Retailers left massively out of pocket in Scotland
THE Scottish Government has revealed that retailers in Scotland will be left massively out of pocket over a period of 10 years as a result of the incoming disposable vape ban in new impact statements.
The new research from ScotGov offers three scenarios for the time frame including a Best Case Scenario, a Worst Case Scenario and Central point between the two which shows that retailers will be left out of pocket in the hundreds of millions of pounds.
According to the Prohibition of the sale and supply of single-use vapes Full Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment, Scottish retailers in the best case scenario for collective profit loss from the ban will still lose £1,169.1million with the worst case scenario painting an even bleaker picture at £2,068.9million. The likely Central point between the two has been listed as £1,567.6million.
Further to this, the Scottish Government has outlined a potential profit gain for retailers over the 10 year period, from consumers switching to alternative nicotine products, but this still shows little comfort for Scottish retailers.
In the best case scenario, retailers could stand to gain £619.6million but this still leaves a massive £549.5million black hole in retailers’ profits. Once again, the worst case scenario has a even grimmer outlook where retailers could lose an overall £1821.1million.
These losses also do not factor in the potential shop refits some retailers also face due to having to move refillable devices to other areas in the store.
Despite this, the Scottish Government has argued that the ban is the most effective solution to cutting back on the environmental costs and rising youth vaper numbers.
The impact statement states: “A ban on the sale and supply of single-use vapes will reduce the environmental and social costs caused by the production and incorrect disposal of them. Given that single-use vapes are inherently unsustainable products, a ban on sale and supply is the most effective solution.”
The Scottish Grocers’ Foundation (SGF) has outlined the serious implications this new report will have on retailers on a grander scale, when taken into account the countless financial concerns many are already facing here.
Pete Cheema, chief executive at the SGF, said: “Pressing ahead with the disposable ban will be significantly detrimental to local convenience stores in Scotland where retailers are already under immense pressure due to inflation, rising energy costs and the ongoing retail crime epidemic.
“Further regulation will substantially add to the cost of doing business in Scotland and inevitably lead to fewer convenience stores operating in the long term, which in turn will add to the cost for customers and exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis.”
