ROLL-YOUR-OWN tobacco sales are booming and for British American Tobacco it isn’t all about the cost.
“For a long time RYO was an option for adult smokers who were interested in price. Today, RYO is an option for adult smokers who are interested in both price and taste,” a BAT spokesperson said.
The firm has two brands designed to meet different demands of RYO consumers, Pall Mall RYO and Cutters Choice.
“Pall Mall RYO is BAT’s price fighter,” said Pall Mall brand executive Fiona Biggs.
“We’ve provided retailers the opportunity to deliver their customers the lowest-priced 10g in the market.
“Growth in the 20g – 25g segment is driven by papers in pouch offerings,” she said.
“So we decided to offer an upgrade that would give wholesalers and retailers more of an opportunity to cash in on this phenomenon. We’re now offering papers in Pall Mall RYO 20g packs.
“We’re encouraged by the feedback we’ve had from retailers so far.”
BAT recently carried out significant work on its Cutters Choice range of RYO tobaccos, introducing pack changes and extending the collection by launching a new line.
Now the tobaccos in the collection come in packs featuring a vertical rather than horizontal layout. And as well as the established Cutters Choice Smooth Blend and True Blend products there’s Cutters Choice Exquisite Blend. It’s designed, says BAT, for RYO smokers that want tobacco with a richer taste.
The firm says the new line “rounds out the Cutters Choice range” and increasing numbers of independents are stocking the full range.
After the changes Cutters Choice – original Smooth Blend featured the same blend in a new pack. The 50g size moved to 40g. The 12.5g and 25g sizes remained available.
Smooth Blend features tobacco of Zimbabwean origin. BAT says the tropical climate, with a rainy season, gives a bright and bread-like taste with fruity undertones.
Cutters Choice – A True Blend got a new pack and the tobacco blend saw its moisture increased, as requested by consumers, the firm said. It’s available in 12.5g packs and has been priced, in selected cash and carries, to give retailers 15% profit on return. The tobacco, from the Zambezi river valley, is described as having a bright and aromatic taste with spicy and nutty hints.
Cutters Choice – Exquisite Blend is, says BAT, a premium blend at a value-for-money price. It is marketed in 12.5g packs and has been available at prices designed to provide 15% POR. The tobacco comes from “a variety of extreme soils” that give a character “in keeping with its Virginia DNA”.
The Cutters Choice tobaccos hold the Perfect Leaf stamp – the British American Tobacco master blenders’ stamp of quality.
