Make A Mint There's more to intense mints than tasty kisses.

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.