Concerned About Point of Purchase
Tobacco Advertising in a Store Near You?
More than 3,000 Capital District consumers have added their voices to those of community advocates by signing postcards and petitions asking stores to make tobacco advertising and tobacco products less visible as a way to decrease the attractiveness of smoking to young people and protect them from the harmful and often fatal effects of tobacco use. Let your local grocery, convenience store, or other retail outlet know that you’re a concerned customer. Describe to them the specific nature of your concern and make a request for change. Some possible requests include:

• Eliminate smoking at store entrances
  
  
• Reduce/eliminate advertising placed at children’s eye level; on employee nametags; on or near toys, candy or other child-friendly items
  
  
• Keep tobacco products a reasonable distance from toys, candy, and other child-friendly items
  
  
• Keep tobacco displays away from the front and center area of store
  
  
• Make plastic display stations opaque (i.e., not see-through) instead of clear
  
  
• In larger stores, move tobacco displays and sales to the customer service desk

Capital District Retailers

Many local convenience stores are either individually owned and operated or they are large chains with out-of-area headquarters. One notable exception is Stewart's Shops, an employee- and family-owned business with over 300 convenience shops in Upstate New York and Vermont and based in Saratoga Springs.

Email Stewart's Shops with YOUR Personalized Message

Contact Stewart’s Shops

Public Request of Large Supermarkets

In November 2007, local public health advocates and community members joined together to make a specific request of large area grocery stores to reduce tobacco advertising. (See pictures of the press conference we held here and the press release here.)

Since then, several New York supermarket chains have made the bold decision to put the community's health above profits and end tobacco sales altogether. There has been a local groundswell of support for our area grocery leaders to act similarly.

About local efforts to get tobacco out of our community's grocery stores.

Contact Us

Your voice matters and you have a right to be heard. If you spot an area retailer engaging in a practice that concerns you or you’d like to share a success story you’ve had with a retailer near you, let us know. Email contact @ smokefreecapital.org. Together, we can build an even stronger community in which we can all breathe free.

Join Our E-mail Action Team

Sign a Petition to End the Sale of        Tobacco Products in Supermarkets

Sign a Petition to Stop Retail       Advertising to Kids

Contact Your Legislators

Learn More About the Effect of Point-       of-Purchase Advertising on Teens

If you are a retail store owner, take action and reduce, rearrange or eliminate YOUR tobacco advertising. And be sure to let us know if you do.