Eastern Europe

Almost uniquely among fmcg industries, tobacco legislation is not simply a guiding element or a means of enforcing consumer standards but a central determining factor in the performance of tobacco markets. As the cumulative de-normalising impact of…

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered the most severe global recession since World War II. In Q4 2020, the end of the pandemic started as countries began administering effective vaccines among the population; however, vaccine distribution…

This report considers what socialising will look like in a post-COVID-19 era, focusing on several key questions. A return to the “Roaring Twenties” in the beverages space or a continuing decimation of the on-trade? How has socialising changed (eg…

Smoking prevalence continues to decline in Eastern Europe, with retail volume sales of cigarettes also falling. Some consumers continue to try and cut down on their smoking or quit altogether for health reasons, brought into even greater focus by…

Slower growth, surging inflation, rising geopolitical risks and an accelerating deglobalisation trend are factors shaping the global economic, financial and trade landscape in 2022 and beyond. Despite the challenges, there are opportunities for…

The briefing introduces the Cities Households Necessities Spending Index. The index ranks 1,075 cities by household expenditure on non-discretionary items, namely food, housing, and clothing and footwear. This analysis focuses on 160 major cities.…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. Global inflation is reaching a peak, although geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market remain key risks. The impact varies between countries, with…

Now in its seventh edition, this report explores the top digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this edition touch on topics such as second-hand shopping, community group buying,…

Rising inflation in addition to further excise tax hikes helped to shift cigarette smokers towards other categories in 2022, including smoking tobacco and vaping. Under such economic conditions retail volume growth has remained under pressure with…

The disappearance of pandemic fears created more opportunities for social events and gatherings in 2022 giving rise to greater smoking occasions. However, mounting inflation and soaring prices hampered demand for cigars as disposable income was…

Heated tobacco saw the arrival of Glo from British American Tobacco Plc in 2022, causing disruption with its new devices priced at some 50% lower than its sole competitor Iqos (Philip Morris Slovakia sro). Heavy marketing support in tobacco…

A new set of excise taxes continued to push retail prices upwards in 2022, which put an additional strain on the already weakened budgets of smokers in Slovakia. Inflationary pressure was also a key factor contributing to double-digit growth of…

There was a temporary issue with supplies of cigarettes in 2022. Cigarettes are mainly imported from Ukraine, but with war breaking out in Ukraine in 2022, supply lines were severely disrupted. As a result, other trade routes had to be found quickly,…

There was a significant increase in volume sales for cigars and cigarillos in 2022, and in particular for cigarillos. With society fully opened up, post pandemic lockdowns, this led to an increase in volume sales, as there was more socialising. The…

E-vapour products registered healthy constant value growth in 2022, in spite of high inflation. E-liquids remained highly fragmented in 2022, with the relatively low average disposable incomes of local consumers encouraging strong price competition.…

Tobacco registered constant value and volume growth in 2022, despite high inflation, which was caused the energy crisis stemming from the war in Ukraine. Geopolitical tensions in the region also led to a significant increase in the number of…

The normalisation of social activities and relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions positively impacted the tobacco market in 2022, leading to a rebound from its decline in 2021. Initially, there was optimism for the summer and rest of the year, as…

Cigarettes continued to decline in volume terms in 2022 as a result of the trend of waning smoking prevalence. The generational shift has contributed to enhancing the influence of the increasingly prominent health and wellness trend, which is driving…

Although smoking prevalence among the local population continued to decline in 2022, retail sales of cigarettes continued to rise in value and volume terms. The ongoing decline of illicit cigarettes has boosted retail volume sales in Poland, with…

Retail volume growth in 2022 was boosted by a recovery in socialising following the total elimination of COVID-19 restrictions in March of the same year. The elimination of restrictions was brought about by a substantial reduction in COVID-19…

In 2022, there was a further fall in volume sales. Twice yearly tax hikes on cigarettes, which are scheduled to continue until 2025, are making cigarettes very expensive. This was on top of high inflation in 2022, which was caused by an energy…

Volume sales increased significantly in 2022, in spite of high inflation stemming from the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. Part of the reason for the increased consumption of cigarettes was high stress levels, due to the uncertain…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco continued to achieve very strong volume growth rates in 2022. Cigars achieved the fastest growth, driven by the growing demand amongst younger adult consumers who often consume these products to showcase…

Fine cut tobacco is gaining popularity in 2022, especially among younger consumers who are attracted by its lower unit price compared to cigarettes. With inflation rates spiking in 2022, the rising cost of living in Poland has prompted some smokers…

New products stimulated category growth during the pandemic, when more time spent at home and a change in lifestyles saw more Romanians turn to cigars and cigarillos. These tobacco products are perceived as an exotic alternative and have been used by…

While volume sales fell for cigarettes in 2022, it was a different story for cigars and cigarillos. Several factors led to a healthy volume increase. Firstly, with pandemic restrictions completely removed, and people socialising again, this boosted…

Cigars and cigarillos registered significant volume decline in 2022. With cigars and cigarillos being more expensive than cigarettes, smokers opted for cigarettes instead, due to high inflation. In addition, with pandemic restrictions being…

Heated tobacco was the fastest growing tobacco product in Slovenia in 2022, with volume sales increasing significantly. Consumers see it as a compromise between smoking and adapting a habit that is less harmful for their health. While promotion of…

For e-vapour products, there was a significant increase in constant value sales. In particular, closed single-use vaping systems registered growth, though from a low base. Since the main consumers of e-vapour products are young, they have limited…

The dynamic value growth seen in 2022 was almost exclusively due to the strong performance of heated tobacco. Heated tobacco is locally produced in Romania and is widely distributed through small local grocers, which are a popular channel for buying…

Heated tobacco and tobacco heating devices performed strongly in 2022, with both categories recording double-digit growth in volume and current value terms. This was partly because sales were emerging from a relatively low base, as these product…

The heated tobacco category is experiencing dynamic value growth as smokers are attracted by the promise of lower health risks compared to traditional cigarettes. It holds strong appeal among younger generations of legal smoking age, who are drawn to…

Smoking prevalence continued to decline in North Macedonia in 2022 under the influence of the health and wellness trends, as fewer people are starting to smoke, especially amongst younger generations. This trend negatively impacted sales of…

Despite the declining prevalence of smoking in Poland, the cigarettes category performed exceptionally well in 2022, exceeding industry expectations. Several factors contributed to this upward trend, including declining sales of illicit cigarettes,…

Cigarettes remain the most common choice of tobacco for the majority of smokers in 2022 and was the main driver of tobacco overall, despite the unit price increase. Widespread distribution across all retail channels in Romania supports the…

Overall, the picture was negative for tobacco in 2022, with constant value sales falling, and this was largely driven by a drop in volume sales of cigarettes. Twice yearly tax hikes on cigarettes, which are scheduled to continue until 2025, are…

Overall, the picture was positive for tobacco in 2022, largely driven by a growth in volume sales of cigarettes. This was in spite of high inflation stemming from the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. Part of the reason for the increased…

Cigarettes recorded a strong unit volume decline in 2022, losing around a fifth of their sales in this year. However, given the backdrop in the country during 2022, cigarettes could actually be said to have showed a slightly better performance than…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco all recorded major sales declines in unit volume terms in 2022, hit by a marked reduction in the assortment that was available as well as frequent out-of-stock situations, which were related to economic, import…

Although heated tobacco recorded declining sales in both volume and real value (at constant 2022 prices) terms, it managed to register modest growth in current value terms in 2022, which was seen as not too bad a performance given Ukraine was…

As with all fmcg industries in the country, the war has strongly impacted the tobacco market in Ukraine. For example, there is a much-diminished consumer base, with approximately eight million people – some 20% of the population – estimated to have…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes generated positive growth during 2022, despite the declines seen in smoking prevalence in the country over the course of the year. The main reason for this seemingly anomalous situation is the significant decline…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes continued declining in 2022 and at a faster rate than during the previous year. Consumers are already aware of the threat posed by smoking, but the pandemic created a more immediate threat which served as further…

2022 saw significant declines in demand for cigars and cigarillos. In cigars, the sales declines registered in 2022 form part of long-term negative sales trends that have been evident in the category for many years. In cigarillos meanwhile, declining…

Sales of cigarillos boomed in 2020 and 2021. Part of this growth stemmed from the excise tax tariff on these products, which allowed players to be more flexible with their pricing. Price fighter cigarillos in particular saw exceptional growth in…

Sales of e-vapour products posted double-digit growth in current value terms in 2022, following a very successful couple of years in 2020 and 2021. Closed system single use products remained the most popular option in 2022 with the category remaining…

Closed system single use e-vapour products continued to register outstanding sales growth in Latvia in 2022, in the process recording the most impressive performance of any category across the country’s tobacco market during the year. These products…

Latvia’s tobacco industry had a good year in 2022 as demand for cigarettes increased, largely as a result of more stringent efforts to curb the clandestine trade in illicit cigarettes smuggled into the country from Russia and Belarus, while closed…

Although smoking prevalence is declining in Lithuania in terms of cigarettes, consumers in Lithuania are very open to new innovations. Therefore, while volume sales of cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco decline in 2022, sales of…

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…