Marlboro Cigarettes: Did you know that the name Marlboro is actually derived from Marlborough? Back in 1902, Philip Morris, a cigarette manufacturing company from Britain, established a subsidiary in New York to sell its brands in the US market, which included Marlboro. Marlboro was named after the street where the companys factory was located in London, called Marlborough Street.
When Marlboro was first launched in the US, it was positioned as a cigarette for women. By the 1940s, filters had become popular. Marlboro introduced filters in its cigarette and launched a new campaign to appeal to a wider range of smokers. The cattle rancher, who later became synonymous with the brand, was part of these advertisements. The packaging was redesigned by Frank Gianninoto and the advertising was handled by Leo Burnett. The Marlboro Man campaign arrived in the 1960s. For the next 40 years, the Marlboro Man figured in several campaigns, boosting Marlboros image as a cigarette for strong independent individuals.
In 1992, the Financial World ranked Marlboro as the most valuable brand in the world. Back then, it had a market share in excess of $32 billion. Marlboro cigarettes are now widely recognized the world over and is available in 180 countries. Marlboro King Size Gold is the third most popular brand in the UK and had notched up more than 668 million in sales, in 2011. Interestingly, Marlboro is the company's only brand among the top ten brands in the UK, with a market share of about 7%.