TIM Alerts

CIGARETTES

22^nd Century Group, the makers of VLN low nicotine cigarettes, has a new license and manufacturing agreement with Smoker Friendly, which operates as a convenience store and also has their own line of tobacco products. The agreement includes 11 existing Smoker Friendly (SF) brands, and 22^nd Century will also make eight styles of new “all natural” Smoker Friendly cigarettes, called SF Black Label. 22^nd Century announced they may also integrate Smoker Friendly’s filtered cigar business into their line of reduced nicotine products.

CIGARS

Game has recently promoted a new blend on their website. The upcoming cigar called “Summer Blend” is described as having a bright and tropical taste, and the pack’s design has a brightly filtered backdrop of the Los Angeles skyline to match.

CIGARETTES

Camel cigarettes promoted a new Black Series via direct mail last month, describing it as a “unique range of cigarette styles.” The brand website describes the different blends with words like “premium” and “exotic”; none of the six blends explicitly mention a menthol option.

CIGARS

Backwoods is currently holding a sweepstakes on their website with the opportunity to win $10k and tickets to the Rolling Loud festival in Los Angeles. To go along with the sweepstakes, Backwoods is also releasing a colorful Los Angeles-inspired limited edition pack. This is the second city-inspired pack recently released by Backwoods, with the first being the New Orleans pack released for their Banana Fosters sweepstakes.

CIGARS

Backwoods cigars heavily promoted their presence at Rolling Loud Miami this past weekend on their Instagram. This included coverage by correspondent Mehgan James, an entrepreneur and podcast host with 1.2 million followers on Instagram, along with fellow hosts Lizzy Jeff and @sartorial_tobacconist, who all posted branded content from the event.

MODERN ORAL NICOTINE PRODUCTS

As part of our regular surveillance of products at the point-of-sale (POS), a team member was offered samples of a new nicotine pouch product called KYK at a chain convenience store in NJ when he inquired about alternatives to ZYN. KYK nicotine pouches (at kyknic.com) are marketed as tobacco-free nicotine products, with an online store that claims to accept cash on delivery for orders. Additionally, our POS team identified another new nicotine pouch brand, DYP, in a NJ vape shop. DYP does not seem to have any brand information online, but can be found for sale in several online storefronts. In total, our team has identified over 30 nicotine pouch brands based in or sold in the U.S. that were launched just in 2024.

ENDS

Fume vapor by QRJOY and RNBW (@rnbw.world), a cannabis company “elevating experiences for music lovers & creators,” have announced new collaboration products debuting at the upcoming Rolling Loud Miami music festival. Described as “festival-ready” devices, the Rave Stick and Electric Spliff vapes feature flavors like Mystic Mint and Dubstep Dream Kiwi (website marketing seems to suggest that only Electric Spliff products will contain both nicotine and THC). 

MODERN ORAL NICOTINE PRODUCTS

Velo nicotine pouches posted on their Instagram to celebrate their partnership with McLaren Racing, following the team's victory in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship. In their Instagram story, Velo highlighted the average national viewership of 1.2 million per race during the 2024 season, supported by data shown across ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC.

MODERN ORAL NICOTINE PRODUCTS

Via direct email and in a post on the Instagram account for their smokeless tobacco, Grizzly advertised their new Instagram account, made specifically to market their nicotine pouches separately from their smokeless tobacco products. The brand is using a giveaway on the new account to generate user engagement via comments and gain new followers. 

Loon posted several announcements and videos on Instagram about their participation in the Minnesota Turkey Drive at several locations, including in front of a Royal Tobacco retail store in Brooklyn Center. The videos highlight piles of turkeys in Loon-branded bags, with volunteers on site wearing Loon merchandise and doing promotions via megaphone.