In this cigar blog post we celebrate 50 years of Davidoff Cigars and remember how it all began in 1968, in a small tobacco store which sold Cuban cigars in Switzerland. To commemorate such a big feat, we take a look at the life of cigar expert and cigar aficionado, Zino Davidoff.
Zino Davidoff was born in 1906 in Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. Zino was, it seems, destined for a life dedicated to tobacco and cigars, seeing as his ancestors were all in that line of work and celebrated tobacconists.
Davidoff doing what he does best, enjoying a cigar and looking very suave whilst doing it.
The life of Davidoff
His Father Henri Davidoff, owned a tobacco store in Kiev and it’s obvious the time Zino spent there, inspired and stirred in him the aspirations to begin his own.
In 1911, the Davidoff family moved to Switzerland, spurred on by political factions in Ukraine. Here his father does what his family does best and opens up another tobacco shop in Geneva, which would soon become very popular amongst a variety of people and where most would shop for Cuban cigars in Switzerland.
Zino Davidoff tells his readers in his book ‘The Connoisseur’s Book of the Cigar’ that he would regularly meet people of importance and significance at his father’s shop, including Vladimir Ulyanov (Lenin) who ‘greatly impressed’ him and he describes admirably as having ‘ a thin face, brilliant eyes, and spoke loudly as he demanded his cardboard tipped “papirosi”.
Pressed by his father, Zino Davidoff set out for Argentina, Brazil and Cuba, where he visited various cigar factories and plantations on a ‘sort of fact finding trip’, where he was ‘curious and excited about everything and not happy’ until he knew ‘everything there was to know about a Havana’. It was in Cuba he learnt all that he could about the product, the craft and the business.
By the time I got back to Europe I had already decided to dedicate myself to this business.
Returned to Geneva
When Davidoff returned to Geneva, he utilised what he learnt in Cuba and his natural talent for innovation, and installed the world’s very first climate-controlled rooms in his father’s store. It’s this restless pursuit of invention and originality which established Davidoff as a pioneer in the cigar industry and led to him being acknowledged by Kings, millionaires, actresses and writers around the globe.
Wartime
During the war, Zino provided assistance to France, which saw him acquire Paris’ inventory of Cuban cigars which he safeguarded for Europe until more peace times commenced and the cigars could be enjoyed again.
Furthermore, whilst the war raged on, Davidoff’s tobacco shop became a sort of sanctuary which allowed people to go to a warm and safe place which allowed them to forget of all of the turmoil of outside for the length of a pleasurable smoke.
Peacetime
As peacetime arrived, Zino Davidoff ‘plunged all the way into his business’ and invented a number of excellent ideas and creations. First he invented the ‘Humidor’ which is now something every aficionado has and if he doesn’t, he’s hardly considered one.
As well as this, Davidoff revived relations with Cuban tobacconists which led to them creating the very well received ‘Chateau Series’ with which a variety of cigars took their name from several of France’s most famous wine estates.
In light of his success in these pursuits, in 1970 Cubatabaco proposed to create a line of cigars that would be accredited with his name. Davidoff explains that this was ‘a happy occasion’ and it was ‘the most precious gift’ he could ever receive.
Zino Davidoff and his store has been noted by most as one of the more famous and treasured tobacco stores in the whole world with some very famous clientele visiting the store over the years, including writer Orson Welles and actress Gina Lollobrigida.
In 1970, Davidoff joined forces with Dr. Ernst Schneider and the two forward thinkers created progressive and exceptional cigars, as well as accessories up until the early 1990s, when they decided to ‘take the risk’ and changed from Cuba to the Dominican Republic.
This move left many disenchanted with Davidoff Cigars and received worldwide backlash, with many claiming that the Dominican made cigars are inferior compared to the Cuban Cigars for sale before. What do you think? Let us know on any of our social media channels or comment in the section below.
If you like this Cuban Cigar blog post, see our other informative articles about some of our favourite Cigar brands and more.
We also have an excellent selection of Davidoff Acessories currently available on our website, including the Davidoff Lighter which is great for gifting to friends or family on a special day.