IQOS is a heated tobacco product (HTP). it is the global HTP market leader and the only HTP in Israel. Smoking rates, as well as IQOS and/or electronic cigarette use, are higher in the Arab than the Jewish population in Israel. The point-of-sale (POS) environment is one of the under-studied marketing channels. The way IQOS is promoted to merchants might affect their direct-to-consumer approach. This study aimed to assess and compare POS merchants’ attitudes towards IQOS and IQOS marketing strategies at POS between Arab and Jewish neighborhoods.
The researchers used publicly available data on IQOS Israel website to identify IQOS POS locations in 5 large cities in Israel, Arab, Jewish and mixed. A cross-sectional survey with the POS owner or manager was conducted via phone or in-person. Bivariate analysis was performed using Chi- Square and Fischer’s exact test.
You can read more about the survey in Population Medicine.