Tobacco, as Messinia is not a tobacco-producing region, comes by boat from Agrinio and Lamia. George Karelias had eight children, four sons and four daughters. Later his sons Andreas, Konstantinos, Ioannis and Efstathios are involved in the business. In 1916, his son Andreas Karelias buys the first cigar-making machine »Looking back at the History of the Greek Cigarette from the inexhaustible wealth of the Greek Literary Historical Archive, we trace the beginnings of this company that was to grow.
In 1930 the Karelia cigarettes brand is well known in the Peloponnese but unknown in the rest of Greece with the first cigarette being named “Petrobeis Cigarette Karelia Bros”. The interwar period had to arrive for the greatest prosperity and the post-war period to begin, for cigarettes to become known throughout Greece.
In 1929 the company Karelias managed to emerge in the 29th place of the Greek tobacco industries. Its growth was quite fast. In 1932 it was in ninth place among the 164 tobacco industries processing 131,105 kg of tobacco and the following year, in 1933, it remained in the same position, but among the 140 tobacco companies, while it seems to have gained market share after processing 136,788 kg of tobacco. And the next years are up for the company. In 1934 he launches the “Extra Karelia” from Agrinio tobacco.
However, its “take-off” takes place after the war, in the 1950s. Shortly before, in 1947, it promotes the cigarettes “Karelia Bros”, popular Karelia cigarettes in a pack of 100, the “Sertika Lamias” with the famous red pack that was “smoked” by the masses and the Peloponnesian peasants. It was considered the best cigar of his time “and the” Karelia Bros of Agrinio “. From 1950 onwards, Karelia cigarettes were promoted nationwide and acquired fanatical friends. Until 1957, the now classic “Karelia Filter” was released in the famous box that was an impressive success. Also during the same period, the brands of Karelia cigarettes “Eklekta”, “Extra Karelia”, “Lux”, “Rekor”, “Rex”, “Lethi”, “Zapanti”, “Zapanti 12” and “Zapanti 13” were released.