Mohamed Zeidan
Chairman, Phoenicia Aer Rianta Co. S.A.L.
Mohamed Zeidan is Chairman and main shareholder of Phoenicia Aer Rianta Co. S.A.L. (PAC), the operator of the duty free shops at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport (RHIA). Since first winning the duty free contract in 1979, his company has been consecutively awarded the Duty Free concession at RHIA, in partnership with Aer Rianta International, since 1996.
Mohamed Zeidan is also involved in a number of businesses, from industrial production to services and trade. At the end of the 1970s he began importing Cuban cigars into the country and soon became the distribution agent in Lebanon and several other countries within the region. In 2005 he signed a partnership agreement with Habanos S.A. under the company name Phoenicia T.A.A (Cyprus) Ltd to be the sole distributor of Cuban cigars in the Middle East, Africa and parts of Europe. For his achievement in making Phoenicia the largest distributor of Cuban cigars in the world, he was named Habanos Man of the Year in 1997 for the cigar retail business and in 2004 for cigar distribution.
Under his leadership, the Phoenicia Group has grown to establish offices beyond Lebanon, in the Czech Republic, Belgium, Armenia, Cuba, Egypt, Ukraine and Cyprus.
Mohamed Zeidan founded Liban Lait SAL in 1993, the largest dairy producer in Lebanon, which distributes and manufactures products under the license of the French brand Candia.
His other lines of business include La Guava Beach Resort in Rmaileh and several residential compounds such as Duniyana.