Altria acquires Green Smoke

Altria Group’s NuMark subsidiary has acquired the e-vapor business Green Smoke for $110 million in cash plus up to $20 million in incentive payments, reports Wells Fargo Securities.

Posting $40 million revenue in 2013, the majority of Green Smoke’s sales are online in the U.S. The company’s retail sales in convenience stores were $3.9 million last year, according to Nielsen, representing a 0.8 percent market share.

According to Wells Fargo, Green Smoke presents an opportunity for Altria to develop a portfolio of e-vapor brands to complement its existing MarkTen e-vapor product. Green Smokes products are bigger and have stronger batteries than MarkTens, and they don’t look like traditional cigarettes.

Wells Fargo believes Altria can leverage its sales force, retailer relationships and marketing expertise to quickly bring broader distribution to Green Smoke.