Loeser & Wolff
Loeser & Wolff was a major German tobacco manufacturer and trading company, particularly known for cigars, whose Jewish ownership was dispossessed under Nazi Aryanization in 1937.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Loeser & Wolff was a German tobacco company founded in Berlin on July 1, 1865, by Bernhard Loeser and Carl Wolff. It began as a tobacconist's shop, with Wolff overseeing the Berlin retail business and Loeser developing wholesale trade beyond the city. The company expanded rapidly during the nineteenth century as demand for cigars grew, moving from retailing into manufacturing, importing, exporting, and distribution. A major step came in 1874, when Loeser acquired an interest in the Jean Kohlweck & Co. cigar factory in Elbing, then in West Prussia and now Elbląg, Poland. The operation became Kohlweck & Loeser and was fully taken over in 1878, when it was renamed Zigarrenfabrik Loeser & Wolff. The Elbing factory became the company's principal production center. In its early years, production relied on imported raw tobacco and predominantly female manual labor. The business expanded its facilities repeatedly and developed a network of factories and sales outlets across the German Empire and neighboring territories. By the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Loeser & Wolff had become one of Europe's largest cigar manufacturers. Its products were sold through wholesale channels and exported to markets in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Japan. The company also maintained a substantial retail presence, including dozens of Berlin shops and, according to contemporary advertising, as many as 120 outlets by 1914. It presented its products at major exhibitions, received awards for cigar quality, and operated a tobacco museum and demonstration pavilion at the 1896 Berlin Trade Exhibition. In addition to cigars, it later manufactured smoking tobacco and distributed other tobacco products. The company reached its greatest scale before and during the First World War. In 1907 it employed nearly 3,900 people, most of them at Elbing. During the 1915–1916 fiscal year it produced approximately 194.5 million cigars, and in 1916 employment approached 5,000. The postwar settlement changed the geography of the business: the Prussian Stargard branch became Polish, while the company's East Prussian production centers were increasingly separated from its Berlin distribution network. A new smoking-tobacco plant was established in 1921, although production was interrupted for several months during the economic crisis of 1922–1923. In the late 1920s, Loeser & Wolff built a striking administrative headquarters at Schöneberger Ufer and Potsdamer Strasse in Berlin. Designed by Albert Biebendt in an early New Objectivity style, the building became known colloquially as “Loeser Castle” because of its projecting form over the Landwehr Canal. The company was reorganized as a limited liability company in 1920, and management later passed to Lucia Sommerguth-Loeser, a member of the founding family. The Nazi seizure of power had devastating consequences. Because the owners and controlling family were Jewish, Loeser & Wolff was subjected to persecution and Aryanization. After Lucia Sommerguth-Loeser's death in 1937, Berlin director Walter E. Beyer took over the company on April 1, 1937, as part of the transfer to non-Jewish control. A 1942 advertising film promoted the business under the name Walter E. Beyer Cigar Factories. After the Second World War, the company continued under Beyer's name. In 1952, 80 percent of the ownership passed to the Lucia Loeser Foundation, although Beyer remained managing director until the end of 1963. The loss of the Elbing facilities and the division of Germany weakened the historic operating structure. Loeser & Wolff was formally dissolved on June 30, 1983. Its former Berlin headquarters survived as a protected historic building and was later renovated for modern commercial, cultural, hospitality, and office uses. The company is also remembered through references in Berlin literature, including Alfred Döblin's Berlin Alexanderplatz and Walter Kempowski's novel Tadellöser & Wolff.
History
Loeser & Wolff originated as a Berlin tobacconist's shop founded by Bernhard Loeser and Carl Wolff on July 1, 1865. The partnership divided responsibilities between Berlin retail and wider wholesale trade. Its headquarters moved to Alexanderstraße 1 in 1867, reflecting the early consolidation of the business. The company's transformation into a manufacturer began with Loeser's investment in Jean Kohlweck & Co. in Elbing in 1874. The factory was renamed Kohlweck & Loeser and was fully acquired four years later. Production grew from 26,700 hand-made cigars in 1874, made largely by female workers, into a large industrial operation. Facilities were expanded repeatedly in the 1870s and early 1880s. Loeser & Wolff used Elbing as its main manufacturing and management center while building commercial reach through wholesale, export, and retail channels. The business developed a reputation as a model employer in Elbing, where tobacco work supplied important supplementary household income and was associated with comparatively generous social benefits. Its cigars received recognition at exhibitions in Melbourne, Königsberg, Bromberg, and Berlin. At the 1896 Berlin Trade Exhibition, the company presented tobacco-making demonstrations, cigar-box production, a tobacco museum, and an exhibition pavilion. The company also used commissioned cigarette production to broaden its presence beyond cigars. Further factories opened in Braunsberg in 1885, Marienburg in 1911, and Prussian Stargard in 1911; a smaller Bremen facility was added in 1896. The retail organization grew alongside manufacturing. There were 66 Berlin stores in 1901 and 120 sales outlets were cited in company advertising in 1914. Production and employment reached exceptional levels: almost 3,900 workers in 1907, nearly 5,000 in 1916, and about 194.5 million cigars in the 1915–1916 fiscal year. The deaths of Bernhard Loeser in 1901 and Carl Wolff in 1902 shifted control to their families and associates, including Cäcilie Wolff and Alfred Sommerguth. Following the First World War, the Prussian Stargard branch became part of Poland. In 1920, the remaining legally separate operations were consolidated into a limited liability company. A smoking-tobacco factory was installed in 1921. The company suffered a production stoppage during the inflationary crisis of 1922–1923 but subsequently recovered. Lucia Sommerguth-Loeser later assumed management. Between 1928 and 1930, Loeser & Wolff commissioned a new Berlin administrative building at Schöneberger Ufer 47 and Potsdamer Strasse 58. Designed by Albert Biebendt in an early New Objectivity idiom, its projecting form over the Landwehr Canal led Berliners to call it “Loeser Castle.” The building was listed as a historic monument in 1955. After the Nazi takeover in 1933, the company was persecuted because of its Jewish ownership. The Aryanization process culminated on April 1, 1937, when Walter E. Beyer took over after Lucia Sommerguth-Loeser's death. The company was subsequently promoted as Walter E. Beyer Cigar Factories, including in a surviving 1942 advertising film. This transfer forms the central historical significance of Loeser & Wolff: it illustrates how Nazi racial persecution dispossessed Jewish industrial and commercial enterprises. Postwar division further damaged the business. The Elbing factory had disappeared from the company's control by 1952, and the Iron Curtain separated the remaining eastern plants from the Berlin distribution center. Ownership arrangements changed in 1952 when 80 percent passed to the Lucia Loeser Foundation, while Beyer continued as managing director until December 31, 1963. The company was dissolved on June 30, 1983. The Berlin headquarters survived as a landmark. It was renovated and converted between 2002 and 2004 after acquisition by a real-estate holding associated with Bank Delbrück and development cooperation with Beos. The building has since accommodated offices, hospitality, cultural, and commercial tenants. Loeser & Wolff also remains part of Berlin's cultural memory through literary references, including Alfred Döblin's Berlin Alexanderplatz and Walter Kempowski's Tadellöser & Wolff.
- 2004
Former headquarters renovated
[1]The historic Berlin building underwent a major renovation and conversion completed during 2002–2004.
- 1983
Corporate dissolution
[1]Loeser & Wolff was dissolved on June 30.
- 1937
Aryanization
[1]Walter E. Beyer took over the Jewish-owned company under Nazi persecution and forced transfer.
- 1928
New Berlin headquarters commissioned
[1]Construction began on the company's landmark administrative building at Schöneberger Ufer and Potsdamer Strasse.
- 1920
Operations consolidated as a limited liability company
[1]The remaining legally separate parts of the business were combined into a limited liability company.
- 1916
Peak wartime scale
[1]Employment approached 5,000 and annual cigar production had reached historically high levels.
- 1896
Berlin Trade Exhibition presentation
[1]The company presented tobacco production, cigar making, and a tobacco museum at the Berlin Trade Exhibition.
- 1878
Elbing factory renamed Loeser & Wolff
[1]The Elbing operation was fully taken over and renamed Zigarrenfabrik Loeser & Wolff.
- 1874
Entry into cigar manufacturing
[1]Loeser acquired shares in the Jean Kohlweck & Co. factory in Elbing, beginning the company's manufacturing expansion.
- 1865
Berlin tobacconist's shop founded
[1]Bernhard Loeser and Carl Wolff founded the business in Berlin on July 1.
Products and positioning
A large-scale German cigar manufacturer, tobacco wholesaler, importer, exporter, and retailer. Historically positioned around broad distribution, high-volume cigar production, exhibition-recognized quality, and an extensive Berlin and international sales network.
Cigars · 1878
Loeser & Wolff cigars
Cigars were the company's principal product and the foundation of its manufacturing identity. They were made from imported raw tobacco at factories centered on Elbing and later produced across a network that included Braunsberg, Marienburg, Prussian Stargard, and Bremen. The company sold through its own retail outlets, wholesale channels, and export markets.
Smoking tobacco · 1921
Smoking tobacco
Loeser & Wolff broadened its tobacco portfolio with a dedicated smoking-tobacco factory installed in 1921. This extended the business beyond its historic concentration on cigars and supported its role as a general tobacco manufacturer and distributor.
Tobacco distribution
Imported and distributed tobacco goods
Alongside its own production, the company imported and distributed tobacco products. Its commercial network connected Berlin retail stores and wholesale operations with markets across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Japan.
Controversies
Marketing campaigns
- 1942Walter E. Beyer Cigar Factories advertising film
Germany
After Aryanization, the business was promoted under Walter E. Beyer's name in a short advertising film featuring Rudolf Platte and Eduard Wenck.
Outcome. The surviving film documents the company's rebranding and Nazi-era ownership transition.
- 1896Berlin Trade Exhibition tobacco pavilion
Germany
Loeser & Wolff used a dedicated pavilion at the Berlin Trade Exhibition to display tobacco products and demonstrate cigar making and cigar-box production. A tobacco museum made the presentation both commercial and educational.
Outcome. The exhibition strengthened the company's public profile as a large, technically capable tobacco enterprise.
Brand decisions
1937
Forced transfer under AryanizationOtherBackground
Nazi racial persecution targeted the company's Jewish owners and family management.
Action taken
Control was transferred to Walter E. Beyer on April 1.
Aftermath
The company ceased to be a Jewish-owned enterprise and continued under Beyer's name during the Nazi period.
1921
Add smoking tobacco productionProduct launchBackground
The company sought to broaden its product base beyond cigars during the postwar period.
Action taken
A smoking-tobacco factory was installed.
Aftermath
Loeser & Wolff operated as a more diversified tobacco manufacturer, although its historic identity remained centered on cigars.
1874
Acquire a manufacturing base in ElbingStrategyBackground
Growing cigar demand made direct production and proximity to eastern sales regions strategically important.
Action taken
Bernhard Loeser acquired shares in Jean Kohlweck & Co. and expanded the factory.
Aftermath
The Elbing operation became the company's principal factory and administrative center.
Sources1 sources
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