Oscar Mercado Luna · First generation
A story that began in Peru, took shape in New York and continued in the Dominican Republic through several industries.
According to family history, Oscar Mercado Luna arrived in New York at 18 with little English. He had attended Peru's Colegio Militar Leoncio Prado; its discipline and work ethic became the foundation for everything he built next.
Family history · documentation in progressHe entered the fur trade, learning production, quality and sales until he became a business owner's right hand.
Family historyOscar went from employee to entrepreneur and built a premium mink-coat operation involving workshops, showrooms, production and international sales. Family history places part of that chapter around Fifth Avenue and Casa de Campo. An official Dominican report confirms that MINK AMERICA CORP. operated in the Puerto Plata free zone in 1992.
Family archive + official 1992 CNZFE reportChanging consumer values and market conditions reduced the fur industry. Oscar did not try to live in the past: he transferred what he knew about premium products, relationships and manufacturing into a new Dominican industry.
Historical context + family historyThe next chapter was Dominican cigars. Family history connects Oscar with Tabantillas, a commercial proposal involving the Santa Clara ecosystem and, later, Blue Chips Corporation. The corporate and commercial details of this period remain under documentary research.
Family history · partial corroborationSardell Trading turned industry knowledge into an international platform for design, packaging, sourcing, OEM production and distribution. Its historical catalog shows a network associated with Madrid, Florida and Hong Kong, alongside humidors, tubes, tins, displays, accessories and premium gifts.
Original catalog + Florida corporate recordOscar created a real-camouflage cigar using different natural tobacco leaves. A U.S. design filed in 2009 and granted in 2010 names him as inventor. The historical American Eagles brochure describes Dominican production and a patriotic edition that advertised support for the then Semper Fi Fund.
Patent USD624693S1 + original brochureAfter Oscar's unexpected passing in 2013, the original companies became inactive. The current chapter is not presented as uninterrupted corporate continuity, but as a new construction inspired by the first generation's standard.
Family history + corporate recordsBefore today's Sardell Group, Carlos Mercado Morales operated Sardell Souvenirs EIRL in the Dominican Republic, a registered wedding-favors business that created custom cigar-related pieces. Today he runs Sardell Realty from Casa de Campo and is structuring new initiatives in e-commerce—including wholesale and marketplace operations—capital and professional services.
Current chapterHow we tell this story
The archive combines original company materials, public records and family memory. Sardell distinguishes what is independently verified, what is supported by company documents and what still requires research. Precision strengthens the story; it does not make it less human.
The history and the present