World Duty Free Group (WDFG), a leading company in the duty free and travel retail industry, has been granted the "Habanos Specialist" accreditation by Habanos distributors worldwide under the supervision of Habanos S.A. The Group is the first company in the travel retail industry worldwide to receive this accreditation.

After winning the tender to operate AENA's duty free concessions across all Spanish airports, World Duty Free Group has carried out extensive refurbishment in their stores. As part of this, the Company has remodelled humidors and included new ones, all with the latest technology, which create the perfect conditions to store the products and allow the Group to offer a wide and original range of products to its customers. The 'Habanos Specialist' programme recognised these new features of the WDFG stores, as well as the world-class service, extensive product knowledge and specialist advice that customers receive from World Duty Free Group's expert staff.  As a result, a total of 19 World Duty Free Group's stores have received the accreditation, across Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Valencia, Alicante, Bilbao, Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Sevilla and Jerez.

David de Miguel, Global Head of Liquor & Tobacco at World Duty Free Group comments, "the 'Habanos Specialist' programme recognises the enormous effort that World Duty Free Group is making to provide the perfect cigar to travellers. It is recognition of our expert staff, who are extremely knowledgeable and offer great advice to even the most discerning customers".

The commercial areas in question will now carry a distinctive emblem that gives customers confidence when they visit the Company's stores. In Spain until now, only 56 retailers carried this accreditation, a number which rises to 75 stores in November with the incorporation of the 19 World Duty Free Group shops.

The Habanos shopper profile is primarily business executives, but also tourists from all backgrounds and nationalities including Spanish, UK, German, French Italian and Scandinavian countries and from outside the EU such as those from South American countries, Russian or North American.

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