page_title: W.D. & H.O. Wills
section_title: Notable products
hierarchical_section_title: W.D. & H.O. Wills / Notable products
caption_attribution_description: English: W.D. &amp; H.O. Wills's Cut Golden Bar tobacco tin
context_page_description: W.D. & H.O. Wills was a British tobacco importer and manufacturer formed in Bristol, England. It was the first UK company to mass-produce cigarettes. It was one of the founding companies of Imperial Tobacco along with John Player & Sons.
  The company was founded in 1786 and went by various names before 1830 when it became W.D. & H.O. Wills. Tobacco was processed and sold under several brand names, some of which were still used by Imperial Tobacco until the second half of the 20th century. The company pioneered the use of cigarette cards within their packaging. Many of the buildings in Bristol and other cities around the United Kingdom still exist with several being converted to residential use.
context_section_description: From the early 20th century to April 1951 "Pirate" was one of the most recognized cigarette brands in China.  In Chinese it was commonly referred to as 'lao dao pai', meaning 'Old Knife Brand' in reference to the sword the pirate was carrying on the brands key visual. The brand had a short revival in China under different ownership in 1994 but was eventually discontinued in 1997. 
  In 1959 the company launched the short-lived Strand brand. This was accompanied by the memorable but disastrous, You're never alone with a Strand television advertisement.
  In India, the Gold Flake, Classic and Wills Navy Cut range of cigarettes, manufactured by ITC , formerly the Imperial Tobacco Company of India Limited, still has W.D. & H.O. Wills printed on the cigarettes and their packaging. These lines of cigarettes have a dominant market share.
caption: Cut Golden Bar tobacco tin
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