Kool cigarettes (stylized as KOOL) are an American cigarette brand with menthol, currently owned and manufactured by ITG Brands LLC, a subsidiary of Imperial Tobacco Company. Kool cigarettes sold outside the U.S. are manufactured by British American Tobacco. Kool cigarettes are mostly sold in the United States, but have also been or are still sold in Canada, Honduras, Antigua, Bahamas, Jamaica, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Germany, France, Switzerland, Spain, Japan, and Australia. The Estonian Patent Office refused permission to use the Kool trademark in Estonia because the name means “school” in Estonian.
Current varieties: Kool cigarettes are available in the following styles in the US: Green – Filter Kings and Super Longs [formerly Full Flavor], Blue – Filter Kings and Super Longs (100’s). Kool cigarettes manufacturer initiated numerous advertising campaigns. In 1971, KOOL initiated a self-destruct campaign in which consumers were given the opportunity to purchase an 11-foot sailing boat with a Kool 1ogo carrier. Consumers could buy a Sea Snark at a small amount of money and one KOOL cannon with a valve. The purpose of the proposal was to increase the effectiveness of advertising; it was one of the highest ratings of KOOL advertising, and it was used again in 1972. KOOL received more than 18,000 orders for Sea Sharks in 1971. In 1971, a POP test was conducted comparing the “Sea Snark” floor display with a KOOL display without a liquidator.
Stores using conventional displays have failed to increase sales enough to justify a store’s fee. KOOL’s sales of the “Sea Snark” display have grown enough to cover the payment and cost of the display. The KOOL Sea Snark promotion was repeated in 1972 with the addition of option payment by payment cards. 1975: Sea Snark’s offer was repeated in a self-liquidator campaign. The Snark/Kool campaign won the national POPI Award (awarded by the Merchandise Buying Institute) as the most creative and inventive advertisement of 1971.