A high-tech cigar box!
It all started around a table. As so often happens. Friends get together, put the world to rights, and throw an enormous idea into the conversation — one that everyone naturally finds brilliant. The challenge, of course, is to make it a reality. David Pasciuto and Stéphane Nazzal went all the way with their dream. They come from different backgrounds, but their paths eventually crossed in a Geneva family office — an ideal environment for familiarising themselves with the concept of ultra-luxury: how to materialise the sometimes extravagant fantasies of the world's powerful. It is there that their remarkable cigar box, named Emperador, has its origins — in the noble ambition of offering a 100% exclusive object to a handful of epicureans.
The making-of
Three years of research and development were required to create this cigar box. In other words: the Emperador required 17,000 hours of work, involving 27 different trades. David Pasciuto and Stéphane Nazzal turned to an engineering firm, FiveCo Innovative Engineering, based in Mont-sur-Lausanne, to bring this project to life. "They set the bar very high," smiles Antoine Lorotte, CEO of the company. "But there is always an element of challenge in this type of project." In the conference room, a phrase sums up the spirit of this SME active in watchmaking, robotics, and the automotive industry: "I didn't know it was impossible, so I did it!" Five engineers, all graduates of EPFL, therefore worked on the Emperador. The prototype has been operational for a year. "We were thus able to resolve all the technological problems," concludes Antoine Lorotte.
The magic
This box contains several treasures. Access to the cigars is protected by a secret code: the nine letters of the word Imperiali — the brand name — serve as touch-sensitive keys on the lid. In a discreet drawer, three "peripherals" can also be found: a cigar cutter, a table lighter, and an ashtray. Nothing remarkable? And yet… This trio is designed to make the tasting ceremony "magical." The cut is clean, the flame is perfect, and above all, the ashtray opens on its own thanks to proximity sensors. And that says nothing of the materials used — a veritable anthology of technical terms such as flexathene, alucobond, and aerogel, the last of which NASA uses to protect space suits.
The cigar
David Pasciuto sourced his tobacco in Honduras and Nicaragua. "I spent several weeks in the fields to understand this know-how," he explains. Wrapped in four gold leaves and housed in glass tubes, the Emperador cigar is its quintessence. There are 24 in each box. The cost of this Grand Cru? Close to 1,000 francs per cigar. An important detail: only the fortunate owner of the box will be able to enjoy them — production is not expected to exceed 500 to 1,000 cigars per year.
The price
It is rather significant given all the technology concealed in this cigar box — 2,675 components and 33 microprocessors, of which 21 are dedicated solely to the motors: 1 million francs. It would appear, however, that the first two units have already found their owners.
