Winfield (cigarette)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Winfield is a brand of cigarette that is popular in Australia and New Zealand. They are manufactured under license by BATA {British American Tobacco Australia}. They have been available in Australia since 1972.
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[edit] Winfield products
Winfields are available as king size cigarettes in cardboard packets of 20 or 25, and soft packet varieties in 20s (indicated with #). Some colours are also available as roll-your-own tobacco in a pouch - 30 g or 50 g (indicated with ^).
- Winfield Red^# - 16 mg strength
- Winfield Blue^# - 12 mg strength
- Winfield Gold^# - 8 mg strength
- Winfield Menthol - 8 mg strength
- Winfield Sky Blue - 6 mg strength
- Winfield Grey - 4 mg Strength
- Winfield Cool Menthol - 4 mg strength
- Winfield White - 2 mg strength
- Winfield Ultimate - 1 mg strength
Changes to government regulations have prevented tobacco companies from labelling the tar content of their cigarettes to prevent people from believing that lower-tar products were better for their health.
[edit] Sport sponsorship
Winfield was once a major sponsor of rugby league within Australia, including being the title sponsor for the New South Wales Rugby League from 1982. However due to the Australian Federal Government passing the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992 the brand was forced to end its sponsorship following the end of the 1995 NSWRL season. The Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992 expressly prohibited almost all forms of tobacco advertising in Australia, including the sponsorship of sporting or other cultural events by cigarette brands. Some limited exemptions were granted for Formula One racing and golf tournaments, however.
[edit] Advertising and promotions
Winfield had also enjoyed a long and fruitful association with Australian actor Paul Hogan. Hogan helped popularise the brand through clever television and print advertising. The television commercials were particularly effective. Hogan would have a series of amusing events happen to him, but always end the advertisement by saying "...anyhow" and lighting a Winfield cigarette. Within two years of Hogans first commercials, Winfield became the top selling cigarette in Australia. The slogan "...anyhow, have a Winfield 25's" is still easily recalled today, even after cigarette advertising has long since been banned in Australia.
Winfield ad's with the "...anyhow" slogan were a dominant part of the Australian landscape in the 1970s and '80s. They were consequently a popular target for defacement by the BUGA UP (Billboard Utilising Graffitists Against Unhealthy Promotions) organisation who cleverly used graffiti to turn the "...anyhow" slogan around on the company to humorously convey the health risks associated with the product to the public.
Today, the 'anyhow' slogan is very rare, except for inside the packet's lid. The slogan is cheekily placed on the opposite side of the Australian Governments health authority warning, meaning no matter what the warning states, a user can open the packet and read '...anyhow, have a Winfield'.
Other slogans found on a Winfield packet today (2006) are "Australia's own since 1972" which is located on the silver foil insert, and "The Genuine Australian" on the top of the lid.
[edit] Brand development
Winfield's market dominance encouraged the development of menthol and lower tar varieties. Differing tar strengths are easily distinguished within the Winfield brand family by the pack colour*mdash;i.e the strongest variety come in predominantly dark red packaging, the menthol variety in green etc. The differing tar strengths once gave the cigarettes different "official" names. The strongest variety, containing on average 16 mg of tar were Winfield Filters. The next strongest variety, containing on average 12 mg of tar were Winfield Extra Mild. However due to the distinctive packaging the brand was colloquially referred to by the colour. {"Can I have a pack of Winfield Red?" for example.} Ironically, a recent settlement between the ACCC and the tobacco industry in Australia resulted in the withdrawal of such descriptors as "Mild" "Extra Mild" and "Light" in relation to cigarettes, on the grounds that this may mislead smokers into thinking one cigarette was safer than another. This has mirrored recent developments in the United Kingdom as well. Other brands under BATA's control have opted to use "approved" descriptors such as "Smooth" "Rich" and "Fine", that the ACCC has approved as not misleading. However with the Winfield brand BATA has opted to use the pack colouring as the descriptor. Thus the brands differing products are now officially known by names which they had been colloquially known anyways, i.e. Winfield Red and Winfield Blue.
Winfield entered the Australian market in 1972 in the common pack size of 20's. They were the first brand in Australia to launch a pack size of 25's and used this to convey their image of being good value to the everyday Australian. Typical advertisements at the time noted that Winfield was "5 smokes ahead of the rest". However, the rest of the market quickly followed Winfield and 25's were soon the standard pack size within Australia. Their success also spurred other brands to launch products in even greater pack sizes throughout the 1980s such as 30's, 40's and even 50's. Winfield remains available today in 20's or 25's. In 1998, a "Deluxe Soft Pack 20" variant on the brand was released. These cigarettes were aimed at a more premium market, and differed in taste and strength from the traditional Winfields available in packs of 25. Winfield Deluxe Filters for example, contained 14 mg of tar, whereas the traditional Winfield Filter contained {and contains} 16 mg. This variant attracted a disappointing market share, and was consequently withdrawn from the market. Soft pack Winfields were relaunched in 2000, and have become the best selling soft pack cigarette on the Australian market. Apart from the packaging though, there is nothing to differentiate them from their hard pack cousins.
[edit] Position in the Australian market
Winfield is the dominant market leader within Australia, with AC Neilsen figures revealing a share of around 32% (offtake) in 2006; nearly double its closest rival, Longbeach, which is manufactured by Phillip Morris. BATA continue push the boundaries of legal advertising to promote their flagship brand. "Limited Edition" packs featuring small advertisements and a reusable steel cigarette case are some of the tactics BATA have used to promote their brand. Cigarette advertising that originates within Australia has been banned since 1993, on all forms of media—except for the packs themselves. Some states had legislation forbidding "giveaways" or "enticements" to buy {such as a free lighter or an ashtray} was circumvented by making the steel case the packaging. Had you opened your steel case and found a normal Winfield pack inside, the company would have been in the breach of the relevant act. When you opened the steel case however, you found cigarettes wrapped in foil. Thus the steel case was the cigarette packet, rather than an enticement to buy a packet of cigarettes.
The success of Winfield in Australia has led to their introduction to other markets, such as Canada and Germany. In fiscal 2004-05, Winfield was the third most valuable grocery brand in Australia. Sales exceeded AUD$750 million in total value in fiscal 2004-05.
