煙草在線據Journal Now報道編譯　　瑞典火柴加快生產鼻煙，希望爭奪由雷諾的駱駝鼻煙品牌主導的美國市場份額。

　　該公司的美國女發言人Fowler-Jones于2月24日表示，位于瑞典斯德哥爾摩的瑞典火柴從2006年以來就在美國出售其鼻煙產品。

　　英格蘭聚光燈想法公司的管理合伙人兼行業分析師Stephen Pope說，瑞典火柴是美國第三大鼻煙制造商。

　　瑞典火柴的主要品牌是將軍，在包括焦油腳跟煙草商店和四兄弟便利店等的當地商店出售。該公司正在芝加哥、達拉斯和費城試銷裝在矩形罐內的兩種新風格的鼻煙。

　　據雷諾稱，駱駝鼻煙是迄今為止最大的競爭對手，在第四季度擁有75%的市場份額。2006年4月，雷諾開始在試銷市場上銷售駱駝鼻煙，2008年10月進入全國的經銷渠道。

　　無煙煙草，包括試銷市場上的三種可溶性產品，可在雷諾轉變為“全煙草公司”的過程中發揮重要作用。”該公司強調無煙煙草，因為在監管和社會的壓力下，卷煙的銷售在持續下滑。

　　對于煙草制造商來說，考慮到美國有4200萬個成年吸煙者，而相比之下只有800萬人使用濕鼻煙，300萬名成年人使用鼻煙，這種轉變是令人生畏的。

　　瑞典火柴新一代產品的副總裁克拉克·達哈說，該組織的策略包括研究目前關鍵市場上的鼻煙銷售、最適合的客戶人口統計、調整分銷渠道和應對吸煙限制越來越多的市場。

　　“我們認為我們的產品能在市場上脫穎而出，”達哈說?！半m然我們的大多數銷售額來自傳統商店，但是我們知道大部分的鼻煙銷售正在便利店內銷售，這將是我們的焦點?！?/p>

　　雷諾的發言人大衛·霍華德說，對于瑞典火柴想增加其美國市場的占有率，公司并不感到奇怪。

　　著名的活動家無煙賓夕凡尼亞州組織的執行主任比爾·高德壽，倡導使用無煙產品作為戒煙的一種手段。

　　“占有大市場優勢的駱駝鼻煙、萬寶路鼻煙和干杯鼻煙，是雷諾和奧馳亞的產品，已經在大多數煙草零售店內站穩了腳跟，”高德壽說。

　　“很多人開始時使用駱駝鼻煙或萬寶路鼻煙，很可能最后轉向瑞典火柴的鼻煙產品?！?/p>

　　“駱駝鼻煙更像干杯品牌產品，而瑞典鼻煙更像是哥本哈根品牌產品，”高德壽說。“大多數的濕鼻煙新用戶開始時使用干杯品牌，一些人隨后轉向尼古丁含量更高的哥本哈根品牌。”

Swedish company hopes to chip away at Reynolds' snus market

Journal Now
Feb 25, 2012

　　Swedish Match is ramping up production of snus in hopes of chipping away at the dominant U.S. market share held by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.'s Camel Snus brand.

　　Based in Stockholm, Sweden, Swedish Match has been selling its snus product in the United States since 2006, Sandy Fowler-Jones, a U.S. spokeswoman, said Friday.

　　Swedish Match is the third-largest producer of moist snuff in the United States, said Stephen Pope, an industry analyst and managing partner of Spotlight Ideas in England.

　　The main Swedish Match snus brand is General, which is sold locally at outlets that include Tar Heel Tobacco shops and Four Brothers convenience stores. The company is testing two new styles of snus in rectangular cans in Chicago, Dallas and Philadelphia.

　　Camel Snus is by far the largest competitor, with a 75 percent market share in the fourth quarter, according to Reynolds. Reynolds began selling Camel Snus in test markets in April 2006, going national with distribution in October 2008.

　　Smokeless tobacco, including three dissolvable products in test markets, could play a pivotal role in Reynolds' transformation into a "total tobacco company." The company is emphasizing smokeless tobacco as cigarette sales continue to decline amid regulatory and social pressures.

　　The transformation is daunting for tobacco manufacturers, considering there are 42 million adult smokers in the United States compared with 8 million adults who use moist snuff and 3 million adults who use snus.

　　Clark Darrah, vice president of next-generation products for Swedish Match, said the group's strategy includes researching current snus sales in key markets that best fit its customer demographics, adjusting distribution channels and responding to markets with increasing smoking restrictions.

　　"We believe our products will differentiate themselves in the marketplace," Darrah said. "While we have more of our sales in traditional tobacco stores, we know the majority of snus sales are taking place in convenience stores, and that's where our focus will be."

　　David Howard, a spokesman for Reynolds, said the company is not surprised Swedish Match is aiming at increasing its U.S. market share.

　　Bill Godshall, executive director of SmokeFree Pennsylvania, is a prominent advocate for using smokeless products as a means of helping smokers quit.

　　"The big-market advantages for Camel Snus, Marlboro Snus and Skoal Snus are that Reynolds and Altria have already located those in many/most tobacco retail stores," Godshall said.

　　"Many people who begin using snus with Camel Snus or Marlboro Snus are likely to end up trying and switching to Swedish Match snus products.

　　"Camel Snus is more like Skoal, while Swedish snus products are more like Copenhagen," Godshall said. "Most new moist snuff users begin with Skoal and some switch to Copenhagen, which has more nicotine."