[2FIRSTS Summary Report]
According to Action on Smoking and Health UK (ASH), the number of vapers in the UK is now 4.3 million, of which about 2.4 million are ex-smokers, 1.5 million are current smokers, and 350,000 have never smoked. Many e-cigarette manufacturers see the UK as a successful template. At the Vaper Expo UK in Birmingham, we had the chance to interview George Xia, co-founder and vice president of INNOKIN, to share his views on the UK market.
Interview with George Xia, source: 2FIRSTS
George Xia believes that the British market is among the best in the world. "From a policy point of view, the government is more supportive of electronic cigarettes. The British government pledged to achieve nationwide smoke-free by 2030. If we can dig a little more into the market, a huge potential will be unleashed, for we haven’t covered all smokers nationwide."
Despite his optimism about the UK market, George is cognizant of the current dilemmas and problems facing the market. In previous discussions with government officials and scientists, he learned that the UK government authorities are now highly concerned about the issue of underage smoking. Social media campaigns had a negative impact on minors, such as those on TikTok, making minor access to vapes a social issue. No matter in which country, minors' health is of utmost importance. Therefore, George speculated that the future regulatory direction of the UK market will focus on solving the problem of mal-marketing and the use of e-cigarettes by minors.
In George's view, in addition to the problem of minors’ access, another that the e-cigarette industry will face is "environmental protection". Therefore, in the face of increasingly strict environmental regulations, he talked about "product environmental protection and harm reduction". In this regard, he is quite confident about the products of INNOKIN. "Our company is already ahead of the curve in terms of environmental protection," he says, citing one of his new products as an example. "It uses recyclable paper as the main body material, unlike many products whose packaging is plastic-based."
When 2FIRSTS asks how he sees the problem of serious product homogenization in the British and the global market, George answered from a market and product perspective. "The Chinese mindset in many cases is that I offer you a lower price. But from the client’s point of view, we already got a best seller, so why should I buy yours? There’s not much of a difference."
George Xia believes that it does not matter where the market is if you want to remove homogeneity and differentiate your products, “Firstly stay creative, secondly stay true to the original purpose, and thirdly meeting the local needs in terms of design style.”
In talking about the second point "staying true to the original purpose", George adds, vape products must focus on harm reduction and cigarette substitution to help people lower their health risks.
For more information on the Vaper Expo UK, please go straight to www.2firsts.com/topic/vaper
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