Eastern Europe

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Overall, the picture remained bleak for cigarettes in Estonia in 2022, with the category seeing a further sizeable drop in volume sales during the year. Several factors led to the volume decline in cigarettes. More people gave up smoking completely,…

Closed system single use was amongst the strongest performers in smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in 2022, albeit from a low base. The category’s rapid expansion was in part down to the emergence of closed system single use…

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…

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…

Cigars showed the fastest volume growth in the cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco category in 2022. This growth is explained by the development of cigar smoking culture in Estonia, which is now home to cigar clubs and competitions. For example,…

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…

In 2022, the cigarettes category saw the continuation of the trend seen throughout the review period and registered a decline in volume sales. This trend is due to the rise in consumer health consciousness and the fall in the number of smokers. It…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Cigarette consumption recorded further decline in the Czech Republic in 2022, with traditional cigarette smokers, mainly young adults, continuing to migrate to heated tobacco, closed vaping systems and nicotine pouches, which are perceived as less…

In 2022, smoking prevalence in Bosnia and Herzegovina experienced a moderate decline. Despite this, the tobacco industry saw positive value growth primarily driven by price increases.

E-vapour products and heated tobacco witnessed significant progress in 2022 as consumer preferences shifted away from cigarettes. This transition towards reduced harm options and alternatives was driven by heightened awareness of the detrimental…

Closed system single use products recorded further dynamic growth in 2022, continuing to appeal to consumers with their attractive prices and wide variety of flavours. Also, the health and wellness trend, which has been deepened by COVID-19, is…

Cigars and cigarillos continued to record slight volume growth in 2022. Cigarillos saw a better performance in the year as they offer a wide variety of products, which appeal to local smokers. The most popular flavours in the Czech Republic remain…

In 2022, cigars, cigarillos, and smoking tobacco experienced robust double-digit growth in both retail value and volume. This growth was primarily driven by increased consumer demand from niche consumer groups and cigar aficionados. Although the…

Volume sales of cigarettes continued to decline in 2022. Younger adults are increasingly opting for alternatives to cigarettes, such as heated tobacco and vaping, which they perceive as less damaging to their health. Also, an increase in excise tax…

The smoking prevalence in Bosnia and Herzegovina continued to decline in 2022 under the continued influence of health and wellness trends. Moreover, the rising unit prices of cigarettes and tobacco products in general played a significant role in the…

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…

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…

In 2022, the tobacco industry experienced a favourable year in terms of legislation, as the excise tax remained unchanged. Additionally, the tourism season performed better than the previous year, which had a positive impact on tobacco products.…

In 2022, smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products, and heated tobacco experienced continued strong growth in Croatia. More smokers in the country are shifting towards these “healthier” tobacco products and alternatives. E-vapour products and heated…

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.…