I participated in a round table discussion about tobacco products at the Better Retailing Live conference in manchester today and was surprised at the annual £2.5 cost to the UK economy of illegal tobacco and minimal interest from regulators and lawmakers.
The pack of Mayfair on the left in the photo is illegal product and the pack on the right is the legal product.
The other issue of the illegal tobacco is the health risk – it is far beyond the health risk of legal cigarettes. This alone should drive engagement by those in authority.
With tobacco products accounting for up to 50% of sales in some news / convenience businesses I would have expected stronger engagement by retailers pressuring government for resources necessary to stop the illegal trade.