This article contains content that is written like an advertisement. (October 2016) |
Navy Cut is an Indian brand of cigarettes, owned and manufactured by ITC Limited. It was launched as Wills Filter, and was one of the first filtered Indian cigarettes.[citation needed]
Product type | Cigarette |
---|---|
Produced by | ITC Limited |
Country | India |
Introduced | 1910 |
Markets | See Markets |
Previous owners | W.D. & H.O. Wills |
Registered as a trademark in | Yes |
Tagline | "Made for each other" |
Carcinogenicity: IARC group 1 |
History edit
Wills Navy Cut was originally manufactured by W.D. & H.O. Wills in the United Kingdom, and was one of the most notable products of the company in Britain.[citation needed] In 1910, ITC Limited (then called "Imperial Tobacco Company of India Limited") commenced its operations in Kolkata. ITC started manufacturing cigarette brands.
Wills Navy Cut Filter Tipped was launched in July 1963 in India at the price of 10 Annas for a packet of 10 cigarettes. At this time, the biggest task was to assure people that the addition of the filter was meant to enhance the taste they were accustomed to since many Indians at the time were used to traditional unfiltered cigarettes.[citation needed]
In the years since Wills Navy Cut was launched in a flat 10s pack with a distinctive red band. The W leaf was also a part of the pack. One of the biggest changes in the brand was to give Navy Cut its due prominence; over time the Wills Crest was replaced by the classic unicorns as well.[1]
In 1988, W.D. & H.O. Wills ceased operations and production of Wills Navy Cut ended in the U.K. However, ITC, an independent company, continued to manufacture and market the cigarette in India. The phrase "From the House of W.D. & H.O. Wills" continues to be printed on the cigarettes and their packaging.[2]
Marketing edit
From the beginning, marketing was focused on the concept of the perfect match of filter and tobacco and the idea that a filter was the perfect addition to a cigarette. The campaign was also one of the first to include women at its heart.
In 1965, ITC Limited launched the "Made for each other" advertising campaign. The print ad featured a happily married couple reading a Polish joke book. The idea was to highlight the "perfect match" of tobacco and filter in an analogy with the perfectly matched couple, appealing to the consumer on both emotional and aspirational grounds. In 1969 ITC introduced the "Wills Made for Each Other" contest to select a perfectly matched couple. Many posters were hung up on prominent street corners until the 1990s but disappeared when tobacco advertising was banned in India in 2004. The "Made for each other" campaign went on to become one of the longest-running and most recognizable advertising campaigns in India.[3][4]
The years 1968/69 saw considerable growth in competition from rival and lower-priced filter cigarettes. However, Navy Cut continued to retain its market share.[5]
Markets edit
Wills Navy Cut is mainly sold in India, but has also been sold in the United Kingdom, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.[6][7][8]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "ITC Limited". Wys Wyg.
- ^ "ITC Limited is one of the top three private sector companies in India. ITC is a market leader in India in cigarettes, tobacco, hotels, packaging, specialty papers, and paperboards". 17 June 2007. Archived from the original on 17 June 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- ^ "Wills Filter: Made for each other". Cuttingthechai.com. 10 September 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- ^ "70 years of Indian advertising". Livemint.com. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- ^ "ITC Wills Navy Cut Audit". Scribd.
- ^ "BrandWills - Cigarettes Pedia". Cigarettespedia.com. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- ^ "Wills". Zigsam.at. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- ^ "Brands". Cigarety.by. Retrieved 28 January 2018.