Switch things up

As the single use vapes ban looms, retailers have a big opportunity to transition consumers over to rechargeables and nicotine pouches.

With just a month left until the disposable vapes ban kicks in on 1 June, retailers should be clearing out the very last of their single use vape stock.

The ban will affect all products that are intended for one use, typically providing around 600-650 puffs in a single device. The only products that will be legal for sale from 1 June must be both rechargeable and refillable, with a maximum tank size of 10ml.

So if you find yourself left with any excess disposable stock at the end of May, it must be removed from sale and stored away from customers, clearly labelled as not for sale.

But with single use vapes accounting for the vast majority of c-store vape sales over the past few years, retailers are now left with the quandary of what on earth to fill the space with and how to get consumers to transition over to a product they may not have tried before.

One retailer who is well prepared for the ban is Zahid Iqbal of Day-Today Drylaw in north-west Edinburgh, who is shortlisted for Vaping Retailer of the Year at the 2025 SLR Awards. Vapes is a huge part of his business and he has dedicated 4m to the category.

“We’re quite ready,” he tells SLR. “I’m not waiting until 1 June.” He set a deadline in his head for the end of April for clearing nearly all of his disposable stock and by this time he had already converted 70% of regulars over to non-disposables, having spent the last few months focused on the task. The number of disposable consumers switching to alternatives is growing all the time as he and his staff explain the ban to customers and discuss their options.

He has been converting the majority of these customers over to nic salts, which can deliver high strength nicotine, but with a smooth throat hit. “They go into portable devices and we’re focussing on that as well,” he says. “We’ve converted a lot of customers onto that because:

• Customers are saving a lot of money;
• It is a unique thing to do and a lot of people don’t know about it;
• It means a far better margin for us;
• We get more loyalty because the customer has to come back to us to replace the liquid or when the coil burns out.”

It isn’t just a case of one size fits all. “We try to understand what the customer wants to achieve – ‘I want to stop smoking’, ‘I just want to cut down’, ‘I just want an occasional vape for a night out’.” His offer covers a wide range of budgets. “We have devices starting from £10 all the way up to £300. We have the knowledge and the customers have the trust.”

Zahid also offers exchanges and repairs when products fail. “If something is faulty a lot of retailers won’t take it back, but we do. Nine times out of 10 they’ve not connected the pod properly or charged it properly.”

This additional service gives the business a USP and keeps people coming back to the store. “You need to do something different from what everyone else is doing,” he says. “They’ll go elsewhere otherwise.”

He claims that product knowledge is also what gives him the edge. “Anyone can go to a cash and carry or a vape supplier and put it on-shelf, but it’s about having the knowledge and knowing what the customer needs.”

Zahid has attended various vape events organised by the Scottish Grocers’ Federation and United Wholesale, as well as courses organised by vape suppliers, to help him keep on top of trends and legislation.

His bestsellers are Elux nic salts in Watermelon, Strawberry, Bubblegum, Cherry Ice and Lemon & Lime flavours. They are on offer at three for £10, as are nic salts from Elfliq, SKE Crystal and Gold Bar.

“We’ve offered the device free so that the customers can just buy the liquid – we’re playing the long game,” he explains. “If they have a device, they’ll come in two or three times a week for liquid.”

He runs promotions on big puff devices, noting that they are an easy way to help people transition. “One weekend in March we had IVG Smart 5500 on offer at three for £20 (Usually they are £12.99 each),” he says. “It gets customers in the shop, then we explain about the ban and explain what they can do. Our goals are to get them over to the next thing – moving them to pods and nic salts.”

Guna Sud, who runs the RaceTrack Pitstop chain, including Racetrack Wishaw, which is also shortlisted for SLR’s Vaping Retailer of the Year, is equally unperturbed about the disposable ban. “The simple answer is no, we aren’t worried about it,” he says. “Our preparations were made several months before the ban was officially announced.”

Similarly to Zahid, Guna has focused on encouraging consumers to trade up to a device and nic salts.

“As part of our partnership with Elfbar, we set up a unique promotion for our customers. Reps were placed in all 11 of our stores, offering customers an opportunity to get an ELFX Kit (worth £20) free of charge, when purchasing three nicotine salts. The promotion went down a treat, and we managed to ‘give away’ hundreds of devices across the stores in just one day.”

Guna claims that most of these customers were on disposables and, while aware of nicotine salts, hadn’t yet committed to trying them. The main barrier to trial had been the initial cost of the device and the guidance needed to set it up. “This promotion alleviated that problem and has already led to a sharp increase of nicotine salt sales. It’s been most impactful in some of our smaller stores that don’t have the space to carry a large enough range,” he says.

Communicating with consumers has also proved crucial to making vape customers feel comfortable with transitioning. “The ban is fast approaching, but we’ve been educating customers for several months now on the benefits of switching to a refillable kit or replaceable pod solution, and do our best to highlight the cost saving,” says Guna, who is also the founder of vape firm Vaped4U. “Working with key brands like Elfbar, allows us to push non-disposable sales just that bit more. We are already working on the next lot of Vaped4U exclusive promotions that we can run in-store with Elfbar and other key brands.”

Outside of vapes, Zahid claims that nicotine pouches are another big seller. “We sell Velo, Nordic and Pablo brands – Velos are the most popular,” he says. “It is a possibility people will move [from disposable vapes] to pouches.”

Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) UK is certainly expecting pouches to see a sales boost from the disposables ban. The firm is tapping into demand for fruity flavours by expanding its XQS range with Raspberry Blackcurrant, Strawberry Kiwi and Berrynana Twist flavours in a bid to maximise the opportunity. Each pack has an RSP of £5.50 and pouches are 8mg in strength.

“Nicotine pouch sales continue to grow rapidly and are currently worth just under £136m (not including those made online) which represents volume growth of 79% versus the same time last year,” claims STG’s UK Head of Marketing, Prianka Jhingan. “Whilst the majority of sales are made in supermarkets, they are growing fastest in the convenience channel. And with the disposable vape ban now imminent in June, nicotine pouch sales will receive a further boost as many vape users will look for different next gen nicotine options instead.”

The three fruit fusion flavours bring XQS’s portfolio up to eight. STG’s sales force will be visiting stores across the UK to talk to retailers about the growing range and offering a new countertop merchandising display unit to house them all.

While Zahid hasn’t witnessed disposable vape consumers moving to nicotine pouches yet, he isn’t ruling it out. And as far as vapes are concerned, he thinks the only way is up. “We’re going to benefit from the ban, we’re going to increase sales,” he says. “[The ban] will affect a lot of retailers, but the ones who have got the right range and knowledge are the people who are going to win with this.”