Kool сигареттері: тарихы мен бренд туралы мәліметтер

American brand of menthol cigarettes

Kool (stylized as KOOL) is an American brand of menthol cigarette, currently owned and manufactured by ITG Brands LLC, a subsidiary of Imperial Tobacco Company. Kool cigarettes sold outside of the United States are manufactured by British American Tobacco.

In 1931, Brown and Williamson launched "Penguin" as an unfiltered 70 millimeter "regular" menthol cigarette, with a package featuring "a Penguin with its beak raised and its heavy wings raised in a sort of mid flourish." In 1933, the brand was renamed Kool, though it retained the as yet unnamed penguin mascot. Kool enjoyed continued success through the 1950s, with a 1953 Roper survey showing that two percent of white Americans and five percent of African Americans preferred the Kool brand. Growing public concern about the health risks associated with smoking prompted Brown and Williamson responded to release filtered varieties of Kool: an 85 millimeter "king sized" version in the 1960s, followed by a 100 millimeter or "long" version in the 1970s. The 1980s saw the introduction of Kool lights and a loss of market share to other menthol brands, such as Newport. In 2003, Brown and Williamson purchased the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, making Kool a Reynolds brand. The iconic green and white pack, virtually unchanged for some seventy years, was overhauled, and the original unfiltered Kool cigarette was discontinued. These changes did little to boost sales. In 2015 a merger between Reynolds American and the Lorillard Tobacco Company brought the Kool brand into the Imperial Tobacco Company portfolio of properties.

Kool cigarette advertising began with the character of "Willie" the penguin, who was portrayed as several different professions, among which were a doctor, a soldier and a chef. In the early 1950s, the company placed a number of decal signs at entrance doors reading "Come in it's Kool inside", indicating that the space was air conditioned. In the early 1960s, the image of the cartoon penguin was no longer used, and Kool instead began marketing their cigarettes by linking the taste of menthol to outdoor scenes portraying water or snow. Elaine Devry and John Clarke (actor) featured in Kool's advertisement at this time, as the female smoker whose day was improved by a passer by who changed her car's flat tire. This was decades before whistleblower Jeffrey Wigand exposed Brown and Williamson's deliberate lacing of their tobacco with harmful substances. In 1971, Kool initiated an advertising campaign where consumers could mail order a Snark sailboat with the Kool logo on the sail—for $88 (later $99) along with one Kool carton flap—including delivery. The sailboats retailed at the time for $120. As one of Kool's highest scoring ads, the company received over 18,000 orders for "Sea Snarks" in 1971. refn|Also in 1971, KOOL initiated a self liquidator campaign whereby consumers were given the opportunity to purchase an 11 foot sailboat with carried Kool logo and usually sold for $120. Consumers could purchase a "Sea Snark" for $88 and one KOOL canon and flap. The purpose of the offer was to increase the effectiveness of the ad; it was one of KOOL's highest scoring ads and was used again in 1972. KOOL received over 18,000 orders for "Sea Sharks" in 1971. A POP test was conducted in 1971 comparing the "Sea Snark" floor display with a non liquidator KOOL display. Stores using the ordinary display failed to increase sales enough to justify the $6.00 store payment. KOOL sales re "Sea Snark" display rose enough to more than cover the display payment and cost. KOOL's Sea Snark promotion was repeated in 1972, adding option payment through charge cards. 1975: The Sea Snark offer was repeated in a self liquidator campaign for $139. The Snark/Kool campaign won a national POPI award (given by the Point of Purchase Institute) as the most creative and inventive ad of 1971. The Kool Snark promotion was repeated in 1972, adding option payment through charge cards—and again in 1975 for $139. In 1975, Kool held a sweepstakes with a Rolls Royce Corniche as the prize. At one time also Kool sponsored a hot air balloon, which went on tours.

Kool was the main sponsor of Team KOOL Green in the CART series from the 1997 season until the 2002 season. In 2002, after the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement passed, Kool cigarettes could not be displayed on the cars for the IRL's Indianapolis 500, and the logo was replaced with 7 Eleven.

Kool cigarettes are mainly sold in the United States, but also were or still are sold in Canada, Honduras, Antigua, Bahamas, Jamaica, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Germany, France, Switzerland, Spain, Japan and Australia. The Estonian Patent Office denied permission for the Kool trademark to be used in Estonia because the name means "school" in the Estonian language.