Nielsen report: Vuse market share dropped to 41.1%, NJoy sales increased by 8% in four weeks

Nielsen report: Vuse market share dropped to 41.1%, NJoy sales increased by 8% in four weeks

According to the Nielsen Convenience Store Report, the overall sales volume of the US e-cigarette market fell by 15.7%, while illegal products continued to encroach on market share, a trend that led to the establishment of a federal multi-agency task force.

According to a recent report by Journalnow, the US e-cigarette market share and revenue continued to be eroded by illegal products, which prompted the establishment of a federal multi-agency task force.

According to the Nielsen Convenience Store Report, overall e-cigarette sales fell 15.7% year-on-year in the four weeks ending June 1. The report mainly covers large chains, and trends in small chains are inferred, so changes are not immediately reflected in the report.

In the latest report, the market share of R.J. Reynolds Vapor Co.'s best-selling product Vuse e-cigarettes fell again, from 41.4% to 41.1%; while the second-ranked Juul rose from 23.6% to 24%. Back in May 2019, Juul's share of the US e-cigarette market was as high as 74.6%, but consumer demand fell due to a series of regulatory measures and concessions to reduced products.

NJoy's e-cigarette market share rose from 3.3% to 3.4%. Among the major e-cigarette manufacturers in the United States, NJoy was the only company with an 8% sales growth in four weeks. In June 2023, Altria acquired NJoy, the third largest e-cigarette company in the United States, for $2.75 billion. Previously, in March 2023, Altria cleared the obstacles to the acquisition of NJoy by exiting its minority stake in Juul and obtaining global licensing rights.

Fontem Ventures' blu eCigs, a subsidiary of Imperial Brands Plc, ranked fourth with an unchanged market share of 1%.

David Sweanor, an adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa Law School and the author of numerous studies on e-cigarettes and health, said,

"Consumers are turning to vaping products that Nielson does not measure (most of the unapproved illegal products on the market today) and nicotine pouches."

British American Tobacco and Altria are both urging the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to strengthen enforcement against "illegal" synthetic nicotine e-cigarettes in the U.S. e-cigarette market. The two companies estimate that these synthetic products account for about half of the overall domestic e-cigarette market.

 

On June 11, the U.S. Department of Justice and the FDA announced the formation of a task force to address the domestic distribution and sale of illegal e-cigarettes.

 

The participating agencies include: the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the US Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and other agencies may join the task force.

 

The task force will focus on a number of topics, including investigation and prosecution of new criminal, civil, seizure and forfeiture actions under the PACT Act and the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and its amendment, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.

 

Violations of these statutes can result in felony convictions, significant criminal and civil penalties, and the seizure of unauthorized products.

 

"Enforcement of illegal e-cigarettes is a multifaceted problem that requires a multifaceted response," said Brian King, director of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products, in a press release.

 

ZYN is the top-selling oral nicotine product, with sales increasing 72.7% year-over-year to approximately $2 billion in annual sales. ZYN leads with 25.9% market share, followed by Altria's Copenhagen at 23.8%; Reynolds' American Snuff Co.'s Grizzly is third at 16.9%.

 

Meanwhile, traditional cigarette sales fell 6.3% year-over-year in the latest report: Philip Morris USA (down 6.7%), R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (down 6.9%) and ITG Brands (down 5.4%).

 

Philip Morris' market share remained at 50.9% in the latest Nielsen report, and its best-selling brand Marlboro, which accounted for 46% of the overall market share, also remained unchanged.

 

Reynolds' market share was 33%, with the second-largest brand Newport accounting for 12.4%, followed by Camel (8%), Natural American Tobacco (3.5%) and Pall Mall (3.5%).

 

ITG's overall market share was 8.4%. Its seventh-ranked brand Winston remained at 2%, while Kool and Maverick took the eighth (1.7%) and ninth (1.7%) positions respectively.