INTERVIEW WITH HENKE KELNER
When Davidoff decided to move their cigar production from the El Laguito (Cohiba) cigar Factory in
Havana to the Dominican Republic they called Henke Kelner. And when it came time to re-launch the
Davidoff Winston Churchill line of cigars they called on Henke again. So it’s clear that this is a man
whose broad shoulders don’t flag under pressure or the weight of expectations.
Hendrik “Henke” Kelner has has worked in the
tobacco industry for 46 years, he was born into a
tobacco family. His father was one of four brothers
born in Holland who moved with their family to
South America in 1933. Two of his uncles went to
Brazil and the other two brothers, one of them
Henke’s father, went to the Dominican Republic.
His father worked on the production side of the
industry growing tobacco for cigars and cigarettes
and all his cousins also worked in the tobacco
industry.
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Henke’s father was determined that his son would
not follow the family into the tobacco business so
in 1963, at the age of 17, Henke went to Mexico as
the first member of his family to go to university.
He trained as engineer and on his return to the
Dominican Republic he looked for work and
despite the family pressure he found himself
drawn back to work in the tobacco industry. He
says wistfully that “the tobacco in his blood was
stronger than the advice of his father”.