Portugal
I have been collecting complete matchboxes since mid-sixties, when I received a small matchbox collection from my father, which I grew slowly until the beginning of the eighties. I pick it again in 2018, upon retirement, being now one of my favourite hobbies. The collection comprises complete matchboxes focusing particularly on Portugal and some specific themes: aviation, beverages, tobacco, telecommunications, finance and hospitality. For the 5th AFP online presentation, I’m bringing Tobacco advertising: Camel and Marlboro cases.
I’m not a smoker, but as a matchbox collector I recognise the huge relationship between matchboxes and tobacco. For decades the main users of matchboxes were smokers, and the advertisement of tobacco products were patent everywhere, and profusely on matchboxes. For this online presentation I’m bringing two examples of tobacco advertisement and its evolution framed by social responsibility and legal regulations, with large impacts on marketing history, patent in its advertising on matchboxes:
1- Camel, the first ready-made cigarette.in the world, with Joe Camel, Camel sponsoring and Camel image evolution – Camel photos 1 to 5
2- Marlboro, the number 1 cigarette seller in the world, with the Marlboro Man and Formula 1 advertising –Marlboro photos 1 to 7
Camel, a cigarette brand with a rich and complex history, has left an indelible mark on the advertising landscape. Since its inception in 1913, with one of the first teaser ads (“The Camels are coming”), its marketing strategy has evolved, encompassing innovative campaigns, memorable characters, and controversies that marked a turning point in the industry. In 1987, the cartoon Joe Camel was introduced (photo Camel 2). Four years later, the Journal of the American Medical Association published two reports on Joe Camel and children. One study found that Joe Camel was better recognized by children than Mickey Mouse. The other study found that since the launch of the Joe Camel campaign in 1987, Camel cigarettes' share of the under-18 market had risen from 0.5% to 32.8%. With this negative social impact, Camel has evolved to stylized camel figures (photos Camel 4 and 5).
Marlboro is the world's best-selling cigarette brand. The Marlboro brand was launched in 1924 as a cigarette for the female audience, with the slogan, "Mild As May". In the 1920s, cigarette advertising was mainly based on how feminine cigarettes were.
Meanwhile, in the 1950s, commercials appeared that would bring new smokers to Marlboro that conveyed "the right image to capture the fantasy of youth and project a perfect symbol of independence and individualistic rebellion" - and thus the "Marlboro cowboy" or Marlboro Man was born.
The Marlboro Man (photos Marlboro 3 to 5) is a figure that was used in tobacco advertising campaigns for Marlboro cigarettes. In the United States, where the campaign originated, it was used from 1954 to 1999. The Marlboro Man had to disappeared from most countries after new worldwide regulations were imposed on tobacco marketing, forcing Marlboro to adapt to new image.
The Marlboro Man image continued into the 21st century in countries such as Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic, but in others it had adapted to new regulations that prohibited the use of logos, people and cartoons on tobacco advertising.
Marlboro has sponsored several sporting events, especially motor racing. Formula One car racing was perceived, in the seventies, as adding a modern-day dimension to the Marlboro Man. In Formula 1 it has sponsored the Ferrari team, whose official name was: Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, but from 2007 onwards, a ban came into effect for teams to display cigarette brands on Formula 1 cars, and the Marlboro brand has had to evolve (photos Marlboro 6 and 7).
As part of the industry’s settlement with US state attorneys general, tobacco companies agreed to eliminate logos, human and cartoon figures in advertising — a move that doomed both Camel cigarette's Joe Camel and Marlboro cigarette's Marlboro Man. The evolution come with image and color association (photos Marlboro 6/7 and Camel 5).
Email : nuno-pg@sapo.pt
Tema: Publicidade sobre o tabaco: casos Camel e Marlboro
Theme: Tobacco advertising: Camel and Marlboro cases
