Lorillard Tobacco Company
Encyclopedia
Lorillard Tobacco Company is an American
tobacco company marketing cigarette
s under the brand names Newport
, Maverick
, Old Gold, Kent
, True
, Satin, and Max
. Lorillard is a member of the National Black Chamber of Commerce
.
The company is named for Pierre Abraham Lorillard
, who founded the company in 1760. In 1899, the American Tobacco Company
organized a New Jersey
corporation, called the Continental Tobacco Company, that took a controlling interest in many small tobacco companies. By 1910, James Buchanan Duke
controlled Lorillard and the American Tobacco Company
even as it kept its original name. In 1911, the U.S. Court of Appeals found the American Tobacco Company "in restraint of trade," and issued a Dissolution Decree to the American Tobacco Company, which created the opportunity for Lorillard to become an independent company again. http://www.njcu.edu/Programs/jchistory/Pages/L_Pages/Lorillard_Tobacco.htm http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=221&invol=106
In 1925, Lorillard experienced great transition as Benjamin Lloyd Belt became president. Having been with the company since 1911, Belt made some decisions that made the company profitable. He began to promote the Old Gold brand instead of Beech-Nut. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,930070,00.html, using such tactics as Old Gold on Broadway
and sponsoring Artie Shaw
's program on CBS Radio
from November 20, 1938 until November 14, 1939. Belt was still president when he died in 1937.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,771980,00.html?promoid=googlep
Loews Corporation
purchased Lorillard in 1967.
Lorillard Tobacco Co. opened a new cigarette plant on East Market St. in Greensboro, NC in 1956, moving cigarette manufacturing from Jersey City, New Jersey
and Richmond, VA and in 1997, the firm's headquarters to Greensboro from New York, New York. http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:qVVgbVSxJm8J:blog.news-record.com/staff/architecture/archives/2005/11/+Lorillard+1930s&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=9&gl=us The firm also manufactured cigarettes in Louisville, Kentucky
.
In 1997, Lorillard was one of four entities to initiate negotiations leading to the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement
between "Big Tobacco
" and 46 U.S. state
s.
Loews created the Carolina Group as a holding company for its tobacco assets in 2002; it proceeded to sell a minority stake in Carolina on the New York Stock Exchange
. Carolina was controlled by Loews until May 10, 2006, when Loews Corporation sold 15 million shares of Carolina Group, lowering its holding from a controlling 53.7% to a plurality 46.3%. http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20060510006127&newsLang=en The sale is valued at approximately $740 million.
In 2008, Lorillard Tobacco was entered into a separation agreement with its parent company Loews, and became an independent publicly traded company.
In order to comply with FDA
regulations, Lorillard had until June 22, 2010, to rebrand tobacco products marketed as "Lights", "Ultra-Lights", "Medium", "Mild", "Full Flavor", or similar designations to belie the false impression that some tobacco products are comparatively safe.
In December 2010, a Boston jury returned a $151 million dollar verdict against Lorillard Tobacco Company for allegedly giving out free samples of cigarettes to children in urban housing projects. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/12/21/cigarette_verdict_may_be_felt_across_us/ The plaintiff, Marie Evans, was nine when she first received these samples, according to documents filed by her attorneys. She died of lung cancer before trial. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/12/18/son_views_tobacco_verdict_as_mothers_legacy/
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
tobacco company marketing cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
s under the brand names Newport
Newport (cigarette)
Newport, introduced in 1957, is a brand of menthol cigarettes produced by Lorillard Tobacco Company of Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Newports comprise about 35 percent of menthol cigarette sales in the US. Newports have gained a commanding share of the African-American market; a 2005...
, Maverick
Maverick (cigarette)
Maverick is a brand of cigarettes made by the Lorillard Tobacco Company of Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Maverick cigarettes are made in the United States and Austria. They are available in packs of 20...
, Old Gold, Kent
Kent (cigarette)
Kent is a brand of cigarettes. Kent's Micronite filter was introduced shortly after the publication of a series of articles in Reader's Digest in 1952 entitled "Cancer by the Carton", that scared American consumers into seeking out a filter brand at a time when most brands were filterless...
, True
True (cigarette)
True is a brand of cigarettes manufactured by Lorillard Tobacco Company of Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. It is a premium brand but does not receive marketing support from Lorillard, unlike Newport.-Varieties:*Filters Kings: Soft Pack, Box...
, Satin, and Max
Max (cigarette)
Max, introduced in 1975, was a brand of 120mm cigarettes produced by the Lorillard Tobacco Company of Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. The brand was discontinued in summer 2010....
. Lorillard is a member of the National Black Chamber of Commerce
National Black Chamber of Commerce
The National Black Chamber of Commerce was incorporated in 1993 by Harry Alford and Kay DeBow, who in 2011 continue as President/CEO and Executive Vice President, respectively. Harry Alford is also a Board member of the United States Chamber of Commerce. It is organized as a 5013 corporation and...
.
History
Pierre Abraham Lorillard
Pierre Abraham Lorillard was a tobacconist of New York City. He founded the business which developed into the Lorillard Tobacco Company, which claims to be the oldest tobacco firm in the United States and in the world...
, who founded the company in 1760. In 1899, the American Tobacco Company
American Tobacco Company
The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company...
organized a New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
corporation, called the Continental Tobacco Company, that took a controlling interest in many small tobacco companies. By 1910, James Buchanan Duke
James Buchanan Duke
James Buchanan Duke was a U.S. tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for his involvement with Duke University.-Personal life:...
controlled Lorillard and the American Tobacco Company
American Tobacco Company
The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company...
even as it kept its original name. In 1911, the U.S. Court of Appeals found the American Tobacco Company "in restraint of trade," and issued a Dissolution Decree to the American Tobacco Company, which created the opportunity for Lorillard to become an independent company again. http://www.njcu.edu/Programs/jchistory/Pages/L_Pages/Lorillard_Tobacco.htm http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=221&invol=106
In 1925, Lorillard experienced great transition as Benjamin Lloyd Belt became president. Having been with the company since 1911, Belt made some decisions that made the company profitable. He began to promote the Old Gold brand instead of Beech-Nut. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,930070,00.html, using such tactics as Old Gold on Broadway
Old Gold on Broadway
Old Gold on Broadway was a 1927-28 radio series which broadcast live from inside New York theaters, sponsored by Old Gold Cigarettes. It began in October 1927....
and sponsoring Artie Shaw
Artie Shaw
Arthur Jacob Arshawsky , better known as Artie Shaw, was an American jazz clarinetist, composer, and bandleader. He was also the author of both fiction and non-fiction writings....
's program on CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
from November 20, 1938 until November 14, 1939. Belt was still president when he died in 1937.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,771980,00.html?promoid=googlep
Loews Corporation
Loews Corporation
Loews Corporation is a holding company run by the Tisch Family whose subsidiaries are engaged in the following lines of business:*property and casualty insurance...
purchased Lorillard in 1967.
Lorillard Tobacco Co. opened a new cigarette plant on East Market St. in Greensboro, NC in 1956, moving cigarette manufacturing from Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
and Richmond, VA and in 1997, the firm's headquarters to Greensboro from New York, New York. http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:qVVgbVSxJm8J:blog.news-record.com/staff/architecture/archives/2005/11/+Lorillard+1930s&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=9&gl=us The firm also manufactured cigarettes in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
In 1997, Lorillard was one of four entities to initiate negotiations leading to the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement
Master Settlement Agreement
The Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement was entered in November 1998, originally between the four largest US tobacco companies and the attorneys general of 46 states...
between "Big Tobacco
Big Tobacco
Big Tobacco is a pejorative term often applied to the tobacco industry in general, or more particularly to the "big three" tobacco corporations in the United States: Philip Morris , Reynolds American and Lorillard...
" and 46 U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
s.
Loews created the Carolina Group as a holding company for its tobacco assets in 2002; it proceeded to sell a minority stake in Carolina on the New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
. Carolina was controlled by Loews until May 10, 2006, when Loews Corporation sold 15 million shares of Carolina Group, lowering its holding from a controlling 53.7% to a plurality 46.3%. http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20060510006127&newsLang=en The sale is valued at approximately $740 million.
In 2008, Lorillard Tobacco was entered into a separation agreement with its parent company Loews, and became an independent publicly traded company.
In order to comply with FDA
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
regulations, Lorillard had until June 22, 2010, to rebrand tobacco products marketed as "Lights", "Ultra-Lights", "Medium", "Mild", "Full Flavor", or similar designations to belie the false impression that some tobacco products are comparatively safe.
In December 2010, a Boston jury returned a $151 million dollar verdict against Lorillard Tobacco Company for allegedly giving out free samples of cigarettes to children in urban housing projects. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/12/21/cigarette_verdict_may_be_felt_across_us/ The plaintiff, Marie Evans, was nine when she first received these samples, according to documents filed by her attorneys. She died of lung cancer before trial. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/12/18/son_views_tobacco_verdict_as_mothers_legacy/