Joya de Nicaragua

Joya de Nicaragua began in 1968 when Simon Camacho and Juan Francisco Bermejo, both Cuban exiles, established the Nicaragua Cigar Company in Esteli. It was the country's first premium operation, and by 1970 its cigars were being used at the White House. The brand's early success helped establish Esteli as a manufacturing centre rather than only a growing region. It was also the first Nicaraguan brand to reach the American market in quantity.

The revolution nearly ended it. The factory was damaged in the fighting of 1979 and rebuilt by its own workers, then nationalised as the American embargo took effect. The company operated under state control through the 1980s before Alejandro Martinez Cuenca took it over under a rental arrangement in 1992; it was renamed Tabacos Puros de Nicaragua and the Joya de Nicaragua trademark was recovered in 1994.

The modern range covers the mild Clasico, the full-bodied Antano 1970 and Antano Dark Corojo, the Cuatro Cinco anniversary blend, the contemporary Joya Red, Black and Silver lines, and Cinco Decadas. The company is now run by Martinez Cuenca with his son Juan Martinez and sells into more than sixty markets. The company's fiftieth anniversary in 2018 was marked with the Cinco Decadas line, and it has continued to invest in Esteli beyond the factory itself.