More consumers are looking for alternatives to tobacco, resulting in the growth of the vaping category.
To help wholesalers tap into the flourishing vape market, Imperial has launched a raft of new products for its popular blu brand, including a new and upgraded pod-mod device and range of disposable vapes.
Tom Gully, Head of Consumer Marketing UK&I at Imperial Tobacco, tells Wholesale Manager about its recent launches of blu 2.0 and blu bar and why they are the perfect products to help wholesalers to cater for the rising demand for vaping products.
Tell us about your recent launches for blu. What do blu 2.0 and blu bar offer that makes them unique compared to other vaping products?
We’ve seen a wide number of wholesalers seize the opportunity to tap into the high growth vaping category but in order to retain their customers, they need to ensure the products on offer meet their ever-evolving needs.
We’re currently seeing significant growth in the disposables category. In fact, recent figures show disposables now account for 83% of UK vape sales value in traditional retaili. In order to cater for this growing demand, we recently announced our entrance into the expanding disposables market with our new blu bar vape range. We’re really excited to be joining this flourishing market with our new offering of great quality disposable and ready-to-use vape products from the well-known blu brand that consumers know and trust.
While the disposables category is seeing incredible growth, pod-mod devices remain a popular choice with many consumers. Through the launch of blu 2.0, we’ve developed a product that looks better, tastes better and lasts longer than before to provide consumers with the next generation vape product they are looking for.
The new blu 2.0 device benefits from an array of feature upgrades, including a smooth and rich vaping experience thanks to its ceramic heating pod technology, a longer lasting batteryii and bigger 1.9ml volume liquidpods. Alongside the technical enhancements, blu 2.0 offers a sleek ergonomic design, a magnetic lock feature and ‘power tap’, which enables users to check the battery level with a simple tap.
What flavours are available and in what strengths of nicotine?
Each blu bar device contains 20mg/ml of nicotine in 2ml of e-liquidiii providing up to 600 puffsiv, and features a LED indicator that lights up when in use.
The blu bar range includes six great tasting flavours, carefully chosen due to their consumer appeal, including Kiwi Passionfruit, Mango Ice, Banana Ice, Peach Ice, Watermelon Ice and Strawberry Ice. Each blu bar features bright and vibrant bursts of colour, both on the device and on the pack, to create great standout on depot shelves and help retailers with range navigation in store.
The new and improved blu 2.0 range includes six flavours to choose from, each available in 9mg/ml and 18mg/ml nicotine strength variants. These include Golden Tobacco, Polar Menthol, Fresh Mint, Berry Mix, Blueberry Ice and Fresh Mango.
Are both the products now available in the wholesale channel?
blu bar is now available in Convenience, Wholesale and Grocery. While blu 2.0 initially launched into the Grocery channel in October last year and is rolling out into Wholesale and Convenience now.
What are the RRPs of the products?
blu bar has an MRRP of £5.99v per device and the blu 2.0 device is available to buy with an MRRP of £9.99v and £6.99v for a pack of two liquidpods.
How are the launches being supported?
We’re supporting both launches with consumer and trade activations and media support to drive trial and sales of the new range. We’ve also launched a new dedicated trade microsite called the blu bar Knowledge Hub (www.blubarhub.co.uk), providing our trade customers with everything they need to know about the new disposables range, including useful articles, video content and quizzes.
How much is the UK vaping market worth? Is the category in growth?
The UK vaping market is growing rapidly and while it’s already worth an impressive £1.2bn, it’s forecast to grow to £1.4bn in the next three yearsvi. The vape market is continually expanding as more consumers seek out alternative nicotine solutions, with around 35% of current vaping volume sales taking place in the traditional retail channelvii. The number of vapers in the UK has grown from to 3.7m in 2021 to 4.3m in 2022, so it’s clear that there will be continued demand for vaping productsvi.
What is driving the growth?
We’re seeing significant growth disposables with figures showing the category now accounts for the majority of UK vape sales value in traditional retailvii after the market saw an increase from £141m in 2021 to £973m in 2022viii.
Recent data also shows that both closed pod systems and basic open pod systems remain popular choices for vapers, accounting for 17% of the UK vaping market in traditional retaili.
How can wholesalers maximise sales of the vaping category?
To tap into the growing demand for disposables and pod-mods, wholesalers need to ensure they are dedicating sufficient space in depot for vaping products. Every depot is different so it’s important for wholesalers to stock the right range for their customer base, including vape products from brands consumers know and can trust like blu bar and blu 2.0.
There is a huge variety of different vape products available on the market today, so deciding what to stock can be a daunting task for retailers. Wholesalers are therefore in an excellent position to provide advice to retailers on what products they should be stocking, as well as insights into the latest trends shaping the category, such as the rising demand for disposables and pod-mods.
How do you work with wholesalers to help them grow sales?
We work closely with our wholesale customers through a range of tactics, including promotions, to help them maximise their vape sales and ensure they are offering the right products to cater for their retail customers.
Comments are closed.