Illegal cigs threat ‘will shut’ city shops

A significant number of shopkeepers in Galway will be forced to ‘shut up shop’ because of the prevalence of illegal cigarettes here, a newsagents’ representative group has warned.

And figures provided to the Galway City Tribune by JTI Ireland (Japan Tobacco International, which controls more than half the Irish market) show that almost one-third of all cigarettes smoked in Galway have been smuggled into the country, or are counterfeit.

According to the JTI survey – which owns brands such as Benson & Hedges, Silk Cut and Camel – 30.7% of discarded cigarette packets in Galway were illegal, almost on a par with the 31.1% recorded last year.

Stephen Daly, President of the Convenience Stores and Newsagents’ Association (CSNA) said his members face closure, because of losses incurred.

“I’m not surprised at the figure, we’re seeing it all over the country, you can see it on the figures at the tills,” said Mr Daly, who owns Happy Days in the Galway Shopping Centre.

“The customers are gone, there are faces we don’t see coming into the shop anymore. We are very conscious of the health impact of smoking, and these people too, but they’re now willing to take a chance on what’s in their illegal cigarettes, because they can get them half price.

“We’ve had a lot of lay-offs in this sector already, and it’s very difficult to find anywhere else for cuts to be made. So there are a lot of shops in Galway and elsewhere that are facing closure because of this.

“Tobacco accounts for 25% of our sales, and we make an 8.5% margin on the products. But where retailers make their money is the smoker who comes in to buy cigarettes, and they’ll pick up additional goods like a newspaper, chewing gum and maybe a drink. We have higher margins of 20% to 40% on other products.

“If tobacco sales were gone in the morning, our business would be immediately halved,” said Mr Daly.

 A spokesperson for JTI Ireland said the problem with illegal tobacco is ‘significant’ and will worsen if Health Minister James Reilly’s proposal to introduce standardised packaging goes ahead.

“If somebody cannot differentiate between two completely different brands, they’re likely to go to the person who is selling the ‘traditional’ style box on the street,” he said.

F or more on this story, see the Galway City Tribune.