Roll-your-own sales smoking hot

Roll-your-own sales are continuing to rise, according to Imperial Tobacco.

Ryan Hopkins, senior brand manager of fine cut tobacco at Imperial, said: “This year we’ve seen sales of our value and economy RYO tobacco brands rise steadily each month. 

“Player’s Gold Leaf, introduced in 2007, has also seen its sales rocket over the past 12 months, growing by 24% since 2012. It is also the UK’s fastest-growing RYO brand and currently has a market share of over 10%.”

This sales increase comes despite the current challenging economic conditions. Hopkins suggested the trend stemmed from smokers choosing to control their spending on tobacco. 

The brand also noted increased sales of reduced pack sizes that contain a combination of tips and papers.

Player’s Gold Leaf is available to retailers in 9g, 12.5g, 25g and 50g packs. Nine gram pouches have an RRP of £2.99.

This year also marks five years since the launch of GV Smooth and 15 years of Drum. Sales of GV Smooth have increased year on year by 15%, obtaining a market share of just over 8%.