When Kris Noteboom moved back to Burleson in 2016 to help his family with their commercial-construction business, he didn’t think Burleson was the right town for a cigar lounge. He now owns Wilde Cigars, a cigar lounge and bar offering Burleson a unique craft experience.

Opening a cigar lounge is a dream-come-true for Noteboom, and it means even more to him to have it in his hometown.

“The opportunity to open this here, I thought was really great,” Noteboom said. “I get to be in my hometown. There’s still a lot of people I know around town, which is nice, and just be a part of the community.”

When Noteboom grew up in Burleson, it wasn’t the town it is today – it was a “bedroom community,” where no one spent their time and money, Noteboom said.

“If we wanted to do anything, if it wasn’t something on 174 over here, we had to go to Fort Worth,” Noteboom said.

Noteboom was originally going to open a cigar shop in Denton under a different name with a different concept. It was going to be more of a lowkey neighborhood shop, Noteboom said.

Burleson’s population-boom and economic developments made Noteboom think his dream business could not only be a reality in Burleson but that it could be even better here. 

“We kind of went into this one saying ‘what if a franchise bar was also a cigar bar,’ as opposed to always keeping cigars off in kind of tiny little strip centers, things like that,” Noteboom said.

Wilde being a craft, upscale bar and lounge is what makes the business special. 

“It’s not all about the ‘Hey, let’s get our buzz on or get drunk and go to the bar,’” Wilde bar manager and artist Kim Jackson said. “It’s about appreciating a handmade thing.”

The handmade thing Jackson’s referring to is the cigars, of course but also her art that hangs on Wilde’s walls, the books Wilde keeps on a shelf for customers to read at their leisure and the craft cocktails she and the staff create. 

Jackson has two original art pieces, pictures made entirely of cigar bands, along with multiple prints, hanging at Wilde. She uses the business’s podcast studio to make art. 

The freedom Jackson has to create, not just her cigar-band art but also craft cocktails can be “intoxicating,” Jackson said.

“We’ve all bonded,” Jackson said. “I like to cocreate with everybody. It’s not just me creating cocktails. It’s all of us adding some elements. So it’s been kind of a fun leadership role that I never thought I would enjoy, but I do.”

The art appreciation Noteboom displays at Wilde comes from his background in fine arts – he’s gone to theater school, written plays and worked as a journalist. Noteboom met Jackson at theater school. They, along with their other theater friends, smoked cigars together at a cigar lounge near campus.

That cigar lounge might be where the seed of Wilde was planted.

When Noteboom first experienced a cigar lounge, he immediately felt welcomed by the connection his fellow cigar-lovers had to each other. Bringing people of different backgrounds and classes together through a shared love of cigars is what cigar lounges are famous for, Noteboom said.

“Our elevator pitch is it’s one of the last great ‘small-d’ democratic spaces we have left,”  Noteboom said. “And I say small-d democratic in that not affiliated to a political party, but so much as the ideal that everyone is welcome here.”

That social aspect of cigar-smoking is very important to Wilde, which is why Jackson chooses to engage with and get to know customers, rather than simply serve them as quickly as possible, Jackson said.

“It really encourages this like connecting with each other of people you would just never run into in any other place of all different economic levels,” Jackson said.

With it’s comfortable lounge seating and relatively-quiet music, Wilde is built for socializing, Noteboom said. The lounge also has card games, board games and dominos for people to play.

Wilde is located in The Standard at Chisenhall in Burleson near American Revelry, Doughboy Donuts and Roasted Beanery, all of which Noteboom recommends. Being in The Standard is potentially greatfor Wilde, Noteboom said, but it wasn’t his original plan.

Noteboom was originally going to build his own building for Wilde on East Renfro Street, but he seized the opportunity to open at The Standard.

“I had driven by this building and said ‘Boy, if I could build anything, I’d build that building,’ Noteboom said. “And it just so happened we got the opportunity.”

Noteboom opened Wilde in December 2021 and hasn’t looked back.

Why Sponsor The Burleson Buzz?

1. Direct Access to Local Consumers: The Burleson Buzz’s audience is highly localized, allowing your brand to reach residents in and around Burleson where they’re most engaged.

2. Strong Community Presence: As Burleson’s go-to news source, The Burleson Buzz has established trust and rapport with the community.

3. High Engagement Rates: Readers and social-media followers actively participate in polls, discussions and updates, with demonstrated interest in local businesses.

4. Flexible and Affordable Options: From social media posts to newsletter ads, there’s a range of options that fit small business budgets.

About The Burleson Buzz

The Burleson Buzz is Burleson’s dedicated source for timely, relevant local news. 

Covering sports, city council and other local government, community events, organizations and people, The Buzz reaches a highly engaged audience that looks to it for reliable updates and local insights. 

Founded in April 2023, The Buzz has become a trusted voice in the community, currently publishing weekly sports recaps, monthly features and regular local-government coverage with photos and live updates on social media.

The Mission of The Burleson Buzz is to connect the community in and around Burleson with timely, relevant information through quality, community-focused journalism.

Audience Overview

• Location: Burleson, Texas, and surrounding areas

• Primary Demographic: Adults 65+ and readers across a range of age groups—especially 25-54—with a strong interest in local news, sports and community updates

Reach: Over 780 subscribers with over 40 paid subscribers and over 1,700 followers across Facebook, Instagram and X (Twitter)

Audience Metrics

Website and Social Media Reach:

• 6,544 average-monthly site views

• Facebook Reach: 19,400 accounts, over 900 interactions, over 1,000 link clicks

Newsletter and Article Engagement

• Open Rate: 53%

• Click-Through Rate: 2%

Sponsorship Opportunities:

Sponsored Content

• Sponsored Article | $300 Temporarily $100

  • Have an article about your business written and published in The Burleson Buzz and shared on The Burleson Buzz social media pages and featured in every newsletter The Burleson Buzz publishes for 30 days

    Inquire about a sponsored article

• Sponsored Social-Media Post | $50

  • “Thank you” posts for business sponsor (e.g., “Thank you, [Your Business] for supporting local journalism by sponsoring The Burleson Buzz!”)

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Newsletter Sponsorship Plans

• Premium Plan | $300 Temporarily $100

  • Run an ad for your business in every newsletter and above the paywall of every article The Burleson Buzz publishes (minimum of four newsletters and five articles) and on The Burleson Buzz social media pages for 30 days

    • Paywall falls off article after maximum of seven days

    • The ad must be a PNG or JPG image at least 600 x 600 px with a maximum aspect ratio of 1:1

      Inquire about premium plan

• Standard Plan | $200 Temporarily $50

  • Run an ad for your business in every newsletter and below the paywall of every article The Burleson Buzz publishes (minimum of four newsletters and five articles) and on The Burleson Buzz social media pages for 30 days

    • Paywall falls off article after maximum of seven days

    • The ad must be a PNG or JPG image at least 600 x 600 px with a maximum aspect ratio of 1:1

      Inquire about standard plan

Sponsor The Player of The Game

• Sponsored “Player of The Game” Poll on social media | $75

  • Ex. “Vote for the [Your Business] Player of the Game”

  • Reach: Test gained 4,000+ impressions and 600+ clicks

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Contact Information

For inquiries, rate negotiations or additional information, please reach out to:

Cody O’Brien
TheBurlesonBuzz@gmail.com
817-996-4904