For 78 years, Zippo Manufacturing Co. has been known for its “windproof” cigarette lighters, which are fashioned from brass and chrome at a factory in this northwestern Pennsylvania town of 8,400 people.
78年以来,ZiPPo公司司一直以制造防风打火机而闻名于世，这种点烟用的打火 机以黄铜和铬为原材料制作而成，其工厂位于宾夕法尼亚州西北部一座人口 8400 人的小镇。
So how will people react to a Zippo men’s fragrance? Marketed as “the ideal companion for the adventures of day and the passion of night,” the new cologne doesn’t smell anything like lighter fluid, says David Warfel, Zippo’s global marketing director. Instead，Zippo says, it’s “woody” and “spicy.”
那么，人们会对Zippo出品的男士香水作何反应呢？ Zippo的全球行销总监大 卫?沃菲尔称，这种香水的行销理念是：将白天的历险和夜晚的激情完美结合。这款 新型的古龙水闻起来和点火液完全不同，Zippo#其具有木头和香料的味道。
In recent months, the family-owned company has stepped up its effort to diversify by launching the fragrance and other Zippo-branded products, such as casual clothing, watches and camping supplies. The plan is to offer some of the items in Zippo boutiques, including one due to open within six months at New York’s Kennedy airport. Zippo hopes to reduce its dependency on smoking-related items as governments around the world deploy taxes and health warnings against tobacco.
最近几个月，通过推出香水和其他以Zippo为商标的产品，例如休闲服饰、手表 和野营用品，这个家族式企业已经加快了业务多元化的步伐。根据这项计划,Zippo 专卖店，包括一家将于六个月内在纽约甘乃迪机场开业的新店，将出售部分上述产 品。考虑到全球各国政府对烟草课征重税并发出健康瞀吿，Zippo希望通过这些举 动来减轻公司对吸烟相关产品的依赖程度。
“We’re turning ourselves into a lifestyle-products company,” says Greg Booth, Zippo’s chief executive. Other companies with iconic brands, such as Harley-Davidson Inc” have successfully placed their logos on apparel, iewelry and other items. But few of them face as big a challenge as Zippo’s strong association with tobacco.
Zippo首席执行长格瑞戈?布斯称,Zippo正在转型为一家生活用品公司。像哈 雷?大卫森这样拥有图腾性品牌的其他公司已经成功地将他们的标识推广至服装、 珠宝和其他产品上。但是,几乎没有哪家公司像Zippo这样因为与烟草行业紧密相 关而面临如此巨大的挑战。
Stretching a brand to fit different merchandise “is very hard to do,” adds Allen Adamson, managing director at the branding consultancy Landor Associates in New York. He says it works best if a company focuses on one or two potential hit products. It also helps to choose products that are “reasonably close” in function or style to the original item, Mr. Adamson says.
纽约朗涛设计顾问公司的董事总经理艾伦?亚当姆森称，扩展一个品牌使其适 应不同的商品是一件非常困难的事。他说，如果一家公司专注于一两样可能取得成 功的商品，就能达到最佳效果。选择与原产品功能或类型适当接近的产品也会有所 说明。
In the 1960s and 1970s, Zippo tried to spread its bets by making tape measures, key holders and belt buckles, but all were later discontinued. Zippo even considered making golf-ball warmers to increase driving distances, only to conclude that the legal liability would be too great if the heated projectiles bounced off people’s heads. Over the past two decades it has added pocket knives and leather purses. But last year, lighters still accounted for 54% of the company’s $200 million in sales. Unit lighter sales now run at 12 million a year, down from a peak of 18 million in 1998，and Mr. Booth doesn’t expect a rebound.
在20世纪六七十年代，ZiPPo曾试图通过生产卷尺、钥匙架和皮带扣来扩展其 产品线，但后来这些东西都停产了。Zippo甚至考虑过生产高尔夫球加热装置来扩 大产品线，但最终得出的结论是，如果加热后弹出的球体击中人们的头部，将给公 司带来很大的法律责任。在过去的20￥间，该公司在其产品线中增加了 口袋刀和皮 革钱包这两种产品。但是去年，打火机依然占该公司2亿美元总销售额的54%。目前，打火机每年的单位产品销售额为1200万美元，低于1998年巅峰时期的1800万美 元。布斯预计这个销售额不会反弹。
Zippo’s men’s fragrance, launched late last year in Europe, is made under license by Mavive SpA of Italy. Zippo hopes to introduce the scent in the U.S. and Asia in 2012.
去年下半年在欧洲推出的Zippo男士香水是在意太利公司Mavive SpA的授权下 制造的。Zippo希望能在2012年将这种香水推向美国和亚洲。