Smoking Collection Expo Tokyo

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By Eric Piras

We all know that tradeshows can be hard work, but they are also a great opportunity to connect and reconnect with friends, partners, and distributors.

It’s true everywhere but certainly in Japan, where Smoking Collection is the one and only tobacco trade show. It is, with no exception, always an amazing experience: ladies walking around wearing traditional kimonos, attentive salespeople speaking only Japanese, the highly respectful and bowing crowd... attending the show is a privilege and an experience not to be missed.

It is held yearly in October on the 12th floor of the Tokyo Kotsu Kaikan tower in the heart of Ginza, one of the most buoyant upmarket and shopping districts of Tokyo. Surprisingly it’s almost impossible to find any information online about this show.

The event is aimed towards the trade: retailers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, and manufacturers who wander in the alleys, stopping to look at the wares on display, and holding court in front of the booths. The majority of exhibitors and visitors are Japanese, with just a handful of “gaijin” (foreigner) faces, including the author of this story who has not missed a show since 2000.

This event is of great importance for the industry, as Japan has always been in the top three world tobacco markets for volume and value (China excluded) which is why the strong decline of around 15% in cigarette consumption is a real worry for the big and smaller players. Philip Morris announced that its cigarette sales fell by 25% in Japan in the second quarter of 2017 compared with a year earlier.

The same Philip Morris showcased its recently-launched iQOS in an immense booth. With iQOS, a “heat-not-burn” product, a tobacco stick is heated enough to produce an aerosol but not combust. The device is pen-shaped, battery-powered, and heated to release vapor, similarly to other e-cigarettes; but it only uses Marlboro HeatSticks as refill. iQOS debut has been very successful: the product holds approximately 15% market shares in the Tokyo area and 12-13% nationwide. According to some sources, this share could reach around 30% in three years’ time!

Except for this strong success, now is definitely not an easy time for the cigarette companies, but it’s a very favorable moment for cigars and other tobacco products. It looks as if Japanese consumers are willing to smoke less but better, to sample new products, and in some cases to shift from cigarettes to cigars.

And certainly this shift in consumption was felt very strongly when browsing the show alleys: the major distributors such as ITC, T.Akiyama, Haruyama, Japan Tobacco Imex, or Nissin Trading focused this year on their core sales, affordable machine-made cigars as well as little cigars.

In the cigar family, all segments and classifications seem to be in demand: premium long-fillers, medium-fillers hand-made, machine-made with 100% natural tobacco, machine-made short fillers with homogenized tobacco, and little cigars with filters that might resemble cigarettes but are actually cigars.

In the premium cigar category, a lot of terroirs were present, with brands made in Honduras, Nicaragua, or Dominican Republic such as Flor de Selva, Cusano, Baracoa, Vega Fina, Drew Estates, Ashton, and Joya de Nicaragua.

So, yes, despite the consumption shift and the infatuation for avant-garde products such as iQOS, the aficionados are still here and very much in tune with the international offer.

However, one sure trend is the price point: consumers want to enjoy their hand-made cigars and will look for New World cigars, but will definitely opt for cigars at an affordable price: short robusto, panetela or other medium-sized vitolas below JPY1,000 are very much in demand; while the ones above JPY1,300 are definitely facing a struggle.

Next time you plan your international traveling schedule around trade shows, don’t forget Smoking Collection. In addition to Ginza nightlife, the delicious sushi, and Michelin-starred Ramen, there’s a lot to glean from a couple of days on the 12th floor of Tokyo Kotsu Kaikan tower.

Sources: Author’s own, ft.com, pmi.com, todayonline.com