How well does this stuff sell

[wadetheblade]

I have a quick question for you guys, mainly the Swedes on the board. How well does all of these mint snus sell? I mean really, who is buying this stuff; general mint, mini mint, catch mints, N&J johnny mint, below zero mint, all the Thunder mints? I don't buy it, but was just wondering if anyone knew how popular it is? I think this is on my mind because I started thinking about how much i miss Claq qui and everytime I read Chads snus reviews and see something about new snus coming out I always hope to see CQ come back or Roda Lacket sterk or Ettan sterk, but no... It's usually just a new mint or General in a new format. oh well...
I had to rant for a sec.

[wa3zrm]

I remember when the mint explosion started. At first, there was just General mini mint... and there was Camel Frosted (if you want to call that snus). Anyhow... the explosion began, IMO, with the introduction of Thunder Frosted... high nic with a real mint taste. I went through rolls of it. Now, I'm burnt out on it. Nowadays I'm hooked on the Odens line and a few of the General products. ...But I think it was the high nic and mild mint taste that made the mints popular.

[shikitohno]

Yeah, there were people on here who were buying up massive quantities of the mint snuses in the past, but they all seem to have come to their senses now. These days, we just don't talk about it any more.

[muddyfunkstar]

If I want to taste mint, I'll have a tictac.

[lxskllr]

I like the occasional mint snus. I maybe use 1 a day, if that. Jakobsson's Mint I especially like. If that didn't exist, and I didn't have any stockpiled, I'd probably use a couple tins per year.

[Monkey]

I like mint snus. I use maybe ten tins a year.....more like twelve.

[EricHill78]

I like a mint every now and again. Especially after a good meal.. good to freshen up so to speak.

[Snus Boost]

I used to be all about mint and wintergreen. I still usually have a can of one or the other open but it's one can of stark mint or WG a can of original portions and a can of loose. I only use the starks about twice a day when I want the extra nicotine and WG and mint just seem to deliver the nic faster than original sterks.

[Snusdog]

I think all the mint, berry, and wintergreen snuses are geared mainly for the American market.

[wadetheblade]

I thought that too but then I think that the American consumer does not mean shit to the Swedish companies, they really don't care what sells well over here because its such a small portion of total sales. Those products must do well in Sweden and Norway or I don't think they would make them. Though I agree dog that all those flavors are "American taste" since thats what has been in dip for ever. You just won't see an average American craving licorice, bergomot or prunes or something

[BlueSaint]

I don't think it's very popular here in Sweden among the users, but shops doesn't sell those snuses too much either so maybe it's why.

[lxskllr]

I thought that too but then I think that the American consumer does not mean shit to the Swedish companies, they really don't care what sells well over here because its such a small portion of total sales. Those products must do well in Sweden and Norway or I don't think they would make them. Though I agree dog that all those flavors are "American taste" since thats what has been in dip for ever. You just won't see an average American craving licorice, bergomot or prunes or something

That's not 100% true. I can't say about SM, but I think Gotlandssnus, and V2 are aiming directly at the US market, and anything sold in Sweden is just a bonus. That's a sensible approach imo. Sweden is locked down, and will remain so for the foreseeable future, but America is wide open, and getting in early will give the little guys a chance at making the big time. GN seems to be focusing on Eastern Europe, but I'm not completely sure. I haven't gotten a good feel for their plan yet.

[crullers]

I thought that too but then I think that the American consumer does not mean shit to the Swedish companies, they really don't care what sells well over here because its such a small portion of total sales. Those products must do well in Sweden and Norway or I don't think they would make them. Though I agree dog that all those flavors are "American taste" since thats what has been in dip for ever. You just won't see an average American craving licorice, bergomot or prunes or something

I don't know that they don't really care what sells well over here. I suspect that they see an emerging market that is likely to grow because of the witch hunt going on against smokers here. Couple that with the lame attempts at producing snus over here and the real stuff could catch on quite well. It will just take time. Creating flavours that cater more to the North American market is helping them get the foot in the door, so to speak.

[GoVegan]

If I want to taste mint, I'll have a tictac.

well said!

[chainsnuser]

If I want to taste mint, I'll have a Mojito!

I don't think that the producers (first and foremost) have a regional market in mind.

The flavored brands in general are clearly aimed at smokers. It's a mystery to me, why most smokers, who are used to suck burned, indefinably sour/bitter tasting smoke into their mouth all day, mostly go for the total opposite when it comes to snus and start with sweet flavored brands, but they obviously do. Just have a look at the "my first order threads" here in the forum.

These brands could also be aimed at younger people (not to say schoolchildren), who naturally gravitate to the more sweet flavors and probably stay with these brands even after their tastebuds have matured - or at least develop a positive opinion about the manufacturer and continue to use brands from the same company.

It's the new consumers, that smaller producers (who don't already have a stable market share and a followership in Sweden) want to win. And in that regard, of course, the development of new regional markets is on the agenda as well. A flavor like wintergreen is certainly used to get a foot on the American market. It's a flavor that 90% of the Europeans connote with urinal cakes rather than with candy. But mint flavored brands rather fall into the category of products to win over smokers worldwide.

BTW, I don't want to criticise people who are long-time snusers and still prefer flavored brands. People are different. Some just prefer the flavored/sweet brands, while others prefer the pure tobacco brands. But it's astounding how many people wait for months before they get the idea to try one of the traditional brands, which are all more or less pure tobacco or just slightly flavored.

Cheers!