Altria Makes Major Bet On Rise Of Nicotine Vaping
JUUL by is licensed under
The future of marijuana consumption is coming into clearer focus.
The Seed Investor has long posited the biggest money in legal marijuana won’t be made by selling flower to smoking hippies, but in value-added products like edibles, vaping and infused beverages.
The latter may make up the early adopters and drive initial sales, but as legal marijuana goes mainstream, alternative consumption methods will dominate.
Today we got further confirmation of this expectation from a major shift in the tobacco industry.
Altria (MO), America’s largest tobacco company, announced it would buy a 35% stake in JUUL, America’s leading nicotine vaping company.
The $12.8 billion investment from Altria values JUUL at a massive $38 billion (about $6 billion more than Ford Motor Company).
The deal also will further cement JUUL’s leading position by giving it access to Altria’s distribution network.
This is a big deal for the future of Altria, JUUL, and vaping in general.
Most importantly for marijuana investors though, it is a clear indicator one of the biggest growth opportunities in all of legal marijuana.