Fashion
Where it all began
I never expected cigars, fashion, fitness, and wine to shape who I am today, but each one has played a part in building the man I’ve become. This series is my journey
BY SHAHN DURRANI
I never really thought I would be in this position writing about all of my passions put into a central hub, but here we are. My name is Shahn, and I want to introduce you into how I got into cigars, fashion, fitness and wine.
Well, where to start, it's funny because all of these passions hit me at the same time. And someone who I look up to highly introduced me into all of these things, and ever since then I have not stopped to pursue my dream which, first of all, a huge thank you to anyone reading. I'm glad I can touch your hearts and be able to give you any advice and have a reader who likes all the things that I do.
It began 3 years ago when I had first started properly coming to the gym. My brother introduced me to Matthew Bishop and for those of you who don't know, is a great friend, brother and business partner to me. He's never let me down and has always just pushed me forwards, wanting what's best for me and for the both of us. Ever since meeting him he's shown me this world that I never knew existed and everything I write about and aspire to be I count have done without him. We managed to create a wine tourism, retail, and monthly wine subscription together and now moving onto even bigger things, Stogie Spot.
Fashion
For me, fashion was never of huge importance. I remember saying when I was younger that I didn't care what I wear or what people think of me and only one of those things were true, that being I don't care what people think of me. It's a huge world out there and there are bigger issues at hand than if Tiffany thinks you're hot or not. My brother always said to me just wait till you get older and this will change, and my father said that to him. And look where I am now, writing articles about a tuxedo on a yacht and about my favourite cigar. If you would have told me this 5 years ago I would have just laughed in your face. When I got into my first proper job being a wine bar my whole perspective started to change. I saw people in suits, fancy cars, and watches and I thought wow just wow that can be me, I need this, I deserve this, and I never give myself the time of day. And what I aspire to be now is the modern gentleman. Now I can't stop going and wearing suits and dressing myself up, not because I care what people think about me but because of how good I want to feel when I go out.
Cigars
This journey for me began as soon as I stepped foot into one of London's greatest cigar merchants, not to mention where Winston Churchill stored his cigars. James J Fox, this place is impressive and holds hundreds of amazing cigars from some of the greatest producers. And I still remember to this day lighting my first cigar with a match and smoking it incorrectly which resulted in my cigar canoeing and ever since then I wanted to be a connoisseur and learn more about what a cigar is, how to smoke it properly, how to light it and so much more, and since then my knowledge has continued to grow with each and every cigar I smoke.
Fitness
I strongly believe that if you want this lifestyle you have to be a healthy individual and that's why when it comes to smoking cigars and drinking wine and fashion your body plays a big part because when you dress up you want to look good in what you're wearing in all the right places and smoking cigars is a risk to health but if you are working it can be a little treat and trust me it's a lot better than a cigarette as it doesn't have any nasty chemicals in it and only pure tobacco leaf so it's a bit of a win win as long as you are training hard it can be a little reward for you.
Wine
Also a health risk is wine but if you are looking after yourself, eating the right foods, and working out, risks can be minimized. Like joining any industry it all becomes new to you and you learn so much and discover things you never knew existed and one thing I found is all these luxury topics I like all sort of tie into one and wine really showed me that the way you dress, talk, hobbies you're into, and the way you look. Almost all of these topics come hand in hand and that's how I've made so many connections over the years, whether it's cigars, watches, fitness, fashion it's always been a conversation starter for me and having some knowledge of these in your vocabulary can definitely help you in the long run, making friends, closing business deals, or just to give you more confidence. The more I tend to know about a particular topic gives me so much confidence. If I know what I'm talking about I feel completely fine. The same goes for public speaking and that's one key factor to know in the wine industry. Hosting tastings and events require you to have good public speaking skills to engage and communicate with an audience and personally it has been a huge help to build me into the person I am today.
Community
My hopes by creating this community is to introduce all of you into the hobbies I enjoy because I know there are a lot of people who love the topics we discuss and it's not just to get you guys to read it's about expanding the community, getting to know you and building connections so that one day I can meet some of you and we can discuss your journey, and how we can all improve and help each other out in the long run. This isn't just a project for me I want to leave behind a legacy and all of your support so far and to come will significantly help us drive our business and goals.