TAAT Accelerates Convenience Strategy
By Hannah Hammond on Sep. 13, 2022LAS VEGAS and VANCOUVER, B.C. — TAAT Global Alternatives is expanding its presence in convenience stores.
In September, TAAT, which sells tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes, began working with B&B Beyond to expand its reach in the channel, growing sales at Speedee Mart c-stores and scoring a spot at all 34 Texas Buc-ee’s stores.
TAAT's cigarettes come in Original, Smooth and Menthol. Its base material is Beyond Tobacco, a proprietary blend that undergoes a patent-pending refinement technique causing it to smell and taste like tobacco, according to the company.
Click through to read more on the company’s recent milestones…
TAAT Sales Grow at Speedee Mart
TAAT sales have increased by about 200% month-over-month at the Speedee Mart chain, which has 22 locations in and around Las Vegas, according to TAAT.
Based on recent improvements to in-store activation strategies and localized marketing initiatives targeted toward adult smokers in Las Vegas, TAAT sales have tripled across the Speedee Mart chain from July 2022 to August 2022, TAAT said. Speedee Mart started selling TAAT in March.
“Although we can only share so much about our playbook for competitive reasons, something I’ve been vocal about is the role of ‘focus markets’ in our commercialization strategy,” TAAT CEO Michael Saxon said. “Selling new products, especially category creators, in the [consumer packaged goods] and tobacco categories isn’t as simple as just putting it on the shelf. There needs to be a concentrated effort between sales and marketing to make adult smokers aware that the product exists, create moments that generate trials of the product and convert that interest into recurring purchases.”
Part of that marketing strategy has been to be present at prominent local events in Las Vegas and expanding its portfolio of retailers throughout the city, TAAT said.
TAAT determined that its home office, Las Vegas, would be its top priority market in 2022, Saxon said. The plan on deploying the same approach in other priority markets like San Diego and Texas and more in 2023, he said.
Buc-ee’s to Sell TAAT
Buc-ee’s, a 41-store chain based in Lake Jackson, Texas, will sell TAAT’s tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes its 34 Texas locations, the company said. The retailer has 43 locations in seven Southern U.S. states.
The move is part of TAAT’s rollout across the Lone Star State.
“Placing TAAT in all Texas locations of one of the best-known local retailers is an incredible milestone for our brand, as we continue to build our awareness with adult smokers,” Saxon said. “We are thankful to the Buc-ee’s team for providing TAAT with prime merchandising and advertising placement behind each of its 143 cash registers in its Texas locations. We are putting a strategic focus on Texas, for which Buc-ee’s will be our initial anchor account. Our success in Buc-ee’s will help us further expand in one the of the country’s largest states, which has approximately 28,000 tobacco retailers.”
TAAT Partners with B&B Beyond
TAAT has entered into a representation agreement with B&B Beyond LLC. B&B Beyond will leverage its relationships to present TAAT to the management teams of national and regional convenience-store chains, industry associations and wholesale buying cooperatives.
B&B Beyond is operated by two c-store executives, Brent Taylor and Brad Call. Call was NACS chairman from 2013-2014.
Before entering the c-store brokerage space, Taylor was the executive director of marketing for Maverik, a Salt Lake City-based convenience retailer. He later was chief operating officer of the South Texas Merchants’ Association, coordinating contracts with national brands for about 450 independent stores, according to TAAT.
Call also joined Maverik as a third-generation member of its founding family.
“We are fully committed to our mission of driving disruption in the tobacco channel through the introduction of TAAT to convenience stores as a nicotine-free and tobacco-free choice for adult smokers,” Call said. “Besides its role in tobacco harm reduction, TAAT is offered at an attractive price point with significantly higher margin for retailers, which is why we are confident that TAAT will offer a compelling value proposition for our contacts in convenience. Our initial presentations to decision-makers of retail chains and independent wholesale buying cooperatives have yielded very positive responses, and we are excited to pursue this engagement with TAAT as we work together to scale the brand’s footprint nationally.”
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