The National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) is celebrating its 20th anniversary this month. The organization was founded in 2001 to fill a need for a national association that served tobacco outlet stores but has expanded to include every category of retail store that sells tobacco products.
Over the past 20 years, NATO has succeeded in its primary vision of bringing the tobacco industry together to collaborate in protecting the right to sell and purchase legal tobacco products.
NATO remains focused on its mission of improving business conditions for retailers that sell tobacco in the U.S., while providing information to members on federal, state and local regulations and laws that pertain to the sale, advertising, promotion, regulation and taxation of tobacco products. The association also offers retailers information on how best to comply with various regulations and laws, as well as how to respond to proposed regulations.
Over the years, NATO’s scope has grown to include a focus on monitoring and opposing tobacco-related legislation at the local, state and federal levels, as well as monitoring regulations put forth by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Today, NATO’s membership is comprised of more than 62,000 retail stores (tobacco stores, convenience stores, service stations, grocery stores, liquor stores and corner retail markets), making NATO one of the largest retail trade associations in the country by store count. Compare that with 2006 — five years after NATO began — when its membership consisted of just 2,000 retail stores.
These days, NATO also counts nearly 30 manufacturers from every segment of the tobacco industry, and numerous wholesalers, among its members. Collaborating with retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers has helped NATO grow into the country’s top tobacco-related trade association.
Convenience stores make up a large segment of NATO members.
“For convenience stores, there is a need for up-to-date information on local, state and federal legislation as well as FDA regulations,” said Thomas Briant, executive director of NATO. “NATO has a special expertise on each of these levels of government, which is beneficial to the convenience store segment.”
20 Years of Changes
The tobacco industry has evolved a great deal in 20 years. One of the most significant changes has been the regulation of tobacco products by the FDA.
“The federal regulation of tobacco products adds a whole new dimension to the regulation, which had previously been the purview of primarily local and state governments,” Briant said. “Also, another major change has been the consolidation at every level of the industry from retailers to wholesalers to manufacturers.”
In 2006, when NATO celebrated its fifth anniversary, the organization noted it monitored and responded on 100 state bills that year. In 2020, the organization responded to 500 state bills — just one marker of how much tobacco regulation and ordinances have skyrocketed over the years.
In recent years, NATO created the National Response Network (NRN), which includes more than 70 state and national trade associations. Using the NRN, NATO sends alerts regarding local tobacco ordinances, updating these trade associations on talking points and pertinent information on ordinances, which then pass the alerts along to members with stores in the area where tobacco regulations are being considered, allowing these local retailers to better oppose ordinances.
Looking ahead to the next decade, NATO aspires to further assist in helping elected officials understand the important role local retailers play in the economy and convince them to stop burdening these law-abiding retailers with unreasonable taxes or restrictive regulations. The NRN is already engaging an increasing number of retailers and giving them the tools to become more active in speaking out on legislative issues. Using educational webinars, NATO continues to provide retailers with information, allowing them to be well informed on current laws and regulations.
For more information on joining NATO, visit Natocentral.org.
