Why did cigarettes become a fashion accessory?
Fashion’s love affair with cigarettes goes back more than a century. On and off the runway, the popular smokes have been paired with the latest styles from Hollywood starlets to rock stars and supermodels.
So how did cigarettes go from a simple tobacco product to a fashion symbol? It was nothing less than a carefully curated evolution. Tobacco marketers understood the importance of smoking in fashion and spent billions over decades making cigarettes the fashionable accessory they are today.
Here’s the inside scoop:
- How cigarettes went from a medical health risk to fashion accessory
- The Golden Age of Glamorous Smoking
- Marketing that Changed Fashion
- The Modern Fashion World and Smoking
How Cigarettes Became Fashion Icons
When cigarettes first arrived in the early 1900s, they were primarily a “man’s tobacco.”
Everything changed in the 1920s. Suddenly, cigarettes became more than tobacco products; they became fashion accessories that spoke to one’s personal style.
Edward Bernays (the man who invented public relations) led one of the most successful marketing stunts of all time. To get women to smoke in public, he called cigarettes “torches of freedom” in 1929.
Women’s cigarette consumption increased from 5% to 12% between 1923 and 1929.
Astounding, right?
Suddenly, not only was it acceptable for women to smoke, but it also became a symbol of emancipation and modernity. Smoking became chic. Just like how modern fashion embraces distinctive brands, cigarettes like Putters cigarettes became part of personal style statements that defined entire generations.
Fashion designers didn’t take long to take notice. They started using cigarettes in shoots and adding long, slender cigarette holders to their fashion spreads.
The Golden Age of Glamorous Smoking
The 1930s and 1940s are considered the golden age of smoking on the runway and in fashion campaigns.
The standard for glamorous smoking came from Hollywood. Most of the A-list actors were smokers. Iconic films had Humphrey Bogart taking that famous last drag off his cigarette. Lauren Bacall and her trademark cigarettes were always a huge part of her fashion sense.
Actors and actresses defined the style of smoking. Cigarettes were the must-have fashion accessory for stars on screen.
Here’s what made this decade so special:
- The cigarette defined elegance and sophistication
- Cigarettes were great conversation starters at gatherings
- Models used cigarettes as posing props
- Elegant cigarette cases became an essential accessory
Fashion magazines were also not left out in the madness. Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar featured models smoking in almost every issue. If you wanted to be on trend, you smoked.
The “Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet” advertisement by Lucky Strike was groundbreaking. They increased sales by 300% in just one year by targeting women’s fashion insecurities.
They used slender and elegant women in the latest fashion trends in their advertisements.
The message was pretty clear that if you smoke, you will be able to maintain your slim figure.
Marketing Tactics That Changed Everything
Curious as to how the tobacco companies were able to make cigarettes fashionable?
They started by spending a lot of money on it. In 2019 alone, tobacco companies spent $8.2 billion on advertising and promotion in the United States.
This amounts to about $25 on advertising and marketing for every American.
But here’s what they did with that money:
- Celebrity endorsements
- Fashion industry involvement
- Lifestyle marketing approach
The Virginia Slims’ campaign in the 1960s was a game-changer. They linked cigarettes directly to women’s rights with their tagline, “You’ve come a long way, baby.”
Models became advertisements in and of themselves. Smoking in fashion wasn’t just a thing. It was a lifestyle.
The fashion industry was complicit in its promotion as well. Photographers, makeup artists, and designers were all in on making smoking look as sexy as possible.
The Designer Connection
Fashion designers became obsessed with cigarettes. Why?
The smoking cigarette was a great accessory.
Look at it this way:
- It made models appear sophisticated and worldly
- Smoke made for cool photoshoot images
- Models have something to do with their hands
Yves Saint Laurent and Helmut Newton were famous for their cigarette smoking campaigns and fashion shoots. You will always find elegant models smoking in opulent settings in Newton’s photos.
The message was consistent across the board; stylish people smoke.
The Modern Fashion World and Smoking
Fashion today has a love-hate relationship with cigarettes.
It’s because;
We now know smoking is bad for you. Even though the health risks are a well-known fact, it hasn’t removed the allure of smoking from the world of fashion.
Fashion houses have now switched to an approach of “smoking but not smoking.” You will see:
- Fake cigarettes
- E-cigarettes as fashion accessories
- Vintage cigarette imagery in fashion shoots
Some brands still have an affinity for cigarettes. Fashion week parties often have smoking sections as popular meeting spots for guests.
The wind is beginning to change, though, now that health has made its way into the fashion industry.
The Instagram Effect
Social media and the fashion influencers have transformed the game.
Fashion influencers are aware that their audience includes the younger generation. Smoking promotion isn’t socially acceptable. The industry has switched to other “cool” accessories and statement pieces.
Fashion’s most iconic accessory no longer is a cigarette. Modern-day rebels use fashion, edgy jewelry, makeup, and accessories to express their “cool” factor.
Lessons from Fashion’s Smoking History
Fashion history has taught us a few things about its love affair with cigarettes.
The truth is that the fashion industry can make or break certain behaviors.
Fashion embraced cigarettes, and smoking became a regular thing to many people. The cigarette companies realized a vital lesson; people will buy a lifestyle before they buy a product.
The difference between today’s fashion brands and the cigarette brands is that the modern ones are promoting a healthier lifestyle.
Breaking the Cycle
Fashion’s love affair with cigarettes has seen its heyday but the lessons are still relevant.
Fashion brands now face other challenges in society, including some pretty dangerous ones. Fast fashion. Unrealistic beauty standards.
The question now is: Will the industry learn from its mistakes?
Fashion is moving ahead of the game by changing its behavior. Health and wellness are now the new symbols of fashion.
Fashion influencers are no longer taking smoking breaks. They are taking the time to show their audience the perfect Pilates routine to follow.
Wrapping Things Up
Fashion’s history with cigarettes spans over a century.
The 1920s emancipation movement to Hollywood’s Golden Age made cigarettes a key accessory on the fashion runway. Tobacco companies spent a fortune marketing cigarettes as an accessory. It was a brilliant move that has convinced generations that smoking is fashionable.
The fashion world of today is not the same as it was in the past. Health consciousness is now more fashionable than smoking cigarettes.
While there are still a few holes that remain, the fashion world has for the most part distanced itself from cigarette culture.
The real lesson learned is that the fashion industry has power over people’s behavior. When the industry adopts a particular behavior or lifestyle, the world will follow.
The cigarette era taught us that fashion has the power to sell anything. It could be good. It could also be harmful if the branding is compelling enough.
Fashion has to be wiser with this power in the modern age.