Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Definitely a social phenomenon aimed at the ever-increasingdemographic of 15- to 35-year-old tech-savvy, extroverted hipsterswhose biggest fear may well be halitosis and who would have noqualms about spending $5 or less on the next new anything, the"intense mint" is hot. Fueled by the early 1990sreintroduction of Callard & Bowser-Suchard's infamousAltoids, it has become one of the fastest-growing segments in thecandy industry.
"Despite the fact that [Altoids] have been around since thereign of King George III," says senior brand manager ChrisPeddy, "we're very much on track with today's consumerattitudes." With America's attraction to strong-flavoredfoods, he adds, "power mints were a naturaloccurrence."
Whether their popularity is due to the whole "curiouslystrong" appeal, word-of-mouth buzz generated by high-profileconsumers like Monica Lewinsky, or simply a desire for nonoffendingbreath, Altoids are pushing intense mints in the right direction.With a 58 percent sales increase from 1997 to 1998, according toInformation Resources Inc., in the midst of a $302 millionbreath-freshener industry, intense mints have built a significantlystrong fan base.
Meanwhile, a handful of mint-producing companies have emerged,like the online mint store http://www.goodleaf.com and ifiveBrands with its Penguin Caffeinated Peppermints, the first mint totout physical and mental augmentation.
"People are looking for higher-quality items that are stillaffordable, yet something they can treat themselves to," saysAmy Katz, who, with partner Donna Slavitt, created Webfuel, a mintcarried in a tin shaped like a computer mouse and accompanied by alist of Web sites for your visiting pleasure.
Jim Corcoran of The National Confectioners Association agrees:"Consumers are demanding more when it comes to mint flavors,and they're willing to try new products, so now is a good timeto be [involved]."
Postscript
Before you know it, they're grown up . . .
THEN: In 1994, we wrote of Chad Oberson, who foundedPennywhistle Lawn Service in Concord Township, Ohio, at age 10, andat age 18 won the Johnson & Wales Outstanding High SchoolEntrepreneur Award. With a roster of 50 customers, $25,000 in salesand the award of a four-year scholarship to attend Johnson &Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, opportunities seemedlimitless.
NOW: We found this ambitious youth, as suspected, veryhealthy, quite wealthy and extremely wise. Oberson went on to startan investment firm, simply titled MFI. With more than 200 accountsand offices in Westchester and Fairfield, Ohio, you'd thinkthis 23-year-old would be content, but Oberson has even grandervisions. "I want to own a broker firm," he says. "Ihave this vision of creating a huge firm someday."
. . . and leaving home.
THEN: Back in 1995, Glenn Paul was heralded the winner ofEntrepreneur's AT&T Home-Based Entrepreneur of theYear Contest, and his $2.5 million computer and software company,QwikQuote Development Corp., had taken over his Robbinsville, NewJersey, town house--where products were developed on the kitchentable and the company's file server and fax machine were housedin the laundry room.
NOW: Paul, 42, and co-founder Alan Katz have taken theircompany from town house to office suite and renamed it ElectronicBusiness Universe (EBU). Although QwikQuote Sales Quoting Softwarecontinues to be their main product, Paul and Katz are convinced thefuture of medicine is in computerized screening of compounds.Seeking an investor, EBU hopes to become the world's leadingpharmaceutical contract research organization.
Book `Em
By Laura Tiffany
In your business dealings, is it better to be like a lion or arabbit? A lion roaring at the competition, right? Wrong. Theinsecure rabbit lives the longest. Knowing your place in the foodchain is just one of the unique tidbits of advice Miles Spencer andCliff Ennico offer in Money Hunt: 27 New Rules for Creating andGrowing a Breakaway Business (HarperBusiness, $25). Read theirexamples of real-life entrepreneurs, and you'll understand whyduring a gold rush, you need to be selling shovels.
Leadership for Dummies (IDG Books Worldwide, $19.99) byMarshall Loeb and Stephen Kindel is exactly what it sounds like: aneasy-to-read guide on all aspects of leadership, from building astrong team to articulating your vision. You can't miss thebull's-eye tips. And with anecdotes from the worlds ofbusiness, military, sports and volunteer organizations, you canlead your daughter's soccer team as well as your employees.
Contact Sources
Information Resources Inc., http://www.infores.com
MFI Investments, (800) 891-6458, choberson@hotmail.com
National Confectioners Association, 7900 Westpark Dr.,Ste. A-320, McLean, VA 22102, jcorcora@candyusa.com
QuikQuote, glenn@quikquote.com
Webfuel, (212) 644-0447, sales@webfuel.com
