Rolfe, a businessman from London, had planned to become a planter upon arrival in Virginia, and had some new ideas about exporting tobacco for profit. He knew that the native tobacco from Virginia was not liked by the English settlers, nor did it appeal to the market in England. However, he brought with him some seeds for several new strains of tobacco to experiment with. Using the sweeter strains, Rolfe is credited with being the first to commercially cultivate" Nicotiana tabacum" tobacco plants in North America in 1611; the export of this sweeter tobacco beginning in 1612 helped turn the Virginia Colony into a profitable venture. Soon, Rolfe and others were exporting substantial quantities of the new cash crop. New plantations began growing up all along the James River, from the mouth at Hampton Roads all the way west to Henricus, and on both sides of the river, where export shipments could use wharves to ship the product.