Akif Kopuz Dahili Ticaret Şirketi (Akif Kopuz Internal Trade Company) was established in 1945 in a Kazlıçeşme warehouse rented from the Ottoman Bank. The company started operations by purchasing rawhides from various regions in Anatolia, but quickly expanded to build a global supply network and trade with all four corners of the nation. The firm achieved the title of becoming Turkey’s largest rawhide wholesaler, selling to leather manufacturers all over the country. The company, which expanded its fields of activity with the addition of new product groups and varieties in the late 1990s, from 1998, continued its leading position in the sector under the name Akif Kopuz Deri Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş (Akif Kopuz Leather Industry and Trade Inc.).