Villiger Original Krumme Junior

In 1888, Jean Villiger founded a cigar factory in Pfeffikon. After his death (1902), his wife Louise continued the company and caused a sensation in 1907 with the innovative Villiger Kiel, a cigar with a goose quill mouthpiece.  Three years later, she founded Villiger Söhne GmbH in Waldshut-Tiengen, which was taken over by her sons Hans and Max in 1918. Under their leadership, the company expanded with branches in Munich and Schönaich, as well as subsidiaries in rural areas.

During World War II, the factories in Munich were destroyed by a bombing raid in 1943, and production in Waldshut-Tiengen ceased in 1945 during the French occupation. After the reconstruction of Munich (from 1950), Heinrich Villiger joined the company. He initially took over raw tobacco purchasing and succeeded his brother Hans in 1954. In 1958, he became Managing Director of Villiger Söhne GmbH.

In 1976, Villiger became the first cigar factory to sponsor a Formula 1 team. This decision paid off shortly thereafter. The Shadow Racing Team, with Alan Jones, won the Grand Prix in Zeltweg, Austria. The race car, branded with Tabatip and Villiger Kiel, received significant media attention.

In 1983, a new factory was opened in the tobacco town of Bünde, becoming the company's central production facility. The previous locations in Berlin, Munich, and Heidenheim were subsequently closed.

5th Avenue Products Trading GmbH, founded in 1989, is a German-Cuban joint venture for the exclusive distribution of Cuban cigars in Germany, and later also in Austria and Poland.

In 1995, Intertabak AG was founded as a direct importer of Habanos cigars and Mini Cubanos (cigarillos) for Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

El Mundo Del Tabaco, founded in 1997, imported premium non-Cuban cigars and was integrated into Villiger Söhne GmbH ten years later.

The subsidiary PT Villiger Tobacco Indonesia was established in 1999 and is dedicated to the pre-processing of tobacco leaves.

To further expand and establish itself on the global market, a sales company was founded in the USA in 2002 and in France in 2006.

In 2013, to mark the company's 125th anniversary, construction began on a production facility for handmade cigars in Brazil.

In 2021, a cigar factory, Villiger de Nicaragua, will open near the Pan-American Highway, covering approximately 3,000 square meters.

Today, the production facilities are located at the German sites in Waldshut-Tiengen and Bünde, as well as a plant in Indonesia. In addition, there is our own manufacturing facility in Brazil, a subsidiary in Nicaragua and a sub-company in the Dominican Republic.