DANNEMANN Brand - Tobacco • Excellence • Craft
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OUR COMPANYpassionate about tobacco for more than 140 years

Welcome to our world. We invite you to come and explore our passion for tobaccos; a passion which burns as brightly today as it did when Jochem and Marinus van Schuppen first began RITMEESTER more than 130 years ago in the dutch town of Veenendaal.

For the past 19 years, RITMEESTER has been part of the DANNEMANN Group, a ‘seed to smoke’ company who share the same commitment and approach to the creation of fine tobacco products. The combined company’s expertise has allowed both brands to grow and flourish, with synergies in a range of functions.

Both RITMEESTER and DANNEMANN use exclusive tobaccos grown on TERRA DANNEMANN. You will find out more about this unique world as you explore our site. Explore with us and discover some of the stories behind the tobacco and the craft which we are all rightly proud of. We hope you enjoy your journey through our fascinating world.

Our Beginnings

a proud heritage of excellence

RITMEESTER has a long tradition as an international manufacturer of cigars and cigarillos. In 1887 Jochem van Schuppen and Marinus van Schuppen founded their own cigar factory in Veenendaal, which in 1915 was renamed into RITMEESTER.

Jochem & Marinus were astute businessmen with an eye for quality and they soon discovered that tobacco was best cultivated in areas below the equator, with very high temperatures, high humidity and preferably on lava soil or fat clay soil. Lava soil is predominantly found in Indonesia, with clay soil common in Brazil, Cuba and the Caribbean.

In 1989 RITMEESTER Cigars became part of the DANNEMANN family and in 2007, after more than a century in Veenendaal, the division headquarters moved to its current location in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Today the offices house the leadership team, Sales & Marketing functions along with a range of other business support groups. To give you a sense of the company’s wider history please read below the original DANNEMANN story.

In 1872 Geraldo Dannemann settled in the small riverside town of São Félix, Bahia, surrounded by the Mata Fina region, even then famed for its exceptional dark fragrant tobaccos. Upon arrival in the town he built his first cigar factory (still in operation today) and began working with the local craftspeople rolling fine cigars.

Geraldo Dannemann understood that to create the finest cigars in the world he required the best tobacco and immediately began collaborating with the local farmers. This partnership continues to this day with over 200 family farms dating back generations supplementing our own 1,000-hectare Santo Antônio farm. A tradition of “seed to smoke“ creation that continues to this day.

In 1890 Geraldo Dannemann was elected Mayor of São Félix and became one of the most important industrialists in the region. A champion for the local community, he created the first town charter and oversaw the social and economic development of the Recôncavo area. His influence is still clearly visible today thanks to the municipal buildings he created and the bridge which spans the Rio Paraguaçu river connecting São Félix to its sister town of Cachoeira.

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VISIT OUR HOME IN BAHIA

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From these modest beginnings RITMEESTER has grown into an internationally renowned tobacco group, with unique tobacco plantations in the Americas, Asia and with traditional manufacturing plants worldwide. Our cigars and cigarillos are now available in over 60 countries.

Our Mission

smiling consumers, loyal to our brands

We place our consumers at the centre of our business, because smiling smokers who enjoy our tobaccos responsibly allow us to invest in the future - in products, in innovation and especially in our most important asset; our people.





OUR CORE VALUES

Innovation and steady improvement of quality

Enjoyment for our consumers is our overriding aim. Thus, all our work and action must be directed towards offering top-quality cigars, cigarillos and services. In doing so, innovation and continuous development are as important to us as respecting and conserving the values and qualities of tradition.

KISS - keep it simple and solid

“Keep it simple and solid” may sound ridiculously simple, but doing it well is highly demanding. We take the responsibility to KISS from the original idea through to the operational implementation. Einstein once said: “If I can’t explain it simply, I don’t understand it well enough”.

Honest, open and have fun

Honesty and openness are the basis of all our work. We give our people and teams both trust and freedom to act and we expect open and honest communication. We are convinced that this is fundamental to enjoying what we do.

Focus - we do it right or not at all

We believe we are better at working and focusing on what we can do, rather than somehow trying to work on everything. Hence, we prioritise all our tasks and have the courage to say “NO”.

Margins to have the freedom to act

Adequate margins enable us to invest in our people, research, innovation and quality improvements throughout the value chain. It is the margins that allow us to reinvest in meaningful propositions for our smiling consumers.

Responsible towards people, tobacco and the environment

Tobacco is our key product. We are thankful to those who enable the growing of our key goods. We regard ourselves as showing responsibility for the environment of all parts of our value chain.

Our Brands

diverse, relevant & engaging

We have a diverse portfolio of brands and products across international markets. Drawing upon our unmatched expertise in tobacco craft, each brand offers our consumers a unique tobacco experience full of flavour, taste and smoking pleasure.

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premium aromatic cigarillos

Launched in 1994, MOODS was the first “aromatic cigarillo” and continue to define and innovate the aromatic category today. Crafted from the finest Virginia, oriental and tropical tobaccos and rolled in a premium tobacco leaf for a distinctive, aromatic smoke that is uniquely MOODS.

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A Flavour Range of Premium Cigarillos

A unique cigarillo with a mild taste & short smoke.

Famed for its pocket size length & king size diameter
AL CAPONE provides a mild smoking experience for a modern way of living. Available in a range of flavours.

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exceptional cigars & cigarillos

Our traditional range of popular cigar formats and modern cigarillos. We offer cigars wrapped in dark, rich Mata Fina leaves as well as our very own exclusive Golden San Antônio tobaccos. A classic premium tobacco experience for the connoisseur who enjoys rich flavours and a balanced smoke.

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exclusive hand rolled long filler cigars

The ultimate expression of our craft, hand rolled cigars produced by skilled artisans in TERRA DANNEMANN, Bahia. Produced only with tobacco from selected crops from our own plantations these cigars are as individual as they are perfect. Available in Brasil at TERRA DANNEMANN & other specialist retailers and in Europe exclusively at CENTRO DANNEMANN, Brissago.

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fine cigars & cigarillos in the United Kingdom

The finest quality Brazilian & Indonesian tobaccos, selected and blended to create a range of fine cigars & cigarillos. Exclusively rolled in unique wrapper leaves to offer a timeless smoking experience, Royal Dutch continues to deliver on Tobacco, Craft and Excellence in the UK.

Our Legacy

the future of Mata Fina

Mother Nature is both our partner and our provider. Sadly, in the last century the rainforests of Brazil have been devastated by commercial logging, scaring the land and destroying the habitats of a wide variety of native animals and insects. It is our responsibility as people and as a company to ensure we protect and rejuvenate the native flora and fauna in the Mata Fina region surrounding our Santo Antônio farm.

In 2001, DANNEMANN set up an ambitious re-forestation programme which to date has planted over 160,000 native trees. When you “adopt-a-tree” we will tend your sapling for five years until it becomes established enough to join the ecosystem and reclaim the land as nature originally intended.

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Adopt-a-tree

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Our Locations

from São Félix to the world

What started in Brasil more than a century ago, has now grown to be a truly international operation. Although our premium hand-rolled cigars are still produced exclusively in the CENTRO DANNEMANN in São Félix, we now have rolling centres worldwide crafting cigars and cigarillos from our own exceptional South American and Asian tobacco crops.

Click on any one of our locations for more information.

Careers

more than an employer

We are like a family and have created a happy, stable environment to nurture young talent and invigorate experienced employees. Many of the team have been with us for decades, helping to develop the next generation of leaders. As with all successful families, we have a few core principles which allow our members to grow and prosper.

Trust & Responsibility

We have complete faith in the personal and professional skills of our employees and upon joining, we offer everyone a high degree of responsibility. Support and mentoring are of course always close at hand, but we are convinced that everyone has something unique to contribute, which can best be expressed in an environment of freedom and trust.

Always friendly & polite

Communication is one of the most important aspects of team-work and we believe it’s what makes us stronger. We encourage everyone to express their opinions but also to listen as willingly to aid constructive development of an idea or concept. Co-creation yields incredible results but it is built on respectful communication between everyone involved.

Restrained & humble

As a company which operates in a premium category and segment, restraint is a very important virtue. We never brag and celebrate even the greatest of successes with a simple humility and gratitude in keeping with our tradition and core values.

Our commitment

a promise to our people

Our people are our greatest asset and we are committed to supporting their continued learning and development. We grow talent from inside and we view personal and professional development not as a job but as the basis for our company’s continued success.


investing in the future

Apprenticeships and Traineeships are a great way to explore our world and discover the possibilities of a future role with us. We are committed to developing young talent and nurturing the next generation of the DANNEMANN family. There are many former apprentices and trainees who have gone on to forge a career with us. To become one of them or to learn more about what we're currently offering in your country, see OUR OPPORTUNITIES.

Our Co-operation

are we the perfect match?

Every individual, just like every company, is different. It’s this diversity which makes for a rich and stimulating world. Within the DANNEMANN family we have a wide range of roles and functions in locations all over the globe. If you’re looking for an exciting new opportunity in Agricultural science, Sales & Marketing, Consumer Relations, Procurement, Management or Production, we just might have the perfect match for you.

QUALITY CONTROL  

ENGINEERING  

CONSUMER RELATIONSHIPS  

APPLIED AGRONOMY  

Check out our list of current opportunities by location and role to explore what DANNEMANN has to offer you.

Our Opportunities

international & diverse

Each new journey begins with a first step. Explore our diverse range of opportunities in different roles and locations. If you find a role of interest, please click on "learn more" and make your application as directed. We look forward to hearing from you.

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