The event was hosted at City of Dreams Mediterranean in Limassol, Cyprus, but without any previous notice the five hundred and fifty Habanos distributors, partners and cigar lovers from around the world got transported (at least imaginarily) to some ballroom from the Royalty in London.
And this plot made a lot of sense due to the history of this Habanos brand that were baptized after the popular British puppet show called Mr. Punch. Since its creation the brand soon gained a huge success not only in the UK but also in the markets all over the world.
The celebration began at 19:00 and the guests were welcomed with Taittinger champagne and the entrancing cocktails of the Teddy’s Speakeasy bar. Illustrations of puppets and princesses inspired by many influencers in the Habanos World gave a special touch of fun and surprise as the guests started to arrive.
The artistic company Oshow entertained guests with a surprise Royal Ball dance prelude accompanied by a live piano performance and ushered them towards the main ballroom doors as they began to take their seats.
The gala opened with a powerful operatic performance by Pavo, whose rendition of “Il Sole Mio” set an elegant and theatrical tone, followed by a spectacular dance performance once again by Oshow, drawing every guest into the celebration.
Mr. Mohammed Zeidan, Chairman of Phoenicia Cyprus, formally opened the evening’s official programme. In his address, Mr. Zeidan welcomed guests to Limassol for a night dedicated to Punch’s 185th anniversary and the launch of Punch Princesas Limited Edition 2025.
Then Mr. Rodrigo Jimenez, Strategic Marketing Director of Habanos S.A., gave the guests an overview of the brand covering the cigar releases and the story of Punch.
The grand moment of the night came when Mr. Walid Saleh, CEO of Phoenicia Cyprus, took the stage. It was the presentation of the long-awaited highlight of the night: the Punch Princesas Limited Edition 2025 (135mm by 52).
In his speech Saleh payed a tribute to the princesses in each of our lives – mothers, wives, partners, daughters and granddaughters – as well as the many women working throughout the Habanos value chain as the name of the release, Princesas, stands for princesses in Spanish.
The night was filled with dance performances and music presentations by the Limassol Jazz Big Band, Eleftheriades group and the Greek dance performance by Shakalis Dance Group.
But it was when Pavo and his group returned to the stage with an extended Arabic and international set, blending East and West, that all the guests jumped to the dance floor delighted with the new release and with the amazing atmosphere that were created during the night.
As it is also becoming a tradition, a musical presentation of the The Managers band, led by Mr. Alain Crevet, CEO of the S.T. Dupont – the cigar accessory company partner of Habanos S.A. and Phoenicia TAA Cyprus Ltd. – closed the memorable night.
The guests that joined the event received a gift set of the Punch Princesas and the had access to by in firsthand the new release that was being sold in the following day at some selected shops in Limassol and at the Larnaca International Airport. The boxes of 20 units of Punch Princesas Limited Edition 2025 was selling by 999 euros and the sample box of 3 units by 166 euros at the airport.
