Japan Tobacco’s Mevius represents ‘mild’ challenge to Marlboro

The new brand will take full effect in February next year. However, a new “globally unified” design under the Mild Seven brand will be introduced in Japan in November, according to JT.

JT plans to use the new brand as a vehicle for growth and increase investment in international markets. Around 70 per cent of Mild Seven’s volume comes from the Japanese market, but it is also relatively popular in Korea, Malaysia, Russia and Taiwan.

The ‘m’ and ‘s’ in Mevius pay tribute to Mild Seven, while ‘ev’ stands for ‘evolution; ‘iu’ represents the link between the brand (‘i’) and its consumers ('u').

In a statement, JT president and chief executive Mitsuomi Koizumi said the company was aiming to grow its tobacco business “by mid to high single digits per year over the medium to long term” by focusing on its core brands, broadening its scope internationally and developing new product categories.

JT suffered a major setback as a result of last year’s earthquake, which destroyed two of its factories and interfered with its distribution network, resulting in the growth of international competitors such as Marlboro domestically.

A former senior tobacco industry marketing executive for the region, who did not wish to be named, suggested that the transition from Mild Seven to the rather unusual ‘Mevius’ was driven by regulatory requirements rather than marketing or consumer-based strategy, in spite of JT's philosophical explanation of its meaning. The term ‘mild’ is disallowed when referring to tobacco in many markets.

The source noted that Mild Seven was the only truly premium brand in JT’s portfolio, and said the drive for international growth was a way of “rallying the troops” and raising morale following the problems of last year.

Nonetheless, it will not be easy to take on Marlboro. Mild Seven sold just over 75 billion cigarettes (termed ‘sticks’ within the industry) globally last year. By contrast, Marlboro sold more than 300 billion.

“Japan Tobacco International (JTi) is not known for its branding and marketing expertise,” the source said. “It has a traditional mindset. Marlboro has been rejuvenated, especially [with regard to] its menthol range, and is a growing and healthy brand. Innovations in the category such as capsule filters have been successful, but not beyond 10 billion sticks, so Mevius has little chance of beating Marlboro unless there is a major disaster.”