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NJOY

NJOY, LLC
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryElectronic Cigarettes
Founded2007; 17 years ago (2007)
HeadquartersScottsdale, Arizona, United States
Key people
Shannon Leistra, Chief Executive Officer
ParentAltria Group (2023-present)
Websitewww.njoy.com

NJOY, LLC is an American company that manufactures and distributes electronic cigarettes and vaping products. In 2017, NJOY acquired the assets of NJOY, Inc., one of the first companies to sell e-cigarettes. On June 1, 2023, the company was acquired by Altria Group.[1]

History

NJOY, founded in 2007, was one of the first major e-cigarette brands in the US.[2][3]

In 2010, the company won a landmark lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration. The decision by the US Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling finding that the FDA lacked authority to regulate electronic cigarettes as drugs or medical devices, absent therapeutic claims. The court further held that FDA could seek to regulate electronic cigarettes via the FDA's authority under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009, as argued by NJOY.[4]  In response, FDA announced that it would accept the Court of Appeals decision and would regulate the category under the Tobacco Control Act rather than under the agency's drug jurisdiction. The lawsuit thereby established the legal framework for the electronic cigarette/vaping industry.

Originally NJOY achieved commercial success following the resolution of its lawsuit with FDA.  Much of this early success was due to well-received launch of the NJOY KING, a disposable electronic cigarette in a package and form factor that looks like a cigarette. Main product features included a white paper wrapping, a faux filter, and a red “ember” that lights when you draw. The King had no button to push and nothing to charge. The King brought in $90 million in revenue in 2013. By 2014, NJOY was ranked number one by IRI in US vaping retail sales with over 90,000 points of distribution.[5] NJOY's stated mission is to “make smoking history.” NJOY supplies e-cigarettes for independent, government-funded studies on smoking and e-cigarettes.[6][7]

In 2022, the FDA authorized several NJOY e-cigarette products to be legally marketed in the U.S.[8][9]

In 2023, Altria Group acquired 100% control of NJOY.[10]

Products

In the years following the King's launch, NJOY expanded its product offerings to include open system vape liquids, a closed system vape device called the PFT, a new disposable electronic cigarette called the DAILY, a rechargeable device called the LOOP, and a pod-based vape device called the ACE.

NJOY's current leading products are the DAILY, LOOP and ACE:

  • The NJOY DAILY is a disposable e-cigarette. Each DAILY provides approximately 300 puffs, comparable to 1 full pack of cigarettes. There are eight flavors and a choice of 4.5% or 6% nicotine strengths.
  • The NJOY ACE has a compact design with longer batter life. It uses a magnetic pod system to help prevent leakage and spills. There used to be four flavors: Blueberry, Watermelon, Classic Tobacco, and Mint with 5.0% nicotine strength delivering about 325 puffs per pod. Now, there are only 2 flavor choices: Classic Tobacco and Menthol with 5.0% or 2.4% nicotine delivering the same amount of puffs per pod. NJOY voluntarily stopped producing and selling the fruity flavors due to lawmakers and anti-vaping advocates that were concerned about underage people obtaining and getting addicted to them.
  • The LOOP is a continuous battery charging case accessory with two rechargeable e-cigarettes inside. There are 4 flavors at 4% nicotine strength with approximately 150 puffs per pod.

People

The company's early individual investors include Sean Parker, Peter Thiel, Douglas Teitelbaum[11] and Bruno Mars.[12]

In 2013, former Surgeon General and physician Richard Carmona joined the company's Board of Directors, also serving in a scientific advisory role.[13]

In 2015, NJOY named former Global President and General Manager of Pfizer's Consumer Health Care Business, Paul Sturman as CEO & President.[14]

References

  1. ^ "Altria Completes Acquisition of NJOY Holdings, Inc.; Updates 2023 Full-Year Earnings Guidance". Yahoo! Finance. June 2023. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
  2. ^ Richtel, Matt (2013-10-26) (26 October 2013). "The E-Cigarette Industry, Waiting to Exhale". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-03-18.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Sanburn, Josh (8 January 2013). "Can Electronic Cigarettes Challenge Big Tobacco?". Time. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
  4. ^ Don, Jeffrey (2010-12-07) (7 December 2010). "FDA Loses Appeal, Can't Regulate E-Cigarettes as Drug". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Why the Tobacco Giants Remain Among the Best Dividend Stocks". The Motley Fool. 19 November 2014. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
  6. ^ NIDA. "How to Order the Standardized Research E-Cigarette (SREC)". Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  7. ^ NIDA (2018, January 12) (12 January 2018). "Available Soon: NIDA's E-Cigarette". Retrieved 2018-12-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ "FDA Issues Marketing Decisions on NJOY Daily E-Cigarette Products". U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 2022-08-11. Retrieved 2022-10-18.
  9. ^ "FDA Issues Marketing Decisions on NJOY Ace E-Cigarette Products". U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 2022-08-11. Retrieved 2022-10-18.
  10. ^ "Altria Group Inc.to acquire Scottsdale-based e-cigarette maker NJOY". The Business Journals. 2023-03-09.
  11. ^ Biggs, John (2014-02-28) (March 2014). "E-Cig Maker NJOY Raises $70 Million". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2016-03-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ Moreno, Carolina (2013-06-03) (3 June 2013). "Bruno Mars Invests In NJOY Electronic Cigarette Company, Started Using Product For Mom". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-03-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ "Carmona joining e-cigarette board". POLITICO. 2013-03-24. Associated Press. 24 March 2013. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
  14. ^ "NJOY Names Sturman as CEO & President". CSP Daily News. Retrieved 2015-01-26.