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Category: Around the Industry

  • General Files Latest Appeal in Ongoing Cohiba Case

    General Files Latest Appeal in Ongoing Cohiba Case

    General Cigar Co. filed a notice of appeal in General Cigar Company, Inc. v. Empresa Cubana del Tabaco, D.B.A. Cubatabaco, last week, a lawsuit over the trademark of the Cohiba name in the U.S. that began in 1997. The May decision by Judge Leonie Brinkema would allow the TTAB to cancel General’s U.S. Cohiba trademarks, according to Halfwheel.

    “We are of course disappointed by this decision, but we and our advisors will now study the ruling closely and of course consider the opportunity to appeal to the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit,” said Régis Broersma, chief commercial officer of STG, owner of General Cigar Co., in a press release following last month’s ruling. “Our federal trademark registrations which are the subject of the dispute, would remain valid and enforceable during a pending appeal. We expect the long dispute to continue before the courts.”

    Broersma indicated General would file an appeal, which it now has. The appeal is listed as a restricted entry in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit’s electronic filing system. No product changes for either company are expected anytime soon.

  • Riot Labs Introduces Five Limited-Edition Flavors

    Riot Labs Introduces Five Limited-Edition Flavors

    E-liquid producer Riot Labs unveiled five limited-edition flavors for its premium Bar EDTN e-liquid range. Joining the 40-strong range of premium Bar EDTN e-liquids, the limited-edition flavors are Black Grape Glacier, Pink Razz Citrus, Blueberry Acai Cooler, Apple Lime Chill, and Strawberry Melon Cooler. The new flavors also contain a hint of mint.

    “We spent all our budget on creating the best flavors imaginable for the limited edition range, leaving us nothing leftover for the marketing budget,” said Andy Dunn, marketing manager for Riot Labs. “So, excuse the unfinished ads, we’ll let the flavors do the talking!” 

    All flavors are available in four nicotine strengths including 0mg, 5mg, 10mg and 20mg, from a starting price of £3.99.

  • BAT Launching Search for Next Chairman

    BAT Launching Search for Next Chairman

    Sky News is reporting that British American Tobacco is in the process of picking headhunters as it prepares to start the search for a new board chairman. Luc Jobin, a Canadian business veteran, has chaired BAT since 2021 but has been on the board since 2017. Under UK corporate governance guidelines, directors are no longer deemed independent if they have served for more than nine years.

    Sky News said the search for his successor is not expected to conclude until later this year or early 2026, according to insiders.

    With a market capitalization of over £77bn, BAT remains one of the largest companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. The company’s continued success is being fueled by next-generation products such as Velo nicotine pouches.

    BAT declined to comment to Sky News.

  • Delaware Looks to Jack Taxes on Nicotine Products Across the Board

    Delaware Looks to Jack Taxes on Nicotine Products Across the Board

    With less than a month left in this year’s half of the two-year General Assembly, new legislation was filed in Delaware’s House that would raise taxes on tobacco and nicotine products and implement higher fees for licensed tobacco sellers and vending machine operators. Delaware’s cigarette tax is currently $2.10. The proposal would increase it to $3.60 per pack.

    The sponsors said they hope this will discourage people—especially the young—from using tobacco, and that the extra revenue would help address the half-billion-dollar estimated cost of treating tobacco-related health issues in The First State each year.

    The legislation also would update the definition of tobacco products to “include any products containing, made of, or derived from tobacco or nicotine, rather than only those made primarily from tobacco.”

    In addition to raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by $1.50, this bill would raise the tax on other tobacco products from 30% to 45% of the wholesale price, increase the moist snuff tax from $0.92 to $1.23 per ounce, expand the vapor product tax from $0.05 to $0.25 per milliliter, increase fees for wholesalers and affixing agents from $200 to $400, increase fees for retailers from $50 to $100, increase vending machine fees from $15 to $30 per machine, and increase the replacement fee for lost or defaced licenses from $10 to $20.

    If the bill passes, the new tax rates would take effect September 1st, while the licensing changes would take effect January 1st, 2026.

  • BAT Launches New Heated Device in Japan

    BAT Launches New Heated Device in Japan

    Today (June 9), BAT launched the glo Hilo in Japan, what it calls the first and only heated product (HP) featuring Turbostart technology that heats sticks in just five seconds. The device uses a quartz heating element that uses both resistive heating and infrared waves.

    “glo Hilo is a breakthrough system that will reshape the way glo is positioned in the HP category, allowing it to compete effectively in the premium segment,” BAT said in its press release. “To support glo Hilo, BAT is also launching the new ‘Myglo’ app which enables consumers to stay in control of their device usage, personalize the display, find their device if it’s been misplaced, or lock it.”

    BAT also announced that virto, a new consumable, has also been launched to support the glo Hilo system. virto consists of blended tobacco delivered through a uniquely engineered structure for precision heat transfer to every part of the stick, achieving consistent airflow.

    “We are very excited to introduce glo Hilo in Japan, and it’s even more meaningful to be bringing back glo to its birthplace—nine years since its world-first launch in Sendai in 2016.”

    The new products will be available for purchase at major convenience stores in Sendai City and on the official glo online store. The glo range is sold in over 30 markets around the world.

  • Kenya: Illicit Cigarettes Jump to 37% of the Market 

    Kenya: Illicit Cigarettes Jump to 37% of the Market 

    Kenya is losing more than Sh9 billion ($69 million) annually in potential revenue (taxes and levies) to the illicit cigarette trade, a new report now indicates, with almost all of these products being smuggled into the country. The newly released findings from a study conducted by international research company Kantar indicate that the illicit cigarette trade in Kenya has soared to a record high, with more than one in three cigarettes sold in the market not paying taxes.

    BAT Kenya is calling for urgent action by the authorities to tackle and mitigate the profound implications of illicit trade in cigarettes, and said “this alarming situation calls for drastic, multipronged action to seal the loopholes and protect legitimate business in Kenya.”

    “This alarming rise in illegal cigarette trade is not only depriving the Kenyan government of vital revenue needed for the country’s economic stability, but is also undermining the security and livelihoods of thousands of Kenyans in our value chain,” BAT Kenya managing director Crispin Achola said. “The illicit trade in cigarettes is not only an economic issue, it is a matter of national security and public interest.”

    Last year, the value of smuggled and counterfeit goods seized at Kenya’s entry points, reached Sh243. 5 million ($1.9 million), according to Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), up from Sh200 million ($1.5 million) the previous year. Reports also suggest illicit cigarettes jumped from occupying 27% of the market to 37% in just one year.  

  • Op-Ed: SHORT-SIGHTED AND INEFFECTIVE – VAPE BANS ARE NOT THE ANSWER

    Op-Ed: SHORT-SIGHTED AND INEFFECTIVE – VAPE BANS ARE NOT THE ANSWER

    By Dato Adzwan Abdul Manas, President, Malaysia Retail Electronic Cigarette Association (MRECA)

    Across Malaysia, we’re witnessing a growing wave of state-led attempts to ban vape products, with Perlis, Terengganu, and Kedah – all governed by opposition parties – announcing prohibitions, with Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan reportedly considering the same.

    Publicly, leaders and MPs are now echoing calls for a nationwide ban, citing concerns over vape products laced with drugs and growing concern over youth vaping.

    Let us be clear: these concerns are real, but the proposed solutions are dangerously flawed.

    The reason we are seeing issues like underage use and contaminated products is not because of the legal vape industry. It is because irresponsible, illegal retailers and criminal syndicates continue to operate without fear of consequences. These bad actors have no regard for regulations, age restrictions, or product safety. They are the ones supplying unregistered products, selling to minors, and introducing dangerous substances into the supply chain.

    Banning vape will not stop these criminals. It will only penalise legitimate, regulated businesses, whilst empowering the black market.

    The leaders now calling for a ban are reacting to the harm caused by illegal and unregulated players. But instead of focusing efforts on enforcement to eliminate these elements, they propose a blanket ban that would wipe out responsible retailers, many of whom are registered and comply with all current regulations.

    If we take the easy way out and ban vape outright, we risk creating an entirely unregulated underground market. Everything will be black market. No age checks, no quality control, no accountability. This is the worst possible outcome for public health.

    We must remember that the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852), has now been introduced. This is the very tool meant to bring vape into a regulated space, to ensure product safety, protect youth, and allow only legal players to operate. Why are we not concentrating our energy on implementing this law effectively, with robust enforcement to weed out the bad actors?

    According to Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) Malaysia 2023 survey by the Institute for Public Health under the Ministry of Health, the majority of vape users are aged 15 to 24 years. These numbers did not emerge under a regulated environment. They grew due the absence of a clear regulatory framework. This proves that prohibition does not work. What works is regulations, oversight, and the political will to enforce the law.

    MRECA fully supports regulations. We support clear rules that keep products out of the hands of minors and ensure safety for adult consumers. But we cannot support a system where the actions of criminal syndicates are used to justify blanket bans that harm legitimate businesses.

    With Act 852 already in place, the focus must be on moving forward: implementing it with urgency, investing in enforcement, and strengthening the regulatory framework so that only responsible, compliant players remain in the market.

    Banning regulated products is not a solution, it is an abdication of responsibility that hands the market over to criminals. If we want to protect public health and consumer safety, we must stay the course, enforce the law decisively, and commit to building a legal, transparent vape industry that operates within clear and accountable boundaries.

  • U.S. Faces Vape Shortage as Tariffs Hit, Seizures Increase

    U.S. Faces Vape Shortage as Tariffs Hit, Seizures Increase

    Popular vape brands like Geek Bar may get more expensive in the U.S.—if you can find them at all, Reuters reports. Shipments of vapes from China to the U.S. ground to a near halt in May from a year ago, official data shows, hit by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and a crackdown on unauthorized e-cigarettes in the world’s biggest market for smoking alternatives.

    That includes Geek Bar, which is not authorized to sell in the U.S. but has been widely available due to porous import controls. Geek Bar was by far the most popular unauthorized vape brand in the U.S. last year, accounting for around a quarter of sales tracked by market research company Circana in 2024 despite lacking a license to sell from the FDA.

    One retailer, who asked not to be named because their business sells unauthorized vapes, told Reuters that one of the store’s vape suppliers normally receives 100 boxes of Geek Bar vapes per week, but is now getting just 10. Another supplier imposed unprecedented purchase limits of five boxes.

    “There were a lot of supply chain issues” during COVID-19, the person said. “But I’ve never seen this.”

    Trump’s decision to impose steep tariffs on China, now at 30% after peaking at 145% in April, as well as blockbuster seizures of unauthorized vapes, have constrained the supply of Chinese-owned vape brands and Geek Bar in particular, according to five industry sources and notices from U.S. Geek Bar wholesalers reviewed by Reuters. In May 2025, the FDA recorded just 71 shipments of products labelled as e-cigarettes or vapes from China, compared with nearly 1,200 over the same period last year.

    To mitigate tariffs, illicit vape producers can mislabel or undervalue their shipments or spoof their origin entirely to make it look like they came from a lower-tariff country like Indonesia, Vietnam or Mexico, said Luis Pinto, a spokesperson for British American Tobacco. Vapes from China are often smuggled into the U.S. disguised as other items entirely, such as shoes or toys, to evade officials hunting for unauthorized vapes at the border, according to public statements from the FDA and Customs and Border Protection.

    The growth of Geek Bar and other unregulated vape brands has eaten into the market share of cigarette companies like Altria and BAT, which estimates unauthorized e-cigarettes accounted for some 70% of all U.S. vape sales last year.

  • Study: Chinese Going Online to Bypass Flavor Ban 

    Study: Chinese Going Online to Bypass Flavor Ban 

    More than 90% of stores selling e-cigarettes in two major Chinese cities provided WeChat accounts or QR codes for quick delivery services, allowing consumers to bypass a nationwide ban on online sales that took effect in May 2022, a new study has found. Research conducted by the Health Communication Institute of Fudan University in Shanghai, compared e-cigarette stores in Shanghai and Chengdu, Sichuan province, before and after the implementation of the regulations.  

    In the first observation period in 2021, about 25% of stores offered a WeChat account and 17% provided a QR code for delivery services. These figures jumped to 90% and 91%, respectively, in the second observation period (December 2023 to March 2024), indicating a significant shift of customers from in-person to online purchases.

    The regulations explicitly prohibit the sale of flavored e-cigarettes other than tobacco flavor and the sale of e-cigarette products to minors. They also ban the use of vending machines for such products and require warning labels on packaging. However, the study revealed that one-third of the surveyed stores continued to sell flavored e-cigarette cartridges, and only 83% had implemented age restrictions on sales.

  • PCA Survey Sees Improvement for Manufacturers

    PCA Survey Sees Improvement for Manufacturers

    The Premium Cigar Association released the results of its First Quarter 2025 survey this week, asking 112 retailers and 24 manufacturers for their opinion on several topics. In comparing 2024 to 2023, 51% of the retailers said they did better, 29% the same, and 20% did worse. For manufacturers, 67% did better, 17% the same, and 17% worse.

    In an open-ended question asking what retailers would like to communicate to manufacturers to help sell product, the nine most common answers were listed, including controlling moderate price increases and shipping, limiting high-end offerings and creating more “economy cigars,” better education/communication, fixing supply issues, and stopping the “what’s new” mentality and focusing on core lines.

    See the entire survey here.