The Ministry of Finance published the results of the FY2024 tobacco retail sales survey, revealing the actual situation of business formats, management age structure, presence of successors, and types of products handled by tobacco retail businesses nationwide.
Key Points
Survey Overview and Response Rate
- 4,400 stores were selected as survey targets through random sampling based on sampling theory from tobacco retail businesses nationwide (excluding Okinawa Prefecture)
- Responses were received from 2,790 stores, with a response rate of 63.4%
- Survey results were aggregated as estimated values restored to the population
- Analysis was conducted separately for stores under Article 10 of the Tobacco Business Act Supplementary Provisions (licensed on April 1, 1985) and Article 22 (licensed after April 2, 1985)
Management Aging and Successor Issues
- Management age: "70-79 years old" was the most common at 24.6%, followed by "60-69 years old" at 24.3%
- Managers aged 60 and above account for about half of all cases, revealing the reality of aging
- Only 37.0% of stores have potential successors, while 63.0% do not, exceeding half
- Management aging and lack of successors have emerged as structural challenges for the industry
Diversification of Business Formats
- "Convenience stores" account for 37.9%, the highest proportion, becoming the main sales channel in the industry
- "Liquor sales" accounts for 11.2%, "department stores/supermarkets" 10.4%, and "tobacco specialty stores" 10.2%
- Tobacco specialty stores account for only about 10% of the total, with concurrent sales of other products being mainstream
- 26.7% of stores have vending machines installed, while 73.3% rely solely on over-the-counter sales
Changes in Products Handled and Sales Scale
- Currently handled tobacco: "Cigarettes" at 99.3% in almost all stores, "heated tobacco" at 72.9%
- Newly handled tobacco in the past 5 years: "Heated tobacco" was the most common at 20.6%
- 73.5% of stores have not started handling new types of tobacco
- Annual sales: "12.01 million yen or more" was the most common at 37.8%, "1 million yen or less" at 22.9%, "1.01-2 million yen" at 10.7%, showing polarization
The article shows that the tobacco retail industry has shifted to convenience store-centered business formats and faces structural changes including management aging, lack of successors, and the spread of heated tobacco products.