What is the secret behind the Marlboro country advertising campaign which changed the face of this brand from a product designed for women to a cigarette especially created for men ? What is so special in the set of classic advertisements with a cowboy riding his horse in a beautiful setting ? And, even more important, why is this image so important that it has become emblematic for an entire generation of smokers ?

To answer these questions, we had to analyze the image closely. And here’s what we found

  1. In these TV spots, the cowboy always rides a horse, which is a symbol of elegance, grace, and good tastes.
  2. The cowboy is generic as such, he represents the American man, free, confident, and reliable.
  3. During his ride, he usually reaches a lake or a river and sets a fire in the evening time. This renders the elemental forces behind the scene the water, the earth, the fire, and the air. In this context, smoke seems the logical fifth element in the series.
  4. Smoking is associated with enjoying nature and loneliness in wilderness. So it must be a relaxing act for each and every man out there, irrespective of other details, such as cultural background, social status, etc.
  5. Horses are a sign of power and freedom and… so is smoking.

Even if this image is very close to clich?, if not a clich? in itself, it became one of the most influential images in the tobacco industry of the 20th century and few other brands (like Kent, Camel, and Lucky Strike) can fight against it effectively. It’s so effective that it is perceived as a cultural and social reference in many movies and books dealing with cowboys and with the traditional American way of life.

Marlboro country is a place where men can be free (of daily problems), where they can simply enjoy the benefits of nature and smoking altogether. It is, ultimately, the perfect place to put all your worries aside and start smoking.

Marlboro maker philip morris to launch e-cigarettes with ‘improved taste’

Invest in marlboro cigarettes on line in bulk

RICHMOND, Va. Philip Morris International Inc. said Wednesday it plans to enter the growing electronic cigarette business late next year and accelerate the launch of its reduced risk products.

How e cigarettes have become a very wild west industry in Canada

E cigarettes have become an exploding industry, worth nearly $2 billion in the U.S. alone, a market that some analysts project will eventually surpass that of traditional cigarettes.

But here, Health Canada has not approved nicotine e cigarettes, creating a regulatory grey zone.

Continue reading.

The seller of Marlboro and other cigarette brands overseas is joining many tobacco companies venturing into smokeless tobacco and other nicotine products to diversify beyond the declining traditional cigarette business as tax increases, health concerns, smoking bans and stigma cut into demand.

Electronic cigarettes are battery powered devices that heat a liquid nicotine solution, creating vapour that users inhale. The category has grown from thousands of users in 2006 to several million worldwide.

Philip Morris International s first foray into the electronic cigarette business will be similar to current products on the market but will offer an an improved taste, CEO Andre Calantzopoulos said Wednesday at the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer Conference in New York. Calantzopoulos said the company is entering the market to get first hand understanding of the category and help shape the regulatory debate.

Company executives in July had dismissed electronic cigarettes, saying they aren t a product that s very close to a traditional cigarette and said it was much more the phenomena of the price than anything else.

Related

  • Tobacco shares may be addictive
  • As more children use e cigarettes, heath officials worry it will lead to regular smoking

While the future of e cigarettes should be an attractive category for adult consumers, the company believes its next generation products will be more attractive to cigarette smokers, Calantzopoulos said.

The company is developing products that heat tobacco in a cigarette with a controlled heating mechanism or an aerosol nicotine delivery system. It plans to pilot test its next generation products late next year and launch a product that heats tobacco instead of burning it in 2015, ahead of its previously expected launch between 2016 and 2017.

var npIOrd npIOrd ( () 1000000) (‘

Our first objective is the development of a series of reduced risk products that provide adult smokers with the taste, sensory experience, nicotine delivery profile and ritual characteristics that match as close as possible those of cigarettes, Calantzopoulos said, adding that the company recently conducted a consumer test in Asia that showed broad appeal for different adult smokers in term of price and taste.

Philip Morris International, based in New York and Switzerland, is the world s second biggest cigarette seller behind state controlled China National Tobacco Corp.

Altria Group Inc. in Richmond, Va., the owner of Philip Morris USA, spun off Philip Morris International as a separate company in 2008. Altria is the largest U.S. cigarette seller.

The Associated Press