Mitt Romney's Bain Helped Philip Morris Get U.S. High Schoolers Hooked On Cigarettes
On Friday April 2, 1993, Philip Morris stunned Wall Street and tobacco experts by the slashing price on its flagship Marlboro brand by 40 cents a pack, to $1.80. It was a landmark day for the tobacco industry, one that became known as "Marlboro Friday" to public health experts.
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Philip Morris's internal documents link its price cut to research performed by Bain. Prior to the cut, Bain conducted a two-week test in 71 stores, records show, where retailers cut the price of Marlboro packs by 35 cents. The company reported a 12 percent increase in the number of Marlboro cigarettes sold.
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At the time, Mitt Romney was CEO of Bain & Co. He took the reins in October 1990, according to a 1994 Boston Globe story, and led the consulting firm for years. The Romney campaign declined to provide specific start and end dates for his tenure at Bain & Co., but stated that he ran the firm "from 1990 - 1992," and said that Romney "rescue[d] the firm from the brink of collapse and save[d] 1000 jobs." That timeline is contradicted by FDIC documents obtained by Rolling Stone that list Romney as the firm's leader in March 1993, and by SEC filings uncovered by the Associated Press that list Romney as CEO of Bain & Co. as late as October 1993. Media reports show Romney attending Bain & Co. meetings during his 1994 campaign for Senate.
Philip Morris CEO Campbell touted Bain's research in a February 1993 speech to the National Association of Convenience Stores, emphasizing that the right promotion and display tactics could increase both discount and premium brand sales volumes, with total store revenues climbing 5 percent in the Bain study.
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/16/mitt-romney-bain-philip-morris_n_1968152.html?utm_hp_ref=politics
Good article, worth reading.
