Madrid/Habanos has had to fly far away, to Macau, to preserve the halo of luxury that surrounds one of the main events of the traditional Habano Festival: the humidor auction. It is the central event of the annual program since 1999, in which it is customary to observe how millionaire collectors offer crazy figures for humidors that have sold for up to 4.6 million euros – a historical record, in the 2025 edition – which supposedly go to the Public Health system.
The Habano Festival should have been held at the end of February in the Cuban capital, but was postponedinitially undated, to maintain “the highest standards of quality and experience” of the event. In the midst of prolonged blackouts, with international flights greatly reduced and with the worst socioeconomic conditions in recent years, the company confirmed in July that the event would not be able to be held in 2026.
However, the gala auction will finally take place this Friday, November 13 in Macau, releasing three luxurious humidors that were waiting in Havana and one expressly created for the event in the former Portuguese colony and world capital of gambling since its incorporation into China in 1999. “With the Festival canceled this year, Habanos looked for the best agreement where it could carry out its traditional charity auction, and finally chose Asia,” he told the specialized page L’Amateur de Cigar Samuel Lin, CEO of Madison Auction, which organizes the gala.
However, the auction gala will finally take place this Friday, November 13 in Macau, giving way to three luxurious humidors that were waiting in Havana.
“Macao was chosen because it is an important market for Pacific Cigar Company – official distributor of Habanos SA in Asia – and, therefore, for Habanos,” said Dag Holmboe, CEO of that company. Lin added that, due to the tight deadlines, it was decided to organize the event in that region and not in Hong Kong, where the distributor’s headquarters and the auction house are located, but whose agenda is tighter.
The businessman warned that it is possible to participate in person and on-line. “I think over 300 people have registered to be able to bid online. It’s a charity sale, there’s no reserve price or fee for buyers,” he added, adding that he hopes prices will be “as high as possible.”
The information comprehensively describes the humidors. He first One of them is a tribute to the 60th anniversary of the Diplomáticos brand, created in 1966, and has 160 cigars with different vitolas of the brand. The second celebrates the 90th anniversary of Rafael González, the brand founded in 1936, and is a black and gold piece with 190 cigars. The third, in white, gold and green, is dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Cuaba, launched in 1996 and contains 300 cigars.
As for the piece designed expressly for the Macao dinner, it is centered on San Luis Rey, which that night presents San Luis Rey Palatinos, with a vitola for the La Casa del Habano and Especialistas en Habanos franchises, which will be presented at the gala dinner, which will be attended by some 550 guests. This humidor holds 250 cigars, including 50 of the new Palatinos.
The commitment to Asia also confirms the extent to which that market has become the epicenter of luxury associated with the brand and does so in a particularly complicated year for Habanos SA. The joint venture has been seriously harmed by its connection with Chen Zhi, the Chinese-Cambodian magnate who acquired the cigar business of Imperial Tobacco, a British partner of the Cuban state company with 50% of the capital of Habanos SA.
The millionaire He used Cuban cigars as a mechanism to prosper in British high society, in which he longed to fit in, and to do so he not only bought part of the company, but also influenced it to position the product in the ultra-luxury segment in Asia, doubling the usual prices of cigars. The strategy – together with the transversal crisis on the Island – has meant a setback in the European markets, which have sought alternatives in other countries in the region.
An important part of the disaster is also due to Chen’s criminal problems, detained in China and accused of serious crimes by the United States and the United Kingdom that have led to sanctions in the West. As a consequence, most European countries have had to sever ties with the magnate’s companies – including Simply Advanced Limited, with which he controlled almost a third of the shares of Habanos SA – or maintain constant scrutiny over the operations, in order to prevent money from tobacco sales from ending up in the pockets of Chinese Cambodians. He legal and sanctioning mess aggravates the situation of the Cuban joint venture.
In the last edition of the Habano Festivalheld in February 2025, the seven humidors that went up for auction reached a total amount of 16.41 million euros (more than 18 million dollars), including the one from Cohiba Behike, which has the historical record, for the moment.
