Member Spotlight: Northeast Wholesalers Association

Welcome to the latest edition of Regulate Smarter’s “Member Spotlight,” a weekly segment where we go in-depth on the priorities and background of our members.

This week, we look at the Northeast Wholesalers Association (NEWA), the regional trade association representing the interests of corporations and individuals involved in the manufacturing, sales, and distribution of convenience products across the 11 states that make up the Northeast: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Headquartered in Portland, Maine, NEWA serves as a hub for wholesalers navigating a competitive and regulated landscape, promoting growth and resilience in the convenience products sector. They have been vocal proponents of smoke free alternatives for adult consumers, while pushing back on debunked myths about nicotine.

In March 2025, CEO V.J. Mayor penned a commentary piece for the Maine Wire warning lawmakers of the negative consequences of “fundamentally flawed policies” toward nicotine that “have inadvertently established” nearby states “as a thriving hub for black-market tobacco products.”

NEWA sounded the alarm that “nicotine myths continue to complicate public health,” urging “policies to be based on science, not stigma,” reinforcing a key plank of Regulate Smarter to increase education around the misperceptions of nicotine. They warned that so-called “Nicotine-Free Generation” proposals – like the one currently under consideration by Massachusetts lawmakers –  that would impose outright bans on tobacco products for certain consumers are anti-business, anti-civil liberties, and target the freedoms of adults 21 and over.  NEWA pointed out that the issue was never about public health—but instead is about control, saying that adults of legal age deserve the right to make legal choices.

While these wholesalers carry a range of tobacco and nicotine products for adult consumers, they have been vocal proponents of expanding the availability of regulated, smoke free alternatives, while pushing back on debunked myths about nicotine.

For more details, visit their official site at northeastwholesalers.org and follow them on X @newholesalers.

Welcome NEWA – we’re thrilled to have you on board!

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