This article is brought to you by Kretek International.

In 2023, menthol smokers accounted for 32.5% of all cigarette smokers, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). That’s a core customer segment that c-stores might lose if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enacts its federal menthol cigarette and flavored cigar bans. The menthol ban has been looming on the horizon for more than a decade. While President Biden delayed the ban even further in April, retailers need to prepare now for this shakeup in the backbar even though enforcement could still be a year or more away.

Menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars account for about 6% of c-store inside sales, or roughly $18 billion for the industry, according to Kretek International, an importer and distributor of premium tobacco products.

Retailers in California and Massachusetts have already seen revenue losses firsthand after the states instituted menthol bans, with users either driving across state lines to stock up on products or, even worse for everyone involved, buying illicit versions on the black market. This behavior shows that menthol smokers are loyal enough to the flavor that when menthol cigarettes are banned, many won’t just quit or switch to regular cigarettes or other tobacco options.

A looming ban and the significant loss of sales dollars that comes with it means retailers need to position themselves to retain this segment of customers.

But with consumers having distinct reasons to smoke menthols, a preference for the flavor’s experiential quality, and for many, a distaste for non-flavored cigarettes, it begs the question—where will menthol smokers turn in the absence of the product they’re loyal to?

Kretek commissioned two years of independent product research and focus group studies to learn what really makes menthol smokers tick—their habits, their needs and preferences and most importantly, what they’ll likely buy if they can’t smoke menthols.

Menthol Means More

Menthol smokers have distinct preferences from cigarette smokers and overall tobacco users. For example, in consumer surveys conducted by Kretek, 59% of menthol smokers ranked taste as their main motivating factor, compared to only 24% who said nicotine was most important.

“For menthol smokers, the word ‘taste’ is shorthand for everything about their enjoyment,” said John Geoghegan, a consultant for Kretek with over 30 years in the tobacco industry, noting that these consumers consider smoking a menthol cigarette a unique, multisensory experience. “It’s a deeper feeling of relaxation and calm that goes beyond words.”

“There is an expressed ritual to a menthol smoke that we didn’t hear from non-menthol smokers in our research,” he continued. “A dedicated moment set aside to just ‘be.’ They liken it to that first cup of coffee you have when you wake up.”

To continue reading, check out the October 2024 issue of NACS Magazine.