As I aim to visit every single cigar shop, cigar sampling lounge, and cigar terrace across London (and beyond), there’s one place I have visited a couple of times over my cigar journey but haven’t reviewed yet, Davidoff of London – one of the most popular cigar shops in town.

Renowned for its exceptional selection of cigars worldwide, Davidoff of London features premium Dominican Davidoff cigars and highly sought-after Cuban cigars.

The shop is esteemed for its knowledgeable staff who provide expert guidance and a personalised shopping experience. Additionally, Davidoff of London offers an extensive collection of high-quality accessories, catering to enthusiasts who value the finest in cigar craftsmanship and luxurious lifestyle.

It is located at 35 St James’s St, St.James’s, London SW1A 1HD, on the corner of Jermyn Street. It’s just a 3-minute walk from Green Park tube station.

This place is located in what I like to call the “Cigar Mile” due to the abundance of nearby cigar stores, such as James J Fox, Ritz Cigars, and CGars – St James.

The History of Davidoff of London

Edward Sahakian and his son, Eddie Sahakian, own and operate the shop. Although Edward is no longer directly managing the shop, he can often be found in or around the store on St James’s Street, where he enjoys his cigars and shares his extensive knowledge and advice with customers.

Timeline

• 1968: At 24, Edward Sahakian smoked his first cigar, a Partagas Corona, after years of smoking a pipe.

• 1978/9: Edward, who is of Armenian heritage, moved from his native Iran to London with his family at the age of 35 due to the Iranian Revolution, which made their home country unsafe. At that time, he held the national franchise for Coca-Cola.

• 1980: Opened Davidoff of London on St. James’s Street, featuring a state-of-the-art walk-in humidor. He was granted the franchise for his store by Zino Davidoff.

  

• Early 1990s: Edward rose to prominence in the cigar world, collaborating with Cigar Aficionado Magazine and hosting Hollywood stars.

  

• 1990: Made his inaugural trip to Cuba, becoming one of the first British retailers to visit the island.

• 2002 and 2004: Nominated for Havana Man of the Year.

• 2003 and 2005: Attended the Festival del Habano.

• 2008: His son, Eddie Sahakian, started working full-time at Davidoff of London.

  

• 2012: Opened The Edward Sahakian Cigar Shop and Sampling Lounge at the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge, providing a luxurious space for enjoying cigars despite indoor smoking bans.

• 2017: Edward was awarded the Premio Habanos del Año Negocios (Habanos Man of the Year Business) at the Festival del Habanos in Cuba, recognized by Hunters & Frankau for his contributions to the cigar industry.

  

• 2019: Edward and Eddie start to film YouTube videos with Kirby Allison, in Jan 2019. How To Smoke A Cigar At Davidoff of London was published – it now has over 3 million views!

  

• 2024: Celebrated the 44th anniversary of Davidoff of London’s opening.

My First Visit to Davidoff

When I first started getting into cigars, I purchased a book called “The Cigar Companion” by Anwer Bati, published in 1997. Although I can’t remember the exact year I bought it (I’ve lost it since), I remember reading about the history of cigars and browsing through the A-Z cigar directory.

In the book, there was a recommendation to visit some cigar shops, one of which was Davidoff of London. This was the first time I had ever heard of a cigar shop. I made a mental note that when I got my first big job in London, I would visit there.

In 2008, that happened, and during my lunch break, I went to pick up a “proper cigar”.

I remember taking the tube from my place of work to Green Park and marching down St James Street with fierce determination. But when I arrived at the shop, all that confidence vanished. I anxiously paced up and down outside for what felt like an eternity before finally mustering the courage to walk in. As soon as I entered, the staff guided me to the walk-in humidor. I believe they recommended a Davidoff Signature No. 2 cigar.

I was well chuffed to gather the courage to walk into the cigar shop – and I couldn’t wait to get home to smoke it!

Memorable encounters

Fast forward to 2011, I visited the store again, this time with Nic Wing on his Cuban Cigar Walk. I was fortunate enough to smoke a cigar with Nic and Edward Sahakian inside the store itself—I didn’t fully realise the honour of that experience at the time.

In 2022, I had the incredible opportunity to meet Eddie at the Cigar Smoker of The Year event at Bosidales of Canary Wharf. He mentioned that he was a follower of my blog, which honestly truly amazed me. Mind blown 🤯. It’s not everyday you get to hear encouragement like that – I felt totally humbled, but also super eager to write more and more about my cigar journey 🙏.

Last year in 2023, I bumped into both father and son at Aaron Sigmond’s book launch for Arturo Fuente: Since 1912 at Maison Assouline in Piccadilly, St. James, London. One of my favourite moments of the night was capturing this photo of Edward photographing Carlito of Arturo Fuente.

Edward’s photograph of Carlito is more than just a snapshot; it encapsulates the shared passion and camaraderie among enthusiasts. It symbolises the unity and connection within the community, where people gather to celebrate their love for cigars, strengthening bonds and creating lasting memories.

Edward and Eddie are absolute gentlemen – just ask anyone that has met them! They have been gaining quite a following over the years due to their online videos with Kirby Allison, a YouTuber which has propelled them to almost celebrity status! 🚀

My Most Recent Experience

So why am I talking about it now? During my recent travels I met Alistair, a newbie cigar smoker and a new regular of Tony’s Head Case Curious cigar shop in Portsmouth that I got chatting to at The Lord’s Cigar Lounge, down in Gosport – where we enjoyed sampling cigars at one of the Hunters & Frankau events earlier this year!

From there, we kept in touch, and I mentioned to him that if he ever came to London, he should message me, and I would show him around some of London’s cigar stores in St James – a bit like Nic Wing did with me during his Cuban Cigar Walk back in the day.

Then one Saturday morning in June 2024, the planets aligned and he made his way down to London. We arranged to meet up outside Davidoff of London.

Prior to his visit, he said he would love to meet the Sahakians. I was like, “Oh, they won’t be working on the weekend.”

Walking past the window, I spotted Max Foulkes of Foulkes & Sons serving behind the till.

We entered, and I introduced myself and Alistair to Max. I felt incredibly confident, a confidence I believe I’ve only gained from visiting so many cigar lounges.

Max led us to the cigar walk-in humidor, where we had the opportunity to look at the full range of cigars available to us.

We both had our eyes on the Davidoff Maduro, but at £80, it was a little out of both our price range.

I decided on the Davidoff Dominicana 2014 cigar, priced at around £51, still a bit pricey for me- but it felt right to select a Davidoff cigar over a Cuban somehow.

After choosing our cigars, we went to the counter to pay up.

As it was time to leave the store, we headed out through the main doors. Then all of a sudden Eddie tapped me on the shoulder and invited us back inside! I was astonished to see him there. As we re-entered the shop, we spotted Edward too. They must have been there the whole duration of our visit – but in their office downstairs. It turned out to be someone’s birthday inside, so we joined in singing “Happy Birthday” to them. Following that, we had the incredible opportunity to engage in a deep conversation with both Edward and Eddie. It was unbelievable—they made us feel so welcome!

I even got out my original Cigar Companion book out to show Edward and Eddie the image of the Davidoff shop from back in the day. They commented on it, saying it looked very similar. Max pointed out that they used to sell shisha there!

We ended up in there for some time, and just before we left, we were invited to have our photo with both Edward and Eddie inside those two special seats in the store. Aw, what a way to end our visit to the Davidoff! We were both literally buzzing when we left the store!!!

Then it was off to James J Fox, then CGars Ltd to conclude the mini cigar tour of St James I had planned!

My rating: 10 out 10

I can’t recommend visiting this cigar shop enough; it’s a MUST-VISIT if you ever come to London.

If it’s your first time visiting the cigar stores here, I would recommend visiting Davidoff of London, picking up some cigars, smoking outside either Francos or Cafe Murano, then heading down to James J Fox to sample a cigar in their cigar lounge. Sadly you cannot smoke inside the Davidoff shop.

It was a wonderful little trip – one I’ll never forget! and I loved the fact I was able to share that experience with a newbie cigar smoker.

If you want to see Edward Sahakian in person, he will be on the panel at this years Habanos World Days Seminar & Exhibition on Friday 21st June. There are still some tickets left here.

Want to visit Davidoff of London?

Address: 35 St. James’s Street London SW1A 1HD

View on Google Maps

Phone: 020 7930 3079

Email: info@davidofflondon.co.uk

Website: Davidoff London

Social Media: Instagram | Facebook

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