Kool cigarettes fall under the heading of mentholated tobacco products, and as such they are appealing to a different clientele. While cheap Kool cigarettes have of course contributed their popularity among those who are watching the bottom line of their budget and in the past had to compromise taste for the sake of savings, discount Kool cigarettes have also made the brand popular for certain socioeconomic groups. Generally speaking, Kool brand cigarettes are favored by the teen audience and also by the African American market share.

Granted, Kool cigarettes are still limping behind Newport brand smokes when it comes to an overall popularity, but by and large marketing to the target audience for Kool cigarettes is exceedingly successful. To understand the popularity of Kool cigarettes – whether they are Kool XL cigarettes or the flavored Kool cigarette – one must understand the appeal of menthol cigarettes.

To nonsmokers it is somewhat inconceivable to have hot smoke enter the mouth and then have mentholated compounds give the illusion of coolness. Yet anyone who has ever chewed gum that offered similar sensations understands that this is a quite curious feeling, and one which the gum chewer gladly repeats. The same may be said for the smoker of Kool cigarettes.

Theoretically, cheap cigarettes – Kool is excluded from this list – are made with tobaccos that emit a harsher smoke than those of highly priced brands. This harsh smoke leads to coughing, throat irritation, and other side effects when the cigarette is being smoked. Since a lot of the cigarette brands are aimed at young adults and teens, this harsh smoke makes it hard for them to get into the experience and may actually cause some peer embarrassment when smoke suddenly causes one of the group members to break out into a coughing fit. Yet Kool cigarettes has worked with this teen fear, and in response the rates of girls smoking Kool cigarettes have greatly increased.

The Kool l cigarette web site – and those sites that sell the smokes – time and again state that the anesthesia effect that the menthol affects actually takes the pungent taste out of the cigarette and instead permits the smoker to enjoy the tobacco’s fine tastes. While this is debatable, it has been a major aspect of the Kool l cigarette advertising that is found online. Online, Kool cigarette coupons and the lure of the Kool cigarette catalog cultivate a loyal following that at some point may still give Newport a run for the money.