delight in smoking cigars.

Summit Cigar will not have a liquor license but, like most cigar clubs, customers can bring their own bottles and have catered food brought in for small parties and celebrations.

Almost by definition, cigar clubs sell high end cigars, humidors and other items used by serious cigar smokers.

“This is really a boutique cigar store,” Jursich said. “We really don’t have the big common brands.”

How much is a good cigar, not the best, but a high-quality product? Jursich said $12 “a stick” or $120 for a box of 10. “Probably a good part of that is taxes,” he said. ∞

Photo: This is the current home of Summit Cigar Company, but in a year or so it will look vastly different. Photo by Sheldon Ocker.

Photo (above/main): Matt Waris (l) and Bob Jursich are partners of the Summit Cigar Company on N. Cleveland-Massillon Road. Photo submitted.