SANTA FE, N.M. -- Beginning June 1, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co., the maker of Natural American Spirit cigarettes, is converting its 10M case (50 cartons) to the industry standard 12M (60 cartons) and 6M (30 cartons) cases.
John Collins, Santa Fe's sales planning manager, said it is making the change to make things easier on our distributors and retailers. The new 12M case packaging is designed to go through cutting and stamping machines with no hand labor. This move will also help us be more responsive to customers by improving their warehouse efficiency [image-nocss] and order frequency.
He added, Since some of our customers prefer parcel carrier shipping, we've designed a protective outer sleeve for the 12M cases shipped via parcel carrier. The sleeve is easily removed prior to processing through automated stamping equipment.
To service smaller retailers and ensure the highest quality, certain styles will be available only in 6M cases and other styles in 12M cases, the company said. For example, Menthol Filter, Perique and Organic styles will be available in 30-carton, 6M cases. Regular, Medium and Ultra Light Filter hard packs will ship in 12M, 60-carton cases. 10M case orders will be history, as they say, after Friday, June 1, Collins said.
In another move to make things less complicated for distributors and retailers, Santa Fe is also discontinuing Medium Filter soft pack and Ultra Light Filter soft pack for both standard and what some state legislators refer to as fire-safe products. The company has seen increasing customer demand for hard packs.
These styles will continue to be sold in soft pack until supplies are depleted, which is expected in early June, Collins said. We'll keep customers informed regarding availability at the time of ordering. Both Medium and Ultra Light Filters will continue to be available in hard pack.
Given increasing legislation by the states to require what they describe as fire-safe' cigarettes, many wholesalers are forced to carry multiple inventories to deal with states that have and don't have fire-safe' requirements, he said. By delisting Medium and Ultra Light soft packs, we hope to help wholesalers maximize warehouse space and provide products with the greatest demand.
The company urges wholesalers carrying Medium or Ultra Light only in soft pack to make the conversion to hard pack as soon as possible, selling out soft packs and increasing hard-pack inventory.
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