Philip Morris' heated tobacco device IQOS goes on sale in Texas

(This March 27 story has been refiled to remove an incorrect picture, with no changes to text)

LONDON (Reuters) - Philip Morris International began selling its IQOS heated tobacco device in Austin, Texas on Thursday for $60 a piece, an executive told Reuters, kicking off efforts by the world's largest cigarette maker to build a market for its flagship heated tobacco device in the United States.

PMI hopes to capture a 10% share of U.S. tobacco and heated tobacco unit volume by 2030 and build a substantial base of new users in the world's top market for smoking alternatives.

Reuters reported in April that PMI was preparing for an Austin launch of IQOS, the top-selling heated tobacco device globally, but it has so far not been widely available to consumers.

PMI said on Thursday that after a successful pilot it was now offering IQOS to smoking-age Austin residents and would host demonstrations and guided trials for adults at the Austin MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas to showcase the product.

The device will be sold for $60 with the accompanying tobacco sticks available for $8, Francisca Rahardja, vice president and chief marketing officer, inhalables at PMI U.S., told Reuters. The pre-tax price of a pack of Marlboro was $9.62 at end 2024, according to maker Altria.

Rahardja said PMI was offering IQOS at a lower price versus some other markets in part to reflect the fact it was trying to build up appetite among new consumers.

It would be on sale at pop-up stores and mobile units, she continued, including one location in downtown Austin set to be in place for several months.

PMI also had contracts with around 15 adult-only venues like bars where mobile units and "IQOS coaches" would be active, targeting existing nicotine users, Rahardja said. PMI employs coaches to promote IQOS and teach consumers how to use it.

PMI previously said it would launch IQOS in four cities in two U.S. states, but so far only the Austin launch has been announced.

It is pursuing a limited U.S. roll-out of an older version of the IQOS device while waiting for authorisation to sell the latest iteration, dubbed ILUMA, in the country.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is currently weighing PMI's ILUMA application. The FDA has already authorised PMI to sell the older device and market it as reducing exposure to harmful chemicals versus cigarettes.

Campaigners wrote to the FDA last year to oppose PMI's IQOS-related applications.

(Reporting by Emma Rumney; Editing by Mark Porter, William Maclean)