Walgreen selling cigarette in a hand gel

[Star Man]

Walgreen selling cigarette in a hand gel
Walgreen selling cigarette in a hand gel across the U.S.
Reuters
Updated: 2:35 p.m. ET Jan 10, 2007

NEW YORK - A new hand gel is starting to appear on drug-store shelves promising more than just an end to germs or dry skin — this one claims to satisfy users’ tobacco cravings for up to four hours.

Walgreen Co. , the largest U.S. drugstore chain by sales, is now stocking its more than 5,500 stores with packets of Nicogel, a quick-evaporating gel made with tobacco extracts. The roll-out should be finished within a couple weeks, said company spokeswoman Carol Hively in an e-mail, adding that it costs $5.99 for box of 10 doses.

Nicogel, made by a unit of privately held Blue Whale Worldwide Inc., can be used when smoking is inconvenient, such as at work, on an airplane, in a theater or, these days, in almost any other public place.

Blue Whale, which also sells a smokeless tobacco substitute made from tea leaves, is hoping to cash in on the increasing number of smoking bans and the ill-effects of second-hand smoke, Chief Executive Bill Whalen said in an interview this week.

“The potential for this product is enormous,” said Whalen, a horticultural geneticist with a business degree from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. “The most important thing is smoking bans. (Also, more) people don’t want to smell like smoke.”

Nicogel, which is already sold in 40 other countries including the United Kingdom, France and Germany, could generate $200 million in U.S. sales this year, Whalen said, predicting that sales will reach $1 billion by the end of 2008.

Smoking bans, which have cleared some air in places such as New York, Washington D.C., Louisiana, and Philadelphia, are helping to make cigarette alternatives, like smokeless tobacco, the fastest-growing segment of the industry, according to Charles Norton, portfolio manager of the Vice Fund, which has $75 million under management.

The U.S. moist smokeless tobacco category, which is dominated by Skoal and Copenhagen maker UST Inc., is one-tenth the size of the cigarette market, but is seeing unit volumes grow 8 percent to 9 percent a year, Norton said. By contrast, U.S. annual consumption of cigarettes is falling 1 percent to 2 percent.

Cigarette makers such as Altria Group Inc. unit Philip Morris USA have been able to offset declining volumes by raising prices, Norton said.

Marketing key to success
But Nicogel’s success will hinge on marketing, Norton said.

“Even (for) the established smokeless tobacco companies ... it’s all marketing and promotion spending and how aggressive they can be. For a small private company, I question how much marketing muscle they could put behind it,” Norton said.

Nicogel plans to spend “upward of $15 million” this year on marketing campaigns in national newspapers and magazines, as well as through nightclubs and hospital chains, which Whalen said are interested in Nicogel for their patients, doctors and nurses.

The clear gel, which Whalen said will soon turn up in other large chains, has all the components of tobacco but lacks many carcinogens, which are formed as cigarettes burn.

Patrick Reynolds, spokesman for the Foundation for a Smokefree America, said many anti-smoking advocates will likely oppose the use of Nicogel, claiming that it enables smokers to avoid stopping.

“My feeling is different. I am OK with these products, which help a smoker get through nicotine cravings,” said Reynolds, whose grandfather, R.J. Reynolds, founded the tobacco company that became Camel and Kool maker Reynolds American Inc. .

“Our feeling is that if you can ease a smoker’s way ... if you can give them a little comfort or relief temporarily, we don’t see anything wrong with that,” Reynolds said.


URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16563323/

[BEB]

I'd give that a try. The patches damaged flesh - 10 years later I still have dry skin where I stuck them on.

[jmur5074]

I'd probably just end up drinking the gel.

The gum never worked for me either. Gives me heartburn, even if I follow the directions.


Besides, 6 bucks for 10 doses?? I can get 12 "doses" from a can of chew that costs me $3.18!

[TXCharlie]

Why don't y'all just chew a big ol' wad of Skol and rub the spit in your hands?

Sounds like the news report is misleading big time when it says "lacks many carcinogens, which are formed as cigarettes burn" - More than a few folks who chew tobacco loose their lips, gums, and part of their mouths to cancer, so some of the cancer-causing stuff is there already.

[Star Man]

Why don't y'all just chew a big ol' wad of Skol and rub the spit in your hands?

Sounds like the news report is misleading big time when it says "lacks many carcinogens, which are formed as cigarettes burn" - More than a few folks who chew tobacco loose their lips, gums, and part of their mouths to cancer, so some of the cancer-causing stuff is there already.

True that.

[Operator13]

I must be getting cynical. I checked Snopes before Google

Sure enough, it's for real



http://www.nicogelusa.com/

[dlux]

The lawyers are already making commercials asking if you developed skin cancer as a result of using this product. Do I smell class action.

[TXCharlie]

Am I out of line in thinking this stuff may be abused like a drug by teenagers who get ahold of it, when they read this headline? As we all know, they can get ahold of it one way or another even if they're underage.

http://www.nicogelusa.com/index.htm?inc=5&news_id=8982

The new cool: Hand gel for that quick rush of nicotine

By BENJAMIN SPILLMAN
REVIEW-JOURNAL
In 1962, savvy card playing and a casually lit cigarette helped James Bond establish his cool quotient in the film "Dr. No."

In today's smoke-averse world, Bond is as cool as ever. But if he wants to seduce women without sacrificing his nicotine fix, he might want to try hand gel.

That's the latest product to offer smokers all the satisfaction of a timely cigarette without the indignity of shivering on a loading dock.
The gel, called Nicogel, contains the satisfying extracts from tobacco leaves and can be absorbed through the hands without leaving a residue, according to its backers.

The inventor says he's sold 500 million units in Europe and will soon be in drug stores across .

In Las Vegas, smokers scored complimentary samples during the Global Gaming Expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

"I do plan on using it when I can't get to a cigarette, but right now I can," Marie Tucker of Santa Fe, N.M., said during a smoke break
She and Linda Medina, also of Santa Fe, picked up a few packets of the stuff during the casino industry trade show.

"I would use it, but only because I try not to smoke that much," said Medina, a table games manager.

Smokeless tobacco products are gaining popularity due to increasing awareness of the health hazards of smoking. Alternatives to smoking are attractive because they allow smokers to get cigarette satisfaction without threatening the health of others around them.
Even in Nevada, which has been referred to as California's smoking section, the tide is turning against smokers.

Voters earlier this month approved a referendum to ban smoking at most indoor public places except for the gaming areas of casinos and bars that don't serve food.

Chris Giannini, senior marketing director for Blue Whale Worldwide, the company marketing Nicogel, said he expects smoking bans will eventually include casinos.

Giannini cited a smoking ban voters approved in New Jersey seven months ago that exempted Atlantic City casinos. Now there is an effort to broaden the ban to include the state's gambling halls.
"That is going to become the template for all other casinos to follow suit," Giannini said. "It is just a matter of time."

He said Nicogel is different from popular patches because it contains more than 1,800 ingredients found in tobacco, not just the nicotine.
And, more importantly for casino operators, it offers a way for customers who enjoy cigarettes and gambling to stay indoors betting in the event of a smoking ban.

Nicogel comes in a 50ml pump for $12.50 or in 35 cent packets about the size of postage stamps.

"The last thing the casinos want is (people) to get up from the tables," Giannini said. "All that action, all that play is being disrupted."