Cigar factory Verellen
Family business Verellen has been making traditional cigars for bon vivants for over 140 years.
Below you can read how the company, originally called “Oud Antwerpen”, grew from a small factory with one machine to become the market leader in Belgium.
In 1868, Theophiel Verellen opened a tobacco cutting factory with one hand-notching machine in Antwerp. In 1905, it was decided to build a new factory in Gooreind near Wuustwezel. In the meantime, the company had grown considerably: just before the First World War, 438 employees worked for the Verellen brothers. During the war, work in the factory was completely halted and resumed in 1919.
The Second World War was also, as expected, not a glorious period for Verellen: in 1945, a V-1 bomb destroyed the entire factory with the exception of one wall around which the entire company was rebuilt. After peace returned to Belgium, the company began a period of prosperity in 1955. Due to economic growth, the smoking of cigars and cigarillos increased. In order to meet the increasing demand and speed up the production process, new, modern machines were introduced.
Erik and Frank Verellen, the fifth generation, have been at the helm of Verellen since 1993. They started at the bottom of the ladder and gradually got to know the company and the production process. The brothers travel all over the world to gain inspiration and search for the best tobacco.