Egypt Tobacco Market - Growth, Trends, and Forecasts (2023-2028)

The Egyptian tobacco market is expected to register a CAGR of 7.16% during the forecast period

Key Highlights

• Changing lifestyles, continuous product innovation in terms of flavor, size, ingredients, nicotine level, and consumers' belief that smoking reduces stress and anxiety are some of the major factors propelling the market's growth. Additionally, factors, such as consumer knowledge and an increase in awareness of products and services, through social media, like Facebook and other sources, coupled with the advent of digital media, are educating consumers about the benefits of low tar, low nicotine, organic, and smokeless products. This, in turn, drives the demand for e-cigarettes and other advanced tobacco products.
• Nevertheless, the traditional usage of tobacco, like shisha, and increasing penetration of organized retail outlets are opening space for new products in tobacco product types. In the country, the consumption of cigarettes by 15-year-olds or older is increasing steadily, which aids in the growth of tobacco product sales.
• According to the World Bank, in 2021, smoking prevalence refers to the percentage of men and women ages 15 and older who smoke a tobacco product every day or every other day, around 24.30%. Furthermore, over the past few years, there has been rising awareness regarding health hazards associated with tobacco usage, which makes the market more dynamic for product innovation.

Egypt Tobacco Market Trends

Consumption of Tobacco is Rising as Shisha Segment is Growing at a Significant Pace

• Shisha is a traditional flavored syrupy tobacco product used in hookahs or water pipes and is also known as Shisha masses. According to a study on shisha smokers conducted by Central Agency For Public Mobilization and Statistics, 81% were spending 10% of their income on daily shisha consumption. Due to this, the consumption of tobacco is rising in the country.
• Moreover, the prevalence rate of their smoking shisha is relatively higher than other tobacco products, with a regular rate of 8.7%. Moreover, younger adults who smoke shisha tend to smoke more often with friends, a popular social activity among consumers in the market. Shisha use is rising among college students as they perceive it as safer than cigarette smoking. In addition, waterpipe smoking is characterized by a lower frequency of exposure (one to four sessions per day).
• Furthermore, most female shisha (waterpipe smokers) consumers perceived the product as fashionable and believed waterpipes are less harmful than cigarettes. Smoke apple, watermelon, strawberry, orange coffee, and other flavored shisha are growing in the market.
• Additionally, exchanging gifts with an Egyptian flavor is always a tradition among Egyptians. A trend has begun in which gifts are created representing the most famous couples in Egyptian TV series and plays and gifts inspired by Egyptian folklore. Instead of traditional symbols of love, Valentine's shisha with red hearts and red decorations is sold on Facebook gift pages and has begun in the country.

Strong Penetration of Offline Retail Network

• The penetration of organized retail enables consumers to seek information about various brands and compare prices and quality, resulting in a better purchasing experience. This segment includes retail outlets like specialty stores, vape/tobacco stores, hypermarkets/supermarkets, convenience stores, and gas stations.​
• As these outlets are in heavily populated areas, with a greater number of customer groups, the manufacturers are using this opportunity to promote their product by giving multipack discounts (e.g., buy-two-get-one-free or buy-two-for-one deals) and wholesale price discounts, driving the sales of the product through this channel.
• ​Furthermore, point-of-sales marketing using color, design, and others are made to enhance the impulse purchases of tobacco products. These stores provide more comprehensive visibility, as cigarette and other tobacco advertising are banned.
• In addition, 6 in 10 adults noticed tobacco advertisements or promotions when visiting points of sale, driving the growth. ​For instance, Tabacco in SkyMall offers a range of products like shisha, cigars, and cigarettes. As a result, tobacco products gain the majority share of sales in the offline retail channel.

Egypt Tobacco Market Competitor Analysis

The tobacco market in Egypt is competitive, with the presence of various regional and global players. The well-established companies and imported brands have higher availability across retail shelves in the country. Some major players in the Market are Eastern Company SAE, Philip Morris International Inc., British American Tobacco PLC, Japan Tobacco International SA, Innokin Technology Co. Ltd, J Well France SARL, Imperial Brands PLC, Joyetech Group & The Eastern Tobacco Company (ETC). The Egyptian e-cigarette market is low on competition, with the presence of imported/foreign brands operating in the segment. In the market studied, well-established companies with known brands attached to their business profiles have a higher penetration across specialty retailers, mainly because of business expansion and operating businesses through online channels.

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• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
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