A study by KAM and Lake Research has found that 35 per cent of convenience store owners in England would stop selling cigarettes in favour of smoke-free alternatives, reports Convenience Store.

The Big Switch Reports, which was commissioned by Philip Morris Limited (PML), sought to find out what convenience store owners were doing to help smokers switch to smoke-free products such as e-cigarettes or heat-not-burn products. In the study, over 1,400 convenience store owners and 1,000 former smokers were questioned with the results showing that store owners are motivated to help customers quit cigarettes by shifting their businesses towards smoke-free products, reports Convenience Store. Over a third of convenience store owners said they would quit selling cigarettes in favour of smoke-free alternatives with 59 per cent saying that the smoke-free category was “the future of sales”. The study also shows that convenience stores play an important role for people looking to quite with 64 per cent of former smokers saying a convenience store is an appropriate place for smokers to be advised about smoke-free products.
Aman Uppal, who runs One Stop Mount Nod, a family-run convenience store in Coventry, said: “I’ve converted three generations of one family to smoke-free alternatives. As a retailer, I have an opportunity to introduce these products into my community and get people away from cigarettes which is something I believe in. I am seeing other retailers doing the same thing, which is hugely positive.”
John Hanna of Smokemart Convenience Store in Brighton added: “It is time the country moved forward with smoke-free products to help smokers who can’t quit. Raising awareness of smoke-free products in the store is very important. Plenty of customers want to kick the habit, but they can’t – they find it very difficult.”