Category Management | Vape & Cigars
OTP Gains and Losses Price differences give electronic smoking devices (ESDs) a financial advantage over cigars; however, cigars outpace ESDs in unit sales. Total U.S. Convenience Stores
Cigars
Electronic Smoking Devices
52-Week Dollar Sales (ending June 13, 2021)
$3.91 B
$5.36 B
6.4%
12.4%
2.38 B
410 M
1-Year % Change
-1.0%
18.0%
Price Per Unit
$1.64
$13.08
1-Year % Change 52-Week Unit Sales
Source: IRI Market Advantage, Total US Conv. Ending June 13, 2021; received July 7, 2021
More than 6 million PMTAs were accepted, and the agency’s 12-month deadline to decide whether a product can remain available for retail sale or must be pulled from shelves once and for all is fast approaching. “At a recent House hearing, Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock pledged the FDA would make every effort to conclude review of the PMTAs from the top five vaping companies by the fall deadline,” said Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association. “The FDA does not exactly have the best track record on keeping to their pledges, but it seems likely that decisions will be made on, at minimum, the tobacco and menthol varieties of Juul, Vuse, NJOY, etc., by September.” In the meantime, vape sales keep generating encouraging numbers. IRI data for U.S. convenience stores shows dollar and unit sales for electronic smoking devices each climbed approximately 14% for the four weeks ending June 13. A 12-week review revealed a gain of 16.3% in dollar sales and 18.6% in unit sales. “From where we were a year ago to now, I would guess we’re selling at least 10 times 50
CSTORE DECISIONS •
August 2021
more in vape products, with brands like Vuse, Posh and Excel,” said John Archer, owner of Shell Food Mart in Hinsdale, Ill. MIXED MESSAGES FOR CIGARS
Overall, cigars started the year on a strong footing, too. According to the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) State of the Industry report, the cigar market share of OTPs grew by nearly two points between 2019 and 2020. “In our market, cigars are a bigger seller than vape or e-cigarettes. While there seems to be more advertising dedicated to the vape category, and we have seen an increase in these sales over the past few years, cigars still are a better seller,” said Nathan Arnold, director of marketing for Englefield Inc. The familyowned company runs 119 Duchess c-stores throughout Ohio and West Virginia. “Cigars are growing because manufacturers seem to slowly be catching up on the production side, so we actually have product to sell,” added Jesse Dix, category manager for Dandy, which operates 67 locations in New York and Pennsylvania.
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