Vladimir Smirnov
When the Tsar nationalized the Russian vodka industry in 1904, Vladimir Smirnov was forced to sell his factory and the brand. During the October Revolution of 1917, the Smirnov family fled the country. In 1920, Vladimir Smirnov established a factory in Constantinople (present day Istanbul). Four years later he moved to Lwów (formerly Poland, now Lviv, Ukraine). He renamed the vodka "Smirnoff". It sold marginally well but not nearly as it had in Russia prior to 1904. Although an additional distillery was founded in Paris in 1925, sales remained far less than that produced in Russia.