NEW YORK — Total nicotine volume sales for the two weeks ending June 13 increased 1.4%, indicating consumption continues to pick up, a New York analyst said.
Cigarette and cigar volumes saw the most growth during that time, growing 3.2% and 6.5%, respectively, Bonnie Herzog, managing director of Goldman Sachs, said in a research note that looked at all retail channels.
Smokeless category volumes, including modern oral nicotine, were down 0.9% and e-cigarette/vapor category volumes were down 19.1%.
Dollar sales for cigarettes for the two weeks ending June 13 increased 3.3% and smokeless dollar sales increased 5.9%, Herzog said. E-cigarette dollar sales, however, declined 21.8% during that time, she said, led by market leader Juul, which was down 33%.
“Overall category declines were broadly driven by the e-cig refill market, which is nearly 90% of the total category and includes rechargeable, non-tobacco/menthol flavored cartridges/pods that have been FDA-restricted since Jan 2020,” Herzog said. “While the refill market contracts, the much smaller e-cig disposable market (about 4% of category) has thrived as it falls outside the FDA’s flavor ban.”
Puff Bar, Stig and other small but fast-growing players, like Fogg, are currently the biggest winners in disposables, Herzog said, although there is mounting pressure to clamp down on the segment.
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