Back-bar special: Go up in smoke

Until the law says so, smoking is still legal in pubs, so why not take advantage?

The smoke ban clouds are gathering and the health warnings grow increasing shrill, but publicans should not forget that tobacco sales form a small but significant part of their business. While vending machines take care of the vast majority of your cigarette sales, most pubs still reserve a corner of their back-bar for smokers' needs, for cigars, hand-rolling tobacco, papers, matches and lighters.

Generally speaking on-trade tobacco sales are under pressure, not only from the health lobby but from the growing opportunities people have to buy elsewhere.

Pubs continue to perform an interesting role in the marketplace, particularly for certain products. It's not simply a matter of making an extra sale. It's a service. By stocking the tobacco products your customers are looking for, you can stop them being tempted to pop out to the corner shop.

As with other back-bar items display is vital - especially with the restrictions on advertising. Talk to your supplier about getting some free kit.

Cigars​

Pubs may be taking a declining share of the cigar market, down 19 per cent to 10 per cent in 2003, but there is strong growth in certain brands and lines.

Hamlet, Gallaher's best-seller, is soaring ahead on cross-the-bar sales and now takes a 60 per cent share. Although cigar advertising is now banned, the brand continues to benefit from the afterglow of one of the most memorable campaigns of all time - "Happiness is a cigar called Hamlet".

Miniatures are growing in the market overall and this is reflected by Hamlet Miniatures leaping ahead of Imperial's Panama and Henri Wintermans' Slim Panatellas to take third spot behind Imperial's Classic.

Some 16 per cent of larger cigars are sold in pubs. Imperial's King Edward Coronets are in growth but the big climber is the Henri Wintermans Half Corona, benefiting from a renewed focus on the on-trade by the manufacturer.

Pubs are important to the cigar market because cigars are associated with both relaxation and celebration - the kind of things people go to pubs for.

Pubs are also the place where smokers are likely to taste their first cigar, and they are likely to receive increasing attention from the manufacturers.

Roll your own​

Roll your own (RYO) tobacco is one of the most buoyant sectors of the market. As duty has soared and increased the price of a packet of cigarettes, smokers have switched to RYO as a more economical option.

It is also seen as healthier and more socially acceptable, because they can control the amount of tobacco in each cigarette.

This has attracted growing numbers of women smokers, who now account for more than a third of RYO consumers, and younger people - 44 per cent are aged between 18 and 35. So not your stereotypical flat-capped old man.

There are 5.6 million RYO smokers in the UK and 4.9 million of them "dual" - in other words, also smoke packet cigarettes.

Imperial's Golden Virginia is by far the leading brand and with a 47 per cent share of the total market, it's even more dominant in pubs, claiming three in every four RYO sales.

Gallaher's Amber Leaf is the big success story of the year, however, supplanting Old Holborn in the number two spot - but with still less than a five per cent share.

Papers​

More than five per cent of papers sales are through pubs. Imperial's Rizla Green is the far and away brand leader with 76 per cent of sales in a market that in pubs alone is worth £5m.

Number two is Swan Green, which is making gains, followed by Rizlas Red and Blue respectively, the latter also on the increase.

Lighters​

Lighter sales through pubs are worth about £3m and were up in 2003 by nearly 20 per cent - probably at the expense of the humble match.

Best seller across the bar is Imperial's Tokai Emphorel, with 18 per cent of a highly fragmented market, while Clipper Silver Top, also from Imperial, is the leading refillable.

• The information here is based on comprehensive reviews of the UK tobacco marketplace recently released by the country's leading firms - Gallaher and Imperial.

Something for the weekend​

Henri Wintermans Cigars, which produces the UK's best-selling imported brand, is celebrating its centenary with a makeover.

A modern, stylised lion's head logo now adorns its cigar range. Renamed Henri Wintermans Founder's Blend, the company has also introduced a new cigar drum display unit for the back-bar, available free with an order of half coronas and slim panatellas from distributor Loretta Cigars - 020 8731 3400.