Mike Ligon, now retired, was part of Universal Corp. for more than 39 years and most recently served as the company’s vice president of corporate affairs. Ligon began his career in 1982 in the management training program, and he served many roles for the company, from leaf buyer, North American sales director, president of Casa export and president of America’s Harvest to his latest position in which he was responsible for global regulatory, government, social and labor matters. Ligon is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He currently serves as chairman of the TMA board and as a member of the Global Tobacco & Nicotine Forum advisory board. From 2019–2021, Ligon also served as president of the Eliminate Child Labor in Tobacco Foundation, an organization formed nearly two decades ago by the tobacco industry to combat the root causes of child labor in tobacco growing communities. In 2017, the Virginia General Assembly appointed Ligon to the Advisory Committee on International Trade where he serves as the chairman. He has been very active in the nonprofit world, volunteering time and serving on several other boards, including the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Communities in Schools of Virginia and LEAD Virginia.
