The national nonprofit We Card Program Inc. is launching a new in-store program to address “social sourcing,” where legal-age adults purchase tobacco and vaping products for someone underage.

Since We Card’s launch in 1996, stakeholders, including retailers, national associations, manufacturers and others, have worked diligently to improve compliance with ever-changing age-restricted product laws. In 1997, the national reported sales rate to people underage was 40%. Now, that figure is approximately 10%, according to the most recent government-issued 2018 SAMHSA Synar Report.

Meanwhile, social sourcing, the gifting or proxy purchase by another or transfer from one person to another, continues to rise unchecked.

After field testing and research including a pilot program, the We Card Program has begun rollout of a national in-store campaign to raise awareness of the problem and is introducing this program to the nation’s retailers at no cost.

The new campaign seeks to raise awareness of a key element of the social sourcing issue—adult purchases of tobacco and vaping products on behalf of those underage—and offers retailers an opportunity to address the issue.

“We Card’s new in-store campaign complements rather than replaces existing responsible retailing efforts to identify and deny underage purchase attempts of age-restricted products like tobacco and vaping products,” said Doug Anderson, president of We Card Program Inc. 

There are two in-store options for the campaign:

• Be A Real Influencer includes an eye-catching set of friendly, young adults aged 21+, inspiring customers to “be a real influencer” (a role model) and be comfortable saying “no” when asked by people underage to buy or give them tobacco and vaping products.

• The We Card We Care campaign alerts customers: “If they’re under 21: NO Bumming. NO Borrowing. And NO Buying for Them.”

“We encourage retailers to reinvigorate their age validation efforts to identify and deny underage purchase attempts of tobacco and vaping products and any age-restricted product,” said Lyle Beckwith, NACS senior vice president of government relations and a We Card board member.

“Shining a light on the problem of social sourcing, which is a growing challenge, is another way convenience stores and every type of store can help reduce youth access to age-restricted products,” Beckwith added.

Each campaign includes a variety of in-store signage with a QR code call-to-action for customers to scan with their smartphone to learn more and interact with the campaign website. We Card will run supportive social and digital communications. Both campaigns were nationally field tested across a wide range of retail store types.

Distributors and manufacturers are playing an important role to help raise awareness and alert retailers to the new campaign. “We’ve activated our distributor network and are pleased to be part of this industry-wide effort,” said Kimberly Bolin, president and CEO of the Convenience Distribution Association and a We Card board member.

Retailers are posting both campaigns in-store all throughout 2023 and 2024 as it is a long-term, multiple-year campaign. Retailers can order either campaign at wecard.org/Free-Kit.