A SHOPKEEPER has ditched cigarettes from his convenience store in an effort to help smokers quit or switch to smoke-free alternatives.

John Hanna, a retailer at Smokemart Convenience Store in London Road, Brighton, said that many of his customers want to stop smoking but find it very difficult to do so.

He said: “Raising the issue of smoke-free products in the store is very important.

“Plenty of customers want to kick the habit, but they still can’t stop.

“We try to offer them a smoke-free product that is less harmful than normal cigarettes and for some of them it works and some it doesn’t work.

“But the majority of customers that you speak to about smoke-free products have gone for them and stuck with it - some of them even stopped totally.

“It is time that this country moved forward with smoke-free products to help smokers who can’t quit.”

Research by The Big Switch report, conducted by KAM and Lake Research, found that over a third (38 per cent) of convenience store owners in Brighton and Hove would consider becoming smoke-free retailers by ditching cigarettes.

Almost half (43 per cent) of retailers in the city also said they believe store owners could be more involved in helping smokers switch to smoke-free alternatives.

James Lowman, chief executive at the Association of Convenience Retailers (ACS), which represents over 33,500 shops across the country, said: “Convenience store retailers are embedded in their communities, with a reach unlike any other sector in the UK grocery market.

“This community grounding enables the people running and working in stores to be acutely in tune with the needs of their customers, but retailers also need to look at data from wider research to keep abreast of trends.

“The e-cigarette and smoke-free category is changing fast, so it’s important to understand consumer attitudes and benchmark with your own experiences and sales information.”

Christian Woolfenden, managing director at tobacco firm Phillip Morris Limited, which funded The Big Switch report, said that retailers are building stronger connections with customers to help improve awareness of alternative smoke-free products.

He said: “As the only tobacco company purposefully working to phase out cigarettes completely, we will continue to support retailers so they’re able to communicate the benefits of smoke-free alternatives to their adult customers who are unable to quit tobacco and nicotine products completely.”