Imperial Industries history

The future began to look more promising in 1982, however, when Sir John Harvey-Jones took over the reins of ICI.

In November 1983 Imperial also acquired Miami's C&R Building Materials, Inc.

In late 1985, Hanson Trust (later PLC) made a successful bid to buy Imperial and the takeover was completed the following April.

Then, in July 1986, Allied, also hamstrung by a loss of working capital, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Imperial emerged from bankruptcy in July 1988 and Ponce was installed as the chairman.

In October 1989 a new trading division was set up in Liverpool, taking over the sales and distribution of all J&H Wilson snuffs, specialist pipe tobaccos and a selection of non-proprietary tobaccos.

In May 1990 a major strategy was announced with the objective of making the company Europe's most efficient tobacco manufacturer.

A new cigar factory was opened in Bristol in 1991 and equipped with machines producing 200 cigars a minute compared with a mere 20 previously.

Revenues totaled just $7.1 million by 1992, but the company was profitable, earning $136,000.

Kennedy called the company's decision in 1993 to rebirth itself as two new industrial giants pioneering--similar to that of the work of the company's founding fathers, Alfred Nobel and Ludwig Mond, in bringing the company together years ago.

An important development for Premix came in 1994 when it secured an exclusive five-year licensing agreement to manufacture and sell a new roof tile mortar product in Florida and foreign countries.

In October 1996, after ten years with Hanson PLC, Imperial regained its corporate independence and the Imperial Tobacco Group PLC was listed on the London Stock Exchange as a FTSE 100 company.

In 1997 Imperial acquired Rizla, the world's number one manufacturer of rolling papers.

Net income during this period peaked in 1998 at $2 million.

In September 1999 a portfolio of quality cigarettes, fine cut tobacco and rolling paper brands was acquired in Australia and New Zealand.

Then, in March 2000, Imperial acquired Panhandle Drywall Supply Inc., which expanded Just-Rite's operations to Panama City Beach and Tallahassee, Florida.

Early in 2001 Imperial announced the purchase of Tobaccor, the second largest cigarette manufacturer/distributor in sub-Saharan Africa, with expanding interests in Vietnam.

In 2002 Imperial acquired Reemtsma Cigarettenfabriken GmbH, the German-based international tobacco company.

In 2004 revenues jumped to $55.3 million and net income grew fourfold to nearly $2.5 million.

In May 2005 Imperial graduated from over-the-counter status when it gained a listing on the NASDAQ, in that same month reporting its eighth consecutive profitable quarter.

Ponce described Imperial's achievement to Investor's Business Daily, as a "17-year overnight success story." It was very likely that even greater success was to follow as record results continued in 2006.

In April 2007 Imperial entered the profitable USA tobacco market through the acquisition of Commonwealth Brands, the fourth largest cigarette manufacturer in the country.

By 2009 Imperial had become an established international tobacco company with a strong track record of creating value for its shareholders.

Now under the leadership of Chief Executive Alison Cooper, following the retirement of Gareth Davis in 2010, Imperial also began pursuing opportunities for growth in other areas through a new standalone subsidiary, Fontem Ventures.

In June 2015 Imperial completed the acquisition of four US cigarette brands and the international rights to blu, a leading vapour brand.

Imperial Tobacco Group PLC was renamed Imperial Brands PLC in February 2016 and in the same year, Imperial’s last remaining tobacco factory in the UK – the Horizon factory in Nottingham – was closed, with production transferring to facilities in mainland Europe.