British Cigarette Brands
The second largest tobacco company in the world makes it’s headquarters in London in the United Kingdom. The British American Tobacco company is second only to Philip Morris International when it comes to making and selling cigarettes. The four major British brands, that are also widely exported, include Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall.
The Dunhill cigarettes are the most expensive and if you buy them in come in a shiny gold foil pack with a red heraldic brand with lions. If you buy them in North America they come in a bright red pack. They are exported and sold just about everywhere in the world. Famous smokers of Dunhills were John Lennon and Hunter S. Thomspon.
Kent cigarettes have a famous micronite filter that is supposed to filter out the toxins that cause cancer. These were introduced in 1952 after Reader’s Digest published an article about how cigarettes cause cancer. It is named after Tobacco executive Herbert Kent.
Lucky Strike cigarettes are associated with big American cities like New York, Chicago and Detroit but they are in reality a British cigarette. Lucky Strike, known as luckies, was the top selling cigarette in the United States in the 1930s. It was originally manufactured as chewing tobacco in 1917. It was known for its toasted flavor and bulls-eye branded pack.
Pall Mall cigarettes are named after Pall Mall Street in London and were one of the first King Size cigarettes to ever be manufactured. In 1960, these extra long cigarettes in their bright shiny foil red package were the number one cigarette in America. Their slogan was “the cigarette that travels the smoke further!” Another famous slogan was “Wherever Particular People Congregate.”
Other examples of British cigarette brands are Jockey Club (sold in Argentina), Hollywood (sold in Brazil), du Maurer (sold in Canada), HB (sold in Germany, Gold Leaf (sold in Pakistan), Park Drive (New Zealand) and Delta (in El Salvador.) So it seems that you do not have to go to the United Kingdom to enjoy a good British smoke; the cigarettes are distributed all over the world.
The British American Tobacco Company is also known for its sponsorship of events. It is well known for sponsoring Formula One motor racing events with brands such as Lucky Strike and State Express 555.
It is also interesting to know that this very British tobacco company also owned many American department stores including Gimbel’s, Kohl’s, Sak’s Fifth Avenue and Marshal Fields. It also owns the Zurich Financial Services Group in Switzerland.