NJOY, LLC is an American company that manufactures and distributes

electronic cigarette An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), or vape, is a device that simulates smoking. It consists of an atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or tank. Instead of smoke, the user inhales vapor. As such ...

s and vaping products. The company has been under wholly ownership of

Altria Group Altria Group, Inc. (previously known as Philip Morris Companies, Inc. until 2003) is an American corporation and one of the world's largest producers and marketers of tobacco, cigarettes, and medical products in the treatment of illnesses c ...

since 2023.

History

NJOY, founded in 2007, was one of the first major e-cigarette brands in the US. It was founded by

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

attorney Mark Weiss. In 2010, the company won a landmark lawsuit against the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...

. The decision by the US Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling finding that the

FDA The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...

lacked authority to regulate electronic cigarettes as drugs or medical devices, absent therapeutic claims. The court further held that FDA could seek to regulate electronic cigarettes via the FDA's authority under the

Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, (, ) is a federal statute in the United States that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on June 22, 2009. The Act gives the Food and Drug Administration the power to regulate the ...

of 2009, as argued by NJOY. In response, FDA announced that it would accept the Court of Appeals decision and would regulate the category under the Tobacco Control Act rather than under the agency's drug jurisdiction. The lawsuit thereby established the legal framework for the electronic cigarette/vaping industry. Originally NJOY achieved commercial success following the resolution of its lawsuit with FDA. Much of this early success was due to well-received launch of the NJOY KING, a disposable electronic cigarette in a package and form factor that looks like a cigarette. The King was introduced in late 2012. Main product features included a white paper wrapping, a faux filter, and a red “ember” that lights when you draw. The King had no button to push and nothing to charge. The King became the best-selling e-cigarette in the United States and brought in $90 million in revenue in 2013. By 2014, NJOY was ranked number one by

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in US vaping retail sales with over 90,000 points of distribution as well as 40,000 in Europe. Its closest rival was Blu as well as

Vuse Vuse (pronunciation: ) is an American brand of electronic cigarettes introduced in 2013. They are produced and marketed by the Reynolds American tobacco company and globally by its parent company, British American Tobacco (BAT). Products were prev ...

and MarkTen (by

Altria Altria Group, Inc. (previously known as Philip Morris Companies, Inc. until 2003) is an American corporation and one of the world's largest producers and marketers of tobacco, cigarettes, and medical products in the treatment of illnesses ca ...

). The company's newer device, the NJOY King 2, did not find success and the increasing market competition led to NJOY filing for bankruptcy in September 2016. In 2017, NJOY, LLC acquired the assets of NJOY, Inc. and the company relaunched. NJOY's stated mission is to “make smoking history.” NJOY supplies e-cigarettes for independent, government-funded studies on smoking and e-cigarettes. The brand recovered in the following years.https://www.feelmtech.com/GlobalClients/njoy-success-story.html In 2022, the FDA authorized several NJOY e-cigarette products to be legally marketed in the U.S. On June 1, 2023,

acquired 100% control of NJOY, shortly after Altria sold its stake in Juul Labs.

Products

In the years following the King's launch, NJOY expanded its product offerings to include open system vape liquids, a closed system vape device called the PFT, a new disposable electronic cigarette called the DAILY, a rechargeable device called the LOOP, and a pod-based vape device called the ACE.

People

The company's early individual investors include

Sean Parker Sean Parker (born December 3, 1979) is an American entrepreneur and philanthropist, most notable for co-founding the file-sharing computer service Napster, and was the first president of the social networking website Facebook. He also co-foun ...

Peter Thiel Peter Andreas Thiel (; born 11 October 1967) is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and political activist. A co-founder of PayPal, Palantir Technologies, and Founders Fund, he was the first outside investor in Facebook. According ...

, Douglas Teitelbaum and

Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is known for his three-octave tenor vocal range, live performances, R ...

. In 2013, former

Surgeon General Surgeon general (: surgeons general) is a title used in several Commonwealth countries and most NATO nations to refer either to a senior military medical officer or to a senior uniformed physician commissioned by the government and entrusted with p ...

and physician

Richard Carmona Richard Henry Carmona (born November 22, 1949) is an American physician, nurse, police officer, public health administrator, and politician. He was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as the seventeenth Surg ...

joined the company's Board of Directors, also serving in a scientific advisory role. In 2015, NJOY named former Global President and General Manager of

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...

's Consumer Health Care Business, Paul Sturman as CEO & President.

References

{{Electronic cigarettes Smoking in the United States Electronic cigarette manufacturers 2023 mergers and acquisitions 2007 establishments in Arizona American companies established in 2007