Perfumeria Fibah

Turkish-born Maurice Habif was co-owner of the Perfumeria Fibah in Havana Cuba, along with his brother Albert (Alberto).

The perfumes of Fibah:

• 1943 Intermezzo (interlude in Italian)
• 1943 Mi Bohio (my hut in Spanish)
• 1944 Frenesi (Frenzy in Spanish)
• 1950s Chateau Madrid
• 1950s Clavelitos (Carnations in Spanish)
• 1950s Gardenia
• 1950s Violeta (Violet)
• 1955 Lemon Grass Cologne
• 1955 Tabac Cologne
• 1957 Precieux (Precious in French)
• 1957 Frontiere (Border in French)
• 1964 MH 
• 1964 Apolo
• 1964 Buenos Dias (for men)

History:

Born on Sept 20, 1913, in Dardanelles, Turkey, Maurice's parents, Moreno & Miriam (Maria), left the old country to migrate to the USA in 1928. They brought Maurice (Mauricio), his two brothers, Albert (Alberto) and Isaac and three sisters, Zelda, Sally and Bienbenuta (Betty). The Habifs stopped in Havana to wait until their immigration quota numbers could be cleared and issued to them by the American consul. However, they decided to stay in Cuba and as soon as they arrived, they all took jobs to support the family. A fourth sister, Sarita, was born in Cuba.

Maurice earned $5 a week working in a local store. Because, he learned English at night school in Havana, he was advised to sell beads and trinkets to passengers disembarking for a day's stopover during their Caribbean cruises. He was soon making ten, twenty then forty dollars a day selling beads to American tourists. 

Maurice said that he was born in Turkey, was educated in Paris, moved to the United States in 1928 via Cuba and in 1929, at the age of 16, he was already selling novelties to American sailors at Guantanamo Bay at the rate of $4,000 in two weeks! According to an inflation calculator, that same amount of money is equal to $71,753.45 in 2023, absolutely insane to think he was earning that much money at that period in time.

He thought he was rich until some of his American friends invited him to a swinging afternoon cocktail party at the posh Sevilla Biltmore. His first taste of the good life hooked him. He relished at the thought of wearing fine clothes, eating gourmet foods and drinking only the rarest of wines. Plus the hobnobbing with the most interesting of folks from the upper crust of society appealed greatly to him. 

The French Doll:

The two Habif brothers found that the climate of Cuba, as well as its natural agricultural and economic resources would provide a means of obtaining wealth for the immigrant family. They thought of various ways to make money and settled on opening a novelty shop which would cater to the island's burgeoning tourist trade. Maurice and his brother Alberto started off their new venture with no more than a couple hundred dollars and rented a novelty shop next door to Sloppy Joe's bar and called it "The French Doll." Soon enough, it became a family business as Maurice partnered with his father, brothers, sisters and brothers-in-law. Maurice and Alberto then opened three other shops, at the Hotel Nacional and two at the Sevilla Biltmore. 

The company also exported and retailed at their manufacturing plant. However, it wasn't just perfume and cologne that made the store a success. It also retailed leather goods and souvenir trinkets made of native shells, mahogany, cedar and tortoiseshell, all made by Fibah. "I am the biggest alligator manufacturer of them all," said Maurice. "I use 300 alligators a month for leather. I am known to the government of Batista (Col. Fulgencio Batisto). To be my guests in Havana cost no one a dime. If, however, some one desires to buy perfume or novelties, I have everything for them to buy. And then again, they send their friends when their friends come to Havana."

In 1940, Maurice was asked if thought the war would have any serious affect on that year's upcoming tourist season. At first he replied a momentous, "No!" but optimistically acknowledged saying "Of course the blow of war has stunned us all temporarily. But it will pass and things will go on as usual, perhaps a bit more hilariously in Cuba about the coming season."

In 1941, Maurice told a reporter that Cuba was getting quite serious about the war, saying that the islanders sort of expected the United States would build military highways and plane bases in Cuba. He also said that war conditions made it nearly impossible to obtain French perfumes without paying premium prices. Worried that his customers would no longer be able to get the perfumes his shops were so famous for, he formed a pool which purchased no less than $2,000,000 worth of the best perfumes in all France. Now, all his shops were fully stocked with French perfumes which the tourists could purchase at costs far below what they brought back home in America. 

Parfumerie Fibah:

In 1942, Maurice told reporters that a company had been formed in Havana which had purchased large quantities of perfume oil and powder from Switzerland. Other ingredients were purchased in the United States and within three months the Cuban perfume industry would be ready to fill orders. Maurice said that the demand in America "may make this a million-dollar business." This was when Perfumeria Fibah made its debut. The name Fibah is simply Habif spelled backwards. In the following year, the firm launched its own brand of perfume: Intermezzo. Rather than rely on already made European perfumes, he would manufacture his own.

Perfume manufacturing was a top idea since Cuba already had its own source of alcohol, which they manufactured from sugar cane. The natural plant life provided some of the extracts that were to be used in the perfume making process. Other extracts and ingredients were imported from Europe. Cuba's neighbor, Haiti, provided the aromatic grass, vetiver, which was used as a fixative. Bottles came from America, most notably from the Carr-Lowrey Glass Co. Boxes for the perfumes were hand made from locally procured woods including rosewood, cedar and mahogany which grow in forests throughout Cuba.

The Habif brothers purchased the Chateau Madrid, a former nightclub, which they turned into a 14-acre "finca" (estate) with a restaurant, novelty shops, private zoo, exhibition farm, and a perfume factory that supplied the Fibah perfume, cologne, face powder and makeup kits throughout all the provinces of Cuba. Visitors to the property were greeted by peacocks strutting the luxurious grounds, while sweet faced girls - the guides, led the tourists on a tour of the premises which included goldfish fountains, lush gardens full of delicate, exotic orchids and other tropical flowers. In the perfume factory the guides explained the process of each department.  The gift shop had a thatched roof with eight royal palm trees that grew in the store and soared gracefully through the roof and up into the sky.

Remember when I mentioned that The French Doll store was situated next to Sloppy Joe's bar? Well a funny little story goes that a visiting reporter visiting the island stopped in at Sloppy Joe's bar, where he noticed that there were more people in the perfume shop than in the bar at that moment. The reporter commented to Maurice about it. Since that time, The French Doll business cards had been changed to read "Sloppy Joe is next door to us," instead of 'Next door to Sloppy Joe's."

In 1947, during an interview, Maurice said that his factory had been conducting experiments at the plant which might prove important to Cuba's perfume industry. He explained that they started because essential oils from Europe (mainly France and Italy) as well as the Orient had become very scarce during the war and were still available only in "dribbles." As a result, Maurice asked H.S. Scott of New York to be the general consultant for Fibah. Scott spent twelve years prior working in Bermuda before heading to Cuba. 

"We are making extractions of every indigenous plant that has aromatic qualities, and introducing others," said Scott. "We want to be able to go to farmers and say, 'If you will grow so many acres of this or that, it will produce so much, and we will buy it from you.'" Scott believed that such farming would strengthen Cuba's economic structure, long based on two crops - sugar and tobacco. As a result, an experimental farm was set up in the grounds surrounding the factory. It was here that nearly every kind of tree, shrub, fruit and flower that was native to Cuba was planted for use in the perfume factory.

Scott stated that the factory's laboratory was open to students at the University of Havana for doing thesis work, with room for about half a dozen at the time and more later. He also said that Maurice was working with the Cuban government officials and the University of havana on a plan to award one scholarship annually, starting the following year, to give a Cuban student a year's study in the United States.  "The scholarship need not be used for study of aromatics," said Scott, "It will be for anything to promote agriculture in Cuba."

By 1955, Fibah sold to more than 1000 domestic outlets in Cuba and was looking to export its products.

Miami Herald, 1955:

"Men's cologne is big business in this Cuban capital. And this fragrant liquid isn't the mild after shave lotion American men know. Habaneros buy about one fourth of the bottles of cologne sold in the city. "And the women's cologne come in smaller bottles," said a perfume manufacturer..."Only the old man uses lavender here," said a Havana resident. And pine scent is used "only to clean the floors." But lemongrass! Ah, that's the basis of a favorite Habaneros' cologne. It's a grass slightly wider than a Bermuda grass blade and much longer. It has a fresh citron odor which Cuban men admire. Another basis for men's cologne here is tobacco leaf. That has a sweeter aroma, a yellower color...Properly worn, Havana style, cologne is patted on the face much as after shave lotion is in the States. Then a little is applied to the handkerchief which is tucked in the coat breast pocket. Maurice Habif, an owner of Fibah perfume manufacturers which spread out over 14 acres called by the former nightclub name, "Chateau Madrid," estimates that he sells 65,000 bottles of men's cologne a year. He also sells about 60,000 bottles of liquid brilliantine during a 12-month span. It's no sissy business here. The fresh and just-scrubbed aroma which Havana men's cologne gives, means another scent for its manufacturers - that of dirty, dog-eared, but so welcome cash."

The Great Entertainer:

Maurice was known as a great salesperson and for awhile acted as a sort of unofficial ambassador of Cuba, the reputed "host of Havana." When important personages visited the island, Maurice would meet them at the dock in his car, entertained the, at the best restaurants and night clubs, arranged for their stay at the Hotel Nacional, and even lent the visitor his car and chauffeur. He proudly bragged that he spent the average of $15,000 a year just on entertaining alone, more than anyone else in Cuba. "I foot all the bills," he explained in a newspaper article in 1941. "I get, of course, discounts from the local merchants."

At the time, Maurice claimed he had entertained 20,000 visitors to the island. His guestbook boasted signatures of 16,000 names including actors, actresses, sports figures, society mavens, dignitaries and other notables. Celebrities from all over the world had visited Maurice at the French Doll, and whether they were celebrities or not, if anyone showed up with a letter of recommendation, Maurice immediately placed his car and chauffeur at their disposal for their stay in Havana. Maurice, everyone on the island called him by his first name, revealed that each one of his guests is a friend he can call up at a moment's notice. Maurice himself traveled to America periodically to promote the store and the perfumes as well as make new friends. In 1941, he told a reporter that he figured he had 20,000 friends in the United States.

New York newspapers affectionately dubbed Maurice "Cuba's Grover Whalen." His response to the nickname was generally, "Who is this fellow Whalen? I never heard of him." When it was explained to him that Whalen was the official greeter for New York, who turned over the keys to the city to visitors, Maurice scoffed saying, "Humph. Mr. Whalen, you say, gives away the keys of the city. Why I turn over the city to my guests. Maybe this Grover Whalen is the Maurice of New York, eh?" 

Nevertheless, he admitted that his lavish hospitality was not purely philanthropic. He admitted he started playing host to visitors merely as a gesture of good business to meet them and coax them in his stores. The Batista government soon took him under its wing and made him the country's official host as head of the Cuban tourist commission. He grandly proclaimed that he owned "the biggest perfume and novelty store on the island," a store which took in $200,000 per year. According to an inflation calculator, the equivalent in 2023, is $3,958,012.90.

In 1946, Maurice, acting on behalf of the Cuban Tourist Commission and accompanied by Capt. Juan Camejo, aide to the chief of the national police, were guests at a luncheon given by the City of Miami. The Cubans presented cigars to the mayors in the Miami area. Also in attendance was the president of the Cuban-Miami-Mexico commission as well as numerous police chiefs, inspectors and commissioners. At the luncheon, Maurice was honored with a gold badge as an honorary citizen of Miami for recognition of his interest in Miami residents visiting Havana.

 

End of an Era:

When Castro came to power in Cuba a few years back, Maurice and Alberto had the largest perfume business on the island and employed close to 1100 people. All that changed, however, under the "liberator," and Habifs were forced to flee Cuba in 1961.They set up shop in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico, where he had built Perfumeria Fibah into the largest perfume house there.

Maurice Habif, "Mr. Havana," died suddenly in Puerto Rico in 1966.

Ruben-Mendoza-Caveda, commenting on a post on the Collector's Weekly site, said: "Ruben Caveda Eijo was the Chief Perfumist/Developer at FIBAH from 1950 until the company was taken by Fidel Castro's regime in 1961. While the company was founded in the 1920's by the elder Habif (FIBAH is his name backwards) it wasn't until 1950 that the son of the owner Mauricio Habif took over and hired my grandfather who was a young Cuban chemist specialized in perfumes development. He used to work at the famous Augustin Reyes factory but Mauricio Habif offered him the opportunity to be in charge of fragrance development. The factory was located at a beautiful estate just outside Havana named Chateau Madrid surrounded by beautiful gardens with peacocks running around. The younger Mr. Habif's idea was to transform the factory into a touristic destination with store, snacks bar and some other amenities so tourists could spend the day there and purchase the items as gifts to take with them. 

My grandfather created [the perfumes] Intermezzo and Chateau Madrid which were launched in the beginnings of the 1950's. He also created MH, a fragrance for women that was branded using Mauricio's initials. 

There are two other cheap brands developed by my grandfather during the latest years of the 1950's: Clavelito and Riviera... that was the result of essential oils damaged by a sabotage perpetrated by one of my grandfather's assistants. The guy injected acid to the oils and the damage was valued at $14,000 USD (a lot of money in 1957). My grandfather convinced Mauricio to drop the charges against his assistant because he didn't want him to go to prison, so he commit to salvage the oils and launch a cheap type of cologne, enlisting Clavelito, who was a Cuban radio personality who had a show about spiritual stuff and kind of a psych[ic]. Clavelito was the spokesperson for Riviera first, and then asked my grandfather to create a cologne using Basil, using his name, so he could benefit himself with the promotion. My father found out later that the sabotage was actually directed against him, because the perp was envious about his lifestyle, making a lot of money but spending it on books and collectible music albums rather than having a good life. 

In 1961, that guy led the company nationalizing with Che Guevara and made sure my grandfather was never employed by the new communist government. They forced my grandfather to retire being just 44 years old. The guy testified he had mental problems and wasn't trustworthy to work for the revolution. He died in 1978 at 61. The Habif family for Puerto Rico and had plans to continue their work there, but my grandfather was afraid of leaving his house and memories behind so he never left. He died in Cuba. In 1955 my grandfather started using the sticks of tobacco plant as a fixative for perfumes. He was very successful doing so and received a lot of coverage from the media. After Castro's government took over, the government patented it, with no credit whatsoever to my grandfather. If anyone knows anything about the Habif family please let me know. I know some of them went to Israel and some others to Puerto Rico."