The market share of KT&G (CEO Young-jin Min) has increased for two consecutive quarters. This is the first time this has occurred since the price hikes at the end of 2004.

The company’s market share jumped from 55.7% in Q4 last year to 58.0% and 59.8% respectively in Q1 and Q2 this year, recording the sales growth for two consecutive quarters. In May and June, the average market share of KT&G marked 63.1% while some foreign-based tobacco companies increased prices.

Particularly, the market share growth has been explicitly shown in the sales outlets close to colleges frequented by youths. According to the nationwide convenience store sales data, the market share of KT&G in June went up 5.1% from April, while the increase in convenience store sales adjacent to colleges recorded a 7.7% jump, indicating more demand from youths.

The factors contributing to the increasing market share include the shift in demand from its competitors to KT&G due to their price hikes, good sales records from the main brands and positive feedback from customers on the recently released products such as Bohem Cigar Mojito and The One Etipac.

According to KT&G, the sales of its main brands Esse, The One and Raison rose by 5.0%, 11.9% and 10.3% respectively in April, May and June while at the same time the sales of Bohem and Davidoff also soared 35.9% and 46.5% each.

In addition, the market share of Bohem Cigar Mojito, a product released last month, has recorded 0.9% in convenience stores nationwide and 2.4% in the stores close to colleges, showing the best record out of the recent products. The One Etipac, released the same month, also occupied 0.4% of the market.

An official from KT&G says, “The recent increase in market share signals a rosier future for us as more demand comes from the retail stores close to colleges frequented by youths, especially considering that they showed lower preference in the past.”