Hot Topic

Today in the drug store I came across Zippo Fragrance. It caught my eye because the bottle of cologne was in the shape of giant lighter. I was quiet surprised to see this but then I thought that as Smoking is on the decline than so to should smoking related paraphernalia. Apparently in March of 2011: Due to significant decrease of sales from 18 million lighter a year in the mid-1990s to about 12 million lighters this year related the anti smoking campanes. Zippo Manufacturing Co. will try offering a wider variety of products using Zippo brands such as watches, leisure clothing and cologne. This strategy is similar with a success of Victorinox Swiss Army Brands Inc. has had selling watches, luggage, clothing and fragrance.


Zippo's history is an interesting one.
George G. Blaisdell founded Zippo Manufacturing Company in 1932, and produced the first Zippo lighter in early 1933, being inspired by an Austrian cigarette lighter of similar design. It got its name because Blaisdell liked the sound of the word "Zippo" and "zippo" sounded more modern. On March 3, 1936, patent was granted for the Zippo lighter. Zippo lighters became popular in the US military, especially during WWII — when, as the company's Web site says, Zippo "ceased production of lighters for consumer markets and dedicated all manufacturing to the U.S. military." The Zippo at that time was made of brass, but as this commodity was unobtainable due to the war, Zippo used steel during the war. While the Zippo Manufacturing Company never had an official contract with the military, soldiers and armed forces personnel insisted that (BX) stores carry this sought-after lighter. While it had previously been common to have Zippos with authorized badges, unit crests and division insignia, it became popular among the American soldiers of the Vietnam War, to get their Zippos engraved with personal mottoes. These lighters are now sought after collectors items and popular souvenirs for visitors to Vietnam.
After World War II, the Zippo lighter became increasingly used in advertising by companies large and small through the 1960s. Many of the early advertising Zippo lighters are works of art painted by hand, and as technology has evolved, so has the design and finish of the Zippo lighter. The basic mechanism of the Zippo lighter has remained unchanged.


While Zippo Fragrance has a very cool website and is trying very hard to appeal to a demogrphic that may not be smoking with a cool looking Zippo lighter purfume bottle, they may be missing the point of sale declines. Zippo might be over looking something. If Zippo contines to brand its self as a lighter it may continue to loose sales. It is unlikely that some one would want a bottle of purfume in the shape of a lighter unless they really liked smoking and thought that a lighter shaped bottle of cologne looked cool. For people who don't smoke and never have smoked this may even look kind of tacky and for people who used to smoke but have since quite they may not want a remider. The die hard Zippo enthusiast may want the Zippo Fragrance, but as the zippo customers decline so shall will the Fragrance sales if it is being braned as a lighter.

The light was cool, it had tough and useful appeal. The lighter any lighter is a utility object, but a bottle of purfume in the shape of a lighter is just not as cool even when it is made to look like like a cool lighter.

Hope you enjoyed reading this.