A $1 Billion Reset for Juul

Juul Labs, Inc. said that it will cut $1 billion in 2020 to reduce costs. The regulatory crackdown is forcing their new CEO, K.C. Crosthwaite, to find a turnaround strategy that will lead to their success. What does this mean for Juul employees? That equates to roughly 650 of their 4,051 jobs will be cut. That is a 16% payroll reduction. Previous reports indicated a 10-15% reduction of the workforce by the end of this year.

The budget cuts of course will impact their marketing efforts, as they will have to scale back significantly. Juul’s restructuring will allow them to invest in scientific research, create new technologies, and focus intently on reducing underage usage. Juul held down more than 70% of the market share of the e-cigarette industry. With the tag-teaming of two health crises in the US: teenage vaping, and over 600 severe lung illnesses and 12 deaths tied to vaping, Juul needs a hail mary pass so they can bounce back. They have already made moves to try to rectify the mess that they created, by eliminating all mint-flavored products, as it accounts for roughly 70% of their sales. It already eliminated their other super popular flavors that most teens and kids were drawn to; the only flavors left in the U.S. are menthol, Virginia tobacco and classic tobacco.

Some consumers and lawmakers who have been pushing hard to drastically regulate the e-cigarette and tobacco industries, aren’t trying to give Juul any leeway for that end zone catch. It will be especially hard now that Juul’s name has been so badly tarnished for knowingly marketing to and getting kids addicted to nicotine (and using the technology to smoke marijuana and other narcotics). They have been attacked for being too profit thirsty and because of this scandal, people are fearing contaminating Juul canisters, and a technology that researchers claim would have reduced the number of traditional cigarette users, has now backfired.

The American Lung Association has been fighting for more than a decade to get the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take action against e-cigarettes. On the American Lung Association’s website they have provided some helpful information for parents and teens to help clear up the confusion between e-cigarettes, vape pins, vapes, and Juul. As the saying goes, “common sense isn’t that common” so access to information is the first step to gaining the knowledge needed to make healthy decisions.

Here’s an interesting thought…who besides non-smokers benefit from the crashing of the e-cigarette industry?

We’ll give you a hint…two words…okay, here’s another hint. We’ll even let you fill in the blanks… B_ G T_ B _ C _ O

What are your thoughts? Could this be true? Do you think that the e-cigarette industry’s biggest competitor will breathe a sigh of relief or go into panic mode if the Trump administration follows through with banning all mint flavored cigarettes? Let us know by commenting on our IG or Twitter feeds. With countless public and private organizations, restaurants, and stores banning the use of both traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes, this will be an interesting fight to survive for both industries—as they will have to reimagine their structure and how they will market to, attract, and keep their customers.