Exploring small retailers' perspectives on selling tobacco after the tripling of Tasmania's tobacco licence fee.

Abstract

Background: Licensing of tobacco retailers, including high retail licence fees, is one tobacco control measure that may reduce tobacco retail availability. Between 2015 and 2018, the tobacco licence fee in Tasmania, Australia, tripled to $A1132/year. We sought to explore small retailer perspectives on selling tobacco following the tripling of the licence fee.

Methods: In-depth semistructured telephone interviews (n=21) were conducted with business owners and managers between March and July 2020. Participants were asked broad questions about their business, attitudes and intentions towards selling tobacco and the perceived importance of tobacco to their business.

Results: Participants' perspectives and decision-making about selling tobacco were influenced by an interplay of factors, including tobacco's perceived core business value and its waning importance in small retail due to declining demand. Although participants frequently reported tobacco as unprofitable, with many describing it as their least profitable product, most continued selling it. The high tobacco licence fee created a tipping point that challenged the cost-benefit balance previously weighted towards selling tobacco. While the fee, alongside the increasing cost of tobacco itself, pushed some retailers towards a critical decision point to stop selling tobacco, others continued to sell tobacco but appear to be headed in the same direction.

Conclusion: A high annual tobacco licence fee serves as a potential mechanism for phasing out the sale of commercial tobacco in small retailers in a jurisdiction with other strong tobacco control measures.