Talk:Republic Tobacco
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When I was a kid I first began hearing about Don Levin through family members in Chicago. They made him out to be larger then life, a man who built success out of nothing. When I began my career in RYO Tobacco, I sought out any way I could to emulate Don. I picked up his breadcrumbs - when he would discontinue an item I would use my savings to buy all of it and then sell it off slowly to make extra profit. I followed what he did in his career and trademarks and have always tried to learn whatever I could from him. He did an amazing move in 1998 where he learned that Imperial Tobacco was discontinuing a particular brand. He then swooped in and through some amazing legal maneuvers was able to cancel their trademark and obtain his own mark for that same name - all without paying Imperial any money! It was a bold, ingenius move that made him many millions of dollars.
He has grown his company into a huge worldwide empire. To this day I try to follow in his footsteps in the hopes that some day I will acheive even 25% of the success that he has. He is an amazing man, similar to Bill Gates, and certainly the biggest success story to come out of the tobacco market in decades!
We used to be a large distributor of his products. This was fun because every year he would invite us on a trip to some exotic locale - all expenses paid - for 2 weeks of vacation (picture Warren Buffet inviting you on a 2 week all expense paid trip; the best part would just be being around Warren right?) Unfortunately, as I mentioned above I try to follow in his footsteps - which sadly has caused him to think of me as a competitor, and thus he no longer invites me or my company on the trips :(
--Joshmann 22:21, 25 November 2006 (UTC)
Quotes from Don's November 12, 2006 interview with the Chicago Tribune:
According to an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Don Levin fully intends to pursue his interest in purchasing the Chicago Cubs:
"If they want to sell it, I want to buy it," he said Friday over lunch at Harry Caray's Restaurant. "If I can keep the team as it is, I will. If I can keep it on [WGN], I will. The only thing I want to change about the Cubs is their record."
Estimates have placed the value of the Cubs from $500 million to as high as $650 million. Levin is unfazed! "I could do it on my own," he said. "If they would be willing to sell it to me, I could close it in 90 days." Sales volume in that industry skyrocketed over the last 20 years, according to Levin, as the price of cigarettes by the pack rose dramatically.
DRL is more than that. The firm leases medical equipment as well as machinery and even helicopters utilized in offshore oil drilling.
Levin also has produced low-budget Hollywood films featuring actors such as Emilio Estevez and Sharon Stone.
And since 1994 he has owned the Wolves, who offer a more affordable pro sports alternative for families. The team is named for Levin's mother, whose maiden name was Wolf.
"My first sports love is hockey," Levin said. "I've done well with the Wolves. My goal was to re-create the family experience for people who felt they weren't getting that at Blackhawks games anymore.
"As a kid, what I did was go to Cubs games. My dad would be there at Wrigley every day. He was born in 1914, the same year Harry Caray was and the same year the ballpark was. He passed away in 1994 without ever seeing them win a World Series, which is something I want to see in my lifetime."
The full article is here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-061111downey,1,1665038.column?ctrack=1&cset=true
Don was also cited in this Chicago Business article as follows:
He made his fortune through a wide array of businesses attached to his Glenview-based holding company, D.R.L. Enterprises Inc. Most visible to American consumers may be tobacco holdings, including Republic Tobacco, that sell rolling paper and loose tobacco brands like Drum and Top in 90 countries.
Also based in Glenview is Adams Apple Distributing and its affiliates, whose consumer items range from novelty light bulbs to mushroom figurines and dragon-shaped incense-stick holders. “Adams Apple is the largest distributor in the United States of novelty and gift items,” according to a recent copyright infringement complaint filed in U.S District Court by the company – one of several such lawsuits.
D.R.L. also leases medical equipment and helicopters that service offshore oil platforms, among other items, Mr. Levin said. In Europe an affiliate sells moist towlettes and anti-static sprays. And in the 1980s and early 1990s, he spent time in Hollywood as an executive producer on films including “Maximum Overdrive” with Emilio Estevez and “Scissors” with Sharon Stone.
“We made low-budget movies that did pretty well,” Mr. Levin said.
Also sharing the Glenview address with D.R.L. Enterprises is the Donald Levin Family Foundation, which declared $1.4 million in assets in 2002, its latest available tax statement reported. Grants from the foundation are limited to animal welfare and youth hockey.
Raised in Chicago and educated at the General Motors Institute in Flint, Mich., Mr. Levin got into business selling Landlubber blue jeans in 1969. He was 22. He said his enterprises today top $200 million in annual revenue, declining to get more specific. Such sales figures would place D.R.L. and its affiliates among the 200 largest privately held Chicago-area firms ranked by revenue.
The full article is here: http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=15603&bt=William+Wirtz&arc=n&searchType=phrase
After reading all of this you've got to admit - this guy is really amazing and an example of what we should all strive to acheive. He's compassionate about animals, holds strong family values and amazingly successful.--Joshmann 00:46, 26 November 2006 (UTC)
