Flavour-packed convenient pod mod and disposable products are continuing to sweeten vape sales.
by Gaelle Walker
With a current estimated value of more than £1.2bn in the UK and 30% of sales currently ringing through the tills of traditional retail stores, according to Imperial Tobacco, it’s pretty clear to see why vape is front of mind for a growing number of local retailers in 2022.
With the Covid-19 pandemic having driven footfall into local stores, retailers across Scotland currently have a key opportunity to retain the custom of shoppers who might previously have bought through specialist stores – a fact which is driving take-up of dedicated shop floor vape displays and increasingly diverse ranges, complete with the latest most on-trend products and flavours.
When it comes to trends, devices which offer ease of use and convenience continue to drive sales according to Imperial, with pod mod products such as its myblu device and associated Liquidpods, now accounting for a quarter of sales.
Over one in three Brits think vaping should be made available on the NHS a new survey by GoSmokeFree.co.uk recently found.
The survey of 1,200 Brits also revealed that 24% said that vaping was “far cheaper” than smoking while 8% of former smokers who now vape said they found the variety of vape products the biggest benefit of quitting tobacco, and 7% said they personally enjoy the fewer after-effects associated with e-cigarettes.
Disposables
However, for the ultimate in convenience, there’s nothing quite like disposables, which look set to make deeper inroads into the category in 2022.
Disposable brands such as Geek Bar and Elf Bar are being given a growing share of space in stores as their appeal among younger vapers and adult smokers who dual between vape and cigarettes continues to grow.
Earlier this year Geek Bar launched a new zero nicotine vape range in a bid to offer greater choice to adult smokers seeking to quit tobacco.
“Nicotine vapes of varying strengths are hugely important in ex-smokers’ quitting journey, and for those smokers coming towards the end of their smoking cessation journey, the zero-nicotine vape is an important milestone,” explains Geek Bar Chief Executive Allen Yang.
The launch was the first of two range extensions from Geek Bar, which also unveiled a new shisha vape.
The Geek Bar shisha vape includes 575 puffs and comes with 2ml e-liquid capacity and 20mg/ml nicotine. It’s also available in several fruity flavours including Watermelon Berries Shisha, Hawaii Sunshine Shisha, Pineapple Guava Shisha, Mixed Fruit with Rose Shisha, and Strawberry Kiwi Shisha.
The new shisha range also features Geek Bar’s new anti-illicit trade packaging which allows both retailers and consumers to confirm the authenticity of the product via new security code checking technology.
- The peak ages for e-cigarette use in 2021 are among 35 to 44-year-olds (10.1%) followed by 45 to 54-year-olds (8.6%), and then 25 to 34-year-olds (8.1%).
- The lowest vaping rates by age are 5% for young adults aged 18-24, followed by those over 55 at 5.4%.
- A slightly higher proportion of those identifying as male (8.1% ) say that they currently use e-cigarettes than those identifying as female (6.2%).
- Of the 3.6 million vapers in the UK in 2021, just under 2.4 million are ex-smokers; 1.1 million are current smokers; and just under 200,000 have never smoked.
- Nine out of 10 ex-smokers who currently use e-cigarettes vape every day, with 97% vaping at least weekly.
- Satisfaction levels are growing, with 68% of vapers who no longer smoke now saying that they find vaping “more or equally” satisfying as smoking. This compares to 65% in 2020.
Source: YouGov
