KT&G's Lil e-cigarettes sell over 3.7 million units worldwide

KT&G announced on the 7th that their cigarette-style electronic cigarette "Lil" sold a total of 3.79 million units in domestic and overseas markets last year. KT&G launched the cigarette-style electronic cigarette brand "Lil" in South Korea in 2017, and has since introduced new device platforms such as "Lil Mini," "Lil Solid 2.0," and "Lil Hybrid.

According to data from KT&G, Lil's domestic market share grew from 16.1% in 2018 to 31.7% in 2019, almost doubling. In the second quarter of this year, it ranked first among South Korean tobacco companies with a 47% share. In addition, cumulative sales of the Lil series devices exceeded 4 million units as of last year. The company attributes these achievements to its efforts in research and development.

In 2016, KT&G established a specialized intellectual property organization and expanded the compensation system for inventors. Research and development investments have also continued to increase significantly, rising from KRW 4.1 billion in 2017 to KRW 21.4 billion last year.

KT&G is also rapidly expanding into foreign markets. The company has signed a product supply contract with PMI (Philip Morris International) for overseas expansion in Lille in 2020. Starting from three countries - Russia, Ukraine, and Japan - the number of export countries has expanded to 25 including Southeast Asia and Europe in the first quarter of this year.

Especially in Europe, KT&G sells its products in eight countries including Poland, Greece and Italy. The company is expanding its patent applications to accelerate its penetration into the European market. According to the "2021 Korean Enterprise European Patent Index" released by the European Patent Office in March of this year, KT&G has applied for a total of 233 patents in Europe. It ranks third after Samsung and LG.

Foreign securities firms are also paying attention to Liril's overseas market growth. Kelly Jin, a Morgan Stanley researcher, stated in last month's KT&G Q2 earnings report that "the sales growth rate of global cigarette-like electronic cigarettes is enough to attract investor attention.

He continued, "The global impact of the electronic cigarette industry in the tobacco category is currently underestimated, but its growth is sufficient enough to lead the overall growth of cigarette sales. I am looking forward to it," he said.

In Oregon, adults can visit any state-licensed liquor store and purchase a variety of flavored spirits, from cinnamon whiskey to whipped cream vodka. They can also buy caramel dark beers, fruity sour ales, and mango hard seltzers at grocery stores. Cannabis is legally sold in the form of milk chocolate bars and pink lemonade gummies. However, a new proposal being considered by the Multnomah County Commission would soon make it illegal to sell flavored tobacco or nicotine products to adults.

The popularity of flavored alcohol and cannabis has overshadowed accusations directed towards flavored tobacco or e-cigarettes targeting young people. However, proposals to ban these products would be worse than hypocritical. This is also a bad idea for public health and criminal justice.

Experts say that the ban "was driven by a steady increase in youth e-cigarette use." This was a mistake from the outset as the proportion of young people consuming nicotine is actually decreasing. Monitoring the Future surveys show a sharp decline in youth e-cigarette use since reaching its peak around 2019, dropping by 29% from 2020 to 2021 alone. The national Youth Tobacco Survey also tracks a significant decrease in the number of young people using e-cigarettes, though precise year-to-year comparison has become difficult due to method changes caused by the pandemic. Most importantly, youth smoking rates have also dropped to their lowest recorded levels, contradicting concerns that vaping could be a pathway to more dangerous habits.

Teenage use of electronic cigarettes is a real issue, but it should not overshadow the approximately 440,000 Americans who die each year directly from smoking. Renowned tobacco policy experts warn that a singular focus on youth use threatens the potential to prevent preventable deaths from adult smokers, many of whom come from disadvantaged communities.

A complete ban on flavored nicotine products will perpetuate these deaths. Strong evidence suggests that electronic cigarettes are safer than smoking, more effective in helping smokers quit than nicotine gum or patches, and preferred by adult e-cigarette users in non-tobacco flavors. A widespread transition from smoking to e-cigarettes will save millions of lives lost to tobacco. Smart policies will encourage smokers to switch. The proposed ban, however, does the opposite by providing deadly cigarettes in every convenience store while prohibiting the sale of many safer alternatives.

Although the ban does not criminalize the use of nicotine products, it still raises criminal justice concerns. Forcing the sale of menthol cigarettes or flavored e-cigarettes onto the black market could allow existing tax laws to be enforced. In the state of Oregon, the illicit distribution of cigarettes is considered a felony.

Experience in other jurisdictions helps us gain a deeper understanding of how these policies operate in practice. A recent report from Massachusetts shows that the statewide ban on flavored products led to significant shifts in both illegal markets and law enforcement. In one case, police arrested a Latin American clothing store owner for selling mint-flavored products. Another man is facing up to five years in prison for selling illegal tobacco products. We should be mindful that well-intentioned laws can lead to illegal markets, arrests, and imprisonment.

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