Republic Tobacco LP is a multinational wholesaler, distributor, and retailer of

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

, based in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

suburb of Glenview,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Republic Tobacco is wholly owned by Republic Group (Republic Technologies LLC is the parent company), which includes the manufacturer affiliates of Top Tobacco, Republic Technologies:

JOB Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...

and Odet-Cascadec-Bolloré (OCB)

cigarette paper Rolling paper is a specialty paper used for making cigarettes (commercially manufactured filter cigarettes and individually made roll-your-own cigarettes). Rolling papers are packs of several cigarette-size sheets, often folded inside a cardboard ...

s, Altesse GmbH (filter tubes), H.T.H. Tabak (

cigarettes A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the oppo ...

snuff Snuff may refer to: Tobacco * Snuff (tobacco), fine-ground tobacco, sniffed into the nose ** Moist snuff or dipping tobacco ** Creamy snuff, an Indian tobacco paste Media and entertainment * Snuff film, a type of film that shows a murder Literat ...

, and tobacco), and Productos Technologicos Catalanes (smoking accessories), as well as Republic Tobacco, representing a combined sales and distribution presence in more than 90 countrie

The company was founded by Donald Levin. Levin began with a small smoke shop called Adams Apple (which no longer exists). He then went into wholesale distribution and grew his company into the largest

roll-your-own A roll-your-own (RYO) cigarette, also called a handrolled cigarette, is a cigarette made from loose tobacco (usually a ''shag'' cut) and rolling paper. Factory-made cigarettes are called industrial cigarettes. Rolling tobacco Rolling tobacc ...

tobacco company in the world. In 1969, Levin became the U.S. distributor for JOB rolling papers. He built the brand and used the profits to purchase the TOP Tobacco Factory & Brands from

R. J. Reynolds Richard Joshua Reynolds (July 20, 1850 – July 29, 1918) was an American businessman and founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. The son of a tobacco farmer, he worked for his father and attended Emory & Henry College from 1868 to 1870 ...

in the early 1980s. He is rumored to have a copy of the check he wrote to RJR on his wall to this day. Cartine ocb

Over the years, Levin oversaw his company's expansion, which eventually culminated in 2000 his purchase of some of the

Bolloré Bolloré SE () is a French conglomerate headquartered in Puteaux, on the western outskirts of Paris, France. Founded in 1822, the company has interests in Vivendi, international freight forwarding, oil storage and pipelines in France, solid state ...

brands like

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

brands OCB and

. In July 2009, he also bought from Bolloré Papeteries du Léman and Papeteries des Vosges, two French paper mills specialized in thin paper

He also purchased the

Chicago Wolves The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League and are the top minor-league affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League. The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena in the C ...

sports team; produced many movies, including ''

Maximum Overdrive ''Maximum Overdrive'' is a 1986 American comedy horror film written and directed by Stephen King. The film stars Emilio Estevez, Pat Hingle, Laura Harrington, and Yeardley Smith. The screenplay was inspired by and loosely based on King's short ...

''.

External links

{{Commons category
Company profile
Tobacco companies of the United States Cigarette rolling papers Companies based in Glenview, Illinois

See also

External links