16
TOBACCO OUTLET BUSINESS
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012
NEWS & TRENDS
July marked the 40-year anniversary
of the guayabera brand Ramon Puig
Guayabera in South Florida, and was
cause for a celebration with cigar
sponsor Oliva Cigar Co. The famous
guayabera brand not only celebrated
four decades of style, but also a new
location with festivities that centered
around an invitation-only GrandOpening
of its new Downtown Miami store and
a presentation by Miami Mayor Tomas
Regalado.
Known as the King of the Guayabera
legacy, Ramon Puig opened his first
guayabera store in Cuba in 1943, in
the ancestral home of the garment,
Sancti Espiritus, the city of his birth. His
attention to detail, cut, and style soon led
customers all over Cuba, the Caribbean
and South America to coin him “el
mago de guayabera” (The Guayabera
Magician). The guayabera shirts he
designed were made of crisp white
linen, slimmed customers’ waistlines
and added to their appearance a look of
elegance. As his reputation grew, Puig
drove to the major cities in Cuba to take
client’s measurements, and then made
the return trip to personally deliver his
custom fitted guayaberas.
In 1968, Puig departed his country
and arrived in Miami, with his wife Juana
María and his then eight-year-old son,
Louis. In 1971 Puig was able to open
his first shop in Little Havana, next to
Versailles restaurant and thereafter a
larger one, further west on Southwest
8
th street. Rapidly making connections
in Miami’s Cuban and Latin community,
he built his business into an international
success with client celebrities, actors,
athletes and musicians such as Sylvester
Stallone, Robert De Niro, Andy Garcia,
Alex Rodriguez, Alonzo Mourning, Ice
Cube, as well as every U.S. President
since President Ronald Reagan, who
was the first president to sport Puig’s
authentic guayaberas. Reagan toured
Miami wearing Puig’s garments and
rechristened“ElMagodelasGuayaberas”
as “El Rey de las Guayaberas” (The King
of the Guayaberas).
Today Puig’s business continues
under themanagement of his son Louis
Puig. “We must embrace the past and
understand the direction of the future
in order to be successful,” says Louis
Puig. “We have added updated styles,
fabrics and colors to further expand
our existent inventory and please our
wide customer base. This new store
exemplifies the new direction we are
taking our brand while remaining true
to the dedication and pride my father
had for his craft. For almost 70 years
we have made the best and most
authentic guayaberas in the world.
I am proud to continue my father’s
legacy.”
When Jose Oliva of Oliva Cigar
Co. was asked to take part in the
celebration of the brand’s anniversary,
he immediately jumped on board.
Although Oliva himself could not
attend due to prior commitments,
Oliva Cigar was represented by
director of marketing John Conroy and
acclaimed cigar roller Jesus Roche.
Event guests were able to sample
Oliva Serie V cigars, which have been
named one of the best cigars of the
year by
Cigar Aficionado
from 2007
to 2011. More than 400 guests paid
homage to the late Puig by wearing his
world famous guayaberas, smoking
cigars and trading stories.
The event culminated with a ribbon-
cutting ceremony that included Mayor
Tomas Regalado, Oliva Cigar’s own
John Conroy, television personality
Dr. Karent Sierra, world famous artist
Carlos Navarro and Louis Puig.
Ramon Puig Guayabera and Oliva Cigar Celebrate
Two cigar companies join forces for a 40-year anniversary celebration
of the famous guayabera brand.
Ribbon cutting with Oliva Cigar Co. Marketing Direc-
tor John Conroy, T.V. personality Dr. Karent Sierra,
artist Carlos Navarro, Louis Puig and wife, and
Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado
Louis Puig holding up a guayabera cake (the cake has
an Oliva Cigar in shirt pocket)
Louis Puig chatting with Oliva Cigar Co. representative
John Conroy with Cigar Roller Jesus Roche
