Tobacco was brought to Europe 500 years ago by Columbus. In other parts of the world it has been known much longer.Tobacco has been used as a medical plant, as well as for rituals and pleasure - and the tobacco plant has been viewed as both the work of the Devil and as God's gift to man.Over centuries tobacco has played a central part in European culture across class barriers, generation gaps and borders. Tobacco has also left its hallmarks on the development of trade, craft and industry.

Atlantic Dominion has built a business on providing convenience to the masses. As part of its distribution arm, the company supplies more than 15,000 products -- including beverages, groceries, snacks, tobacco, and general merchandise -- to retailers across the US. It also services vending machines, providing fixture installation, product ordering, CO� gas and dry ice services, and repair. Customers include convenience stores, supermarkets, drugstores, tobacco merchants, and US military bases. Originally a seller of handmade cigars, Atlantic Dominion was founded by Leroy Davis in 1875. The company remains family owned and is led by Robin Ray, the founder's great-granddaughter.

British American Tobacco South Africa (BATSA) wants to smoke the competition by having its customers light up and keep the flame burning. The company makes and markets more than 27 brands, including local industry leaders Peter Stuyvesant and Lucky Strike. BATSA also buys more than 60% of all locally grown tobacco. In South Africa, the company is a smoking superstar, accounting for some 65% of the country's market share (which consists of nearly a quarter of the nation's adult population). BATSA was established in 1904 as United Tobacco Company. The company's current incarnation is a result of a combination of parent BAT and Rothmans International.

Nervous newlyweds headed to Niagara Falls can take a pit stop down the road at Smokin Joes Cigars. The retail outlet on the Tuscarora Indian Nation in New York started off as a place to buy low-priced tobacco and tax-free gasoline but now offers a range of other products, from groceries and housewares to jewelry and apparel items, including casual clothing from major labels (such as Burton and Calvin Klein), Western wear, footwear, and accessories. In addition to selling name-brand tobacco products, Smokin Joes manufactures its own line of cigars, cigarettes, and pipe tobacco at a factory on the Tuscarora Indian Reservation. It also sells products online.

British American Tobacco Japan (BATJ) is busy catering to the will of the Japanese people while attempting to temper the regulatory decisions of the Japanese government. Having been tasked with providing smoking materials and accessories to the country's approximately 32 million smokers, BATJ also has its hand in helping to persuade or dissuade the government on taxation and regulations concerning the marketing and consumption of tobacco products. The more than 20-year-old subsidiary of British American Tobacco has 13 regional offices about Japan.

KT&G's business goes up in a puff of smoke every day. As South Korea's leading cigarette manufacturer, KT&G enjoys about a 70% market dominance and exports its smokes under more than 20 different brand names to the US, China, and Central and Southeast Asia. The firm escaped government control in 2002 and has since added bio and pharmaceutical production, and real estate alongside its core cigarette manufacturing business. KT&G's products are also distributed in Russia, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates. The firm got its start in 1899 as the Korean imperial household's exclusive supplier of tobacco and ginseng.

British American Tobacco Malaysia, or BAT Malaysia, likes to see things go up in smoke. The company, a subsidiary of global giant British American Tobacco, is the #1 Malaysian cigarette company. It makes, imports, and sells cigarettes, cigars, and pipe tobacco under the names Benson & Hedges, Dunhill, Kent, and Pall Mall, among others. BAT Malaysia has a leaf-processing plant, a factory, and about 10 sales offices. The company also houses the quality lab for all of British American Tobacco's Asian operations (Hong Kong, Japan, China, and Vietnam). It was formed in 1999 by the merger of Rothmans of Pall Mall (Malaysia) and Malaysian Tobacco Company.

Altria Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in the United States and internationally. The company also manufactures machine-made large cigars and pipe tobacco; and maintains a portfolio of leveraged and direct finance leases principally in transportation, including aircraft, as well as power generation and manufacturing equipment and facilities. It serves wholesalers and distributors, large retail organizations and chain stores, and the armed services. The company was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.

Vector Group’s tobacco subsidiaries have a proud history of charting an independent course in the tobacco industry, dating from Liggett’s founding in 1873. In 1996, Liggett became the first tobacco company to settle certain smoking-related litigation. A year later, we led Liggett into its landmark announcement that smoking is addictive and causes cancer and other health ailments. To this day, Liggett – the fifth largest cigarette manufacturer in the U.S. – remains the only major tobacco company to carry “Smoking Is Addictive” warning labels on its cigarette packs and to list ingredients on its cartons. Liggett has a strong collection of discount cigarette brands, which includes Eve, Grand Prix, Pyramid and Liggett Select.Our Vector Tobacco subsidiary is focused on developing reduced risk cigarette products.Vector Group is also involved in the real estate business through its New Valley subsidiary. New Valley owns a 50% ownership interest in Douglas Elliman Realty LLC, which operates the largest residential real estate brokerage company in the New York metropolitan area. New Valley also holds investments in several significant real estate projects in California and New York.

British American Tobacco Australasia (BATA) wants its customers in Australia and surrounding regions to smoke 'em if they've got 'em -- and buy some more if they've run out. In Australia, BAT is the market leader with nearly 45% of market share. The company has made the eradication of illegal tobacco as one of its highest priorities. In 2005 BATA ceased production of cigarettes with brand descriptions such as "light" and "mild" in relation to the safety level of the emitted smoke. At around the same time, the company also came out against so-called fire-safe cigarettes that theoretically extinguish themselves if left unattended or are discarded improperly. BATA is a subsidiary of British American Tobacco.

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