There’s big news at the largest cigar company in the world. Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), who claims to be the largest manufacturer of cigars in the world and is the parent of General Cigar Co., Cigars International and others, is going public while its minority partner, the tobacco giant Swedish Match, is expected to begin the process of selling at least part of its stake in the business. It will mark a second chapter for Scandinavian Tobacco Group, which was formed in 2010 by Swedish Match and Skandinavisk Holding A/S, a company owned by two foundations: Augustinus Fonden and Det Obelske Familiefond. Swedish Match merged its cigar and pipe business, including General Cigar Co. and Cigars International, with Skandinavisk Holding, a company that sold mass market cigars, roll-your-own tobacco, pipe tobacco and CAO. Skandinavisk Holding A/S assumed 51 percent ownership in the new Scandinavian Tobacco Group, while Swedish Match acquired 49 percent and around $30 million in cash to account for the difference in assets contributed. The deal was finalized in October 2010, creating a company with over 9,000 employees and an estimated annual revenue around $1 billion, making it the world’s largest cigar company—including an estimated 30 percent of the U.S. market ...
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