Juul Labs has signed an exclusive agreement with leading vape wholesaler UK Vapour Brands to distribute its products across Britain.
The vape giant says that partnering with the leading vaping wholesaler will allow it to more effectively reach its target consumer base of adult smokers and smokers who have already switched from cigarettes to vaping.
The move comes as Public Health England recently announced that nicotine vaping products were the most popular aid (27.2%) used by smokers trying to quit in England in 2020.
PHE said that while in 2017, more than 50,000 smokers successfully used vaping to quit – all of whom who would otherwise have continued smoking – vaping numbers in the UK have now plateaued with 38 percent of smokers wrongly believing that vaping is as harmful as smoking.
Smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the UK, killing 95,000 people each year – more than road traffic accidents, obesity, alcohol and drug misuse combined.
Juul Labs UK sales director John Patterson said:
“Anyone who smokes should quit and adult smokers who have not successfully quit should completely switch to potentially less harmful alternative nicotine products.
“We believe that vapour products can offer adult smokers an alternative to combustible cigarettes and, in so doing, potentially reduce the harm associated with tobacco.”
John Patterson, JUUL Labs UK
The agreement will see UK Vapour Brands, which currently supplies almost two thirds of independent specialist vape businesses, assume full responsibility for distribution and sales of JUUL products to the independent vape channel. In addition, JUUL will be listed within the nationwide chain of Totally Wicked stores, owned by the wider Totally Wicked Group, of which UKVB is a subsidiary.
Juul Labs will continue to mandate Challenge 25 for every JUUL retailer, while investing in its mystery shopping and age-verification training programme. Juul Labs will also service selected key vape accounts directly.
Group CEO Marcus Saxton said:
“The rise of JUUL since its launch in the UK has been a considerable success, particularly within the multiple grocery and convenience channels.
“Like Juul Labs, we are committed to providing adult smokers with credible alternatives to transition away from combustible cigarettes throughout our branded Totally Wicked stores and our independent customers.
“Our team members are looking forward to mirroring JUUL’s recent success and are excited to add JUUL to our current portfolio of quality and fully compliant products.”
Marcus Saxton
Juul highlighted the ability of Independent vape stores to “offer a level of knowledge, experience and expertise not necessarily found in other channels and crucially have the time necessary to get to know customer preferences and expectations.”
The company said it was “delighted to be partnering with UK Vapour Brands to ensure wider distribution and provide more adult smokers with an alternative to combustible cigarettes.”
UK Vapour Brands (UKVB) is part of the Totally Wicked Group and is one of the world’s leading vaping wholesalers. Based in Accrington, East Lancashire, the Totally Wicked Group was established in 2008 and its distribution arm, UK Vapour Brands, launched in 2015, now supplies over 60 percent of the UK’s independent bricks and mortar vape stores with premium quality products from leading brands.
