Tobacco
The C-Store Pipe-Tobacco Opportunity
Are retailers missing out on one of tobacco’s greatest growth segments?
Tobacco
FDA Proposes E-Cig Minimum Age Requirements, More
Would extend authority to electronic cigarettes, cigars, dissolvables, OTP
Convenience store sales of cigarettes fell 1.4%, with units off more than 2% in 2013, according to IRI. The biggest areas of growth in the category could be found in smokeless—unit sales rose nearly 4% for chewing tobacco and snuff, with spitless tobacco up almost 3%. Electronic smoking devices—IRI’s term for e-cigarettes—rose by triple-digit percentages on an expanding base.
Last year, our CSP vice president and group editor, Mitch Morrison, called for the FDA to take action on tobacco regulation and resolve a slew of unanswered questions. For the most part, that hasn’t happened. This year, I’m calling for retailers to take action. Don’t wait for the FDA— go on the offensive before it’s too late to build a solid defense.