Imperial Tobacco Canada, makers of du Maurier and Players cigarettes, are cutting out the middle man and will begin selling directly to retailers as of August.

The Montreal-based company said the move will create 300 jobs at Imperial across Canada, plus another 700 indirect jobs among its warehousing and delivery partners. Right now, the company's cigarettes are distributed by 90 licenced wholesalers to 42,000 retailers. Shop owners will be able to continue using the wholesalers if they wish, but buying directly from Imperial
will cost less. The company could not say whether those saving would be passed on to consumers. (pi)