Virginia Slims is a brand of cigarette manufactured by Altria Group (formerly Phillip Morris Companies). The brand was introduced in 1968 & marketed to young professional women using the slogan "You've come a long way, baby."
Some media watch groups considered this campaign to be responsible for a rapid increase in smoking among teenage girls. A report by the Surgeon General of the US has interpreted these marketing strategies as attempting to link smoking "to women's freedom, emancipation, and empowerment."
Virginia Slims are much narrower (23mm circumference) than ordinary cigarettes (hence, "Slims"), and are also longer than normal "king-sized" cigarettes (which are 85mm), sold only in longer 100mm and 120mm lengths, to give the cigarettes a more "elegant" appearance and ostensibly to reduce the amount of smoke they produce. The packaging, designed by Walter Landor, is white with colored stripes running lengthwise along the left side.
Public Domain (age)
