With 72% market share in the e-cigarette sector in the United States, Juul is an economic monster that is of great interest to the tobacco giant. According to " Wall Street Journal ",, Altria (Marlboro) is currently in discussion with the Californian start-up to take a "minority but significant" share.
ALTRIA WANTS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE JUUL E-CIGARETTE!
Upheaval on the vape market in the United States. The group Altria, which produces the Marlboro cigarettes, is in talks to enter the capital of the Californian start-up Juul, says the Wall Street Journal.
The daily business, which quotes anonymous sources with knowledge of the file, underlines that the discussions are only at the beginning. And that they aim for an agreement for an equity investment " minority but significant ". Such an alliance " would mark a significant reorganization of the tobacco industry, which is rocked by technological innovations and regulations Nevertheless comments the newspaper.
ASSAULT OF THE E-CIGARETTE LEADER IN THE UNITED STATES
Founded in San Francisco three years ago, Juul has seen phenomenal success with its USB stick-shaped e-cigarettes and flavored nicotine refills. Today it has more than a thousand employees.
The unlisted company was valued at $ 16 billion after another round of funding this summer. In September 2018, Juul held 72,9% of the US electronic cigarette market, according to Nielsen data provided to AFP by the company.
For its part, Altria, despite a fall of 15% on the stock market in October, remains valued at more than 100 billion dollars. The group suffers, like other major tobacco companies, from the decline in sales of traditional tobacco. Added to this was the announcement in mid-November by the FDA, the American regulator, of the ban on menthol products. A hard blow, since the latter represented a third of the cigarettes sold in the country.
The FDA had also announced restrictions on the sale of e-cigarettes to prevent young people from easily obtaining supplies: those with exotic tastes can, for example, no longer be sold in specialized stores. Juul and Altria had announced to comply with this new regulation… even before its official announcement.
Source : Lesechos.fr/
