The famous tobacconist from Goteburg, Sweden closed last week for the last time. The strict Swedish tobacco legislation already made things difficult, and the corona crisis dealt the final blow. An institution with a long history is no more, and that is sad, very sad.

Snus

Mellgren’s Fine Tobacco is around since 1823. Eric Mellgren founded the brand that year. Three years later, he was able to open his own snus and pipe-tobacco factory which slowly grew. After his death, his son Johan August took over. After his death, his widow Hulda and two of his sons, Eric & Anders, continue the family business. A business now powered by a steam machine, making Mellgren’s one of the more modern snus & pipe-tobacco factories. Mellgren’s merged with Förenade Svenska Tobacco factories in 1913. The factory still remains in Gothenburg, although it is no longer a tobacco factory.

Some of the brands from Mellgren’s are still popular today. Gothenburg’s Prima Fint Snus and Rapé for example, brands that are originally part of the Mellgren family.

The store

The doors of the store opened in late 2012. It measures 260 m2. It was part of an update of Mellgren’s Fine Tobacco brand. The store has areas for cigars, pipes, pipe tobacco, snus, and accessories. But nog just tobacco, the store is also a great place to buy traditional shaving articles from traditional English brands. And there is a 10-meter long humidor with 15.000 cigars.

The shop also has a 50 m2 lounge where you can enjoy a pipe, a cigar, and a cup of coffee. In 2017, the lounge was nominated as one of the top 5 lounges in the world by Cigar Journal’s cigar awards. Mellgren’s goal with the lounge was to be able to educate consumers and share knowledge amongst cigar and pipe enthusiasts. But it looks like those days are over for good.