A CENTURY OF EXPERIENCE
The activities of Leaf Tobacco A. Michailides Group (LTAM) date back to 1886, when a leaf tobacco company was founded in Drama, Greece. Alexander Michailides (grandfather of the present main shareholder)
continued the family tobacco business. When the third generation of the Michailides family took over the administration, Ioannis Michailides, solidified, modernized and expanded the company's scope to the field of frozen food, which developed into a significant activity, although tobacco continued to be the company's main focus.
Alexander Michailides, the current President and Managing Director of the Group, after concluding his studies in 1973, joined the family business as a tobacco trainee, switching over to the frozen food industry in 1976. In 1980 the company's activities were separated and Alexander Michailides took complete control of the tobacco processing businesses.
The following years witnessed the gradual expansion of the company's facilities with the acquisition of the oriental processing factory in Xanthi, Greece. In addition, in this period, LTAM introduced, for the first time in Greece, the cultivation of American type tobacco. This was implemented with the constant provision of the necessary agronomical support by LTAM Group scientists, and the construction of the F.C.V and Burley factory and storage facilities in Sindos, Thessaloniki. These established the company as the biggest tobacco processor in Greece.
After establishing the company's dominance in the Greek market and in accordance with industry Necessities, LTAM started progressively increasing
It’s international presence. The start was made in Albania with the acquisition of production facilities in 1992. In the following years, new investments and acquisition of existing facilities were realized in Turkey, F.Y.R.o. Macedonia, Italy, Moldova, Slovakia, Algeria, Romania and Bulgaria in order to solidify the company's international presence. At the same time, LTAM constructed the largest Oriental tobacco-processing factory in Polykastro, Greece. The above rapid growth coincided with the necessary investments in technology and personnel training.
