Mintel says some smokers are using e-cigs to help them quit
European e-cig market could have reached £1.3bn last year
THE market for electronic cigarettes is booming. According to market research company Mintel, it has increased by 340% over the past year, from an estimated £44m in 2012 to an estimated £193m in 2013.
The company found that more smokers and ex-smokers agree that e-cigs are a good way to cut down (32%) rather than quit smoking (26%). That suggests that some people are are using them as a smoking cessation aid, others as an alternative to tobacco.
“These findings suggest that young people may take up e-cigarettes instead of tobacco, and supports the government decision to make it illegal to sell these products to under-18s,” said Mintel’s Roshida Khanom.
“Proposed changes in legislation from 2016 are likely to see them classified as medicines and so brands will need to provide more information to support their claims if they wish to remain in the market. A brand that can become the spearhead for this can distinguish itself in the market and win consumer confidence.”
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• Industry body ECigIntelligence estimates that the overall European e-cigarette market could have reached £1.3bn last year – almost double what was previously thought. The new figure comes from what it calls “a more in-depth study which based its calculations on different research”. It claims that previous figures over-valued some national markets and underestimated others.
First statistics put the the European e-cigarette market at around £700m.
Managing director Tim Phillips said: “We took a conservative approach but we still found the European market to be significantly larger than expected. This highlights the startling potential of the e-cigarette sector.”
