FEATURE
TOBACCO & RYO
64 ASIAN TRADER 17 OCTOBER 2025
stocking them is becoming
ever-more persuasive.
“Nationally, the percentage of
convenience retailers now selling
our TEREA and HEETS tobacco
sticks has risen by 42 per cent in
two years [Nielsen], while
cigarette sales declined by 34 per
cent during the same period,” says
Dufourne. This trend is appar
ently also reflected in grocery
multiples, where sales of IQOS
kits grew by 269 per cent between
September 2021 and December
2023 (while cigarette sales
declined by 27 per cent) – mean
ing that if indies don’t sell HNB
products, they will simply lose
those sales to Tesco et al.
“And now,” adds Dufourne,
“with similar signs of rising
popularity in the nicotine
pouches category which saw
volumes increase by 91 per cent in
early 2024, the breadth of access
to new smoke-free alternatives
for adult nicotine users has never
been as varied in the transition
away from traditional cigarettes.
Responsible retailing
It’s hazardous out there for
retailers.
Smuggled and illicit tobacco
products are everywhere now,
and PMI’s Dufourne says that 82
per cent of independent retailers
felt it was either “likely” or
“strongly likely” that the illicit
market for disposable vapes
might also increase after a
possible ban on disposable
e-cigarettes.
Illicit products of all kinds can
contain unknown ingredients and
lack the quality and standards
found with legitimate alterna
tives. “Retailers concerned about
stocking compliant products can
rely on our field reps, Wholesale
and Cash & Carry channels, and
our Digital Trade Engagement
platform, HEATWAVE OPEN for
reliable guidance,” he says. “This
comprehensive support ensures
retailers can navigate the market
confidently and avoid illicit
products. Don’t let fear of the
unknown dissuade you from
trying new products such as HNB.
Despite confusing legislation, the
producers are here to help.
HEATWAVE OPEN is designed
to support retailers stocking IQOS
and PMI’s emerging portfolio. It
provides valuable guidance,
educational resources, and
incentives, helping retailers and
their staff transition smoothly to
smoke-free alternatives.
Exclusively available to
retailers enrolled in PML’s
HEATWAVE OPEN program, the
platform serves as the sole
channel for retailers to order
IQOS ILUMA. Retailers can also
procure TEREA - the tobacco
sticks used exclusively with the
IQOS ILUMA device – alongside
PML’s broader range of smoke-
free products.
Imperial Brands also offers
advice to tobacco traders that can
help them keep abreast of
changing regulations – and also
the latest products and innova
tions on offer – with its Ignite app.
“Regularly updated, Ignite
outlines what to be aware of and
how retailers can remain
compliant going forward,” says
Malm. “It is accessible via a handy
mobile app and provides tobacco
traders with up-to-date category
information, legislation and
product news with ‘one minute’
reads that busy retailers can
quickly consume.”
He adds that the Ignite app also
supports staff management
objectives to help retailers keep
employees informed, and gives
helpful pointers to staff training
opportunities, assistance with
age verification and insight
around exclusive offers or
incentives to drive sales.
Accessories galore
Tobacco accessories continues to
be a key category for the conveni
ence sector. Those in the conveni
ence channel account for more
than half of all tobacco accessories
sales and are now valued at
£251m, growing at 14.5 per cent
year-on-year [IRI
Marketplace].
Roll-your-own
specialist Republic
Technologies UK is
driving increased
consumer demand for
its brands of choice in
the UK’s strong-per
forming tobacco
accessories market,
benefitting from the
value-turn toward
hand-rolling
tobacco.
With the market
valued at over £450m and
growing at an astonishing
(but understandable) 14.6
per cent, Republic
Technologies is making a
major contribution to
sustained category
growth, thanks to a
combination of ground-
breaking NPD, strong
retailer relations and trade
support for both new and
established products.
The £126m papers
sector continues to
perform well, with value sales
up 8.1 per cent YOY, and Republic
Technologies is increasing its
presence in this sector by offering
consumers more choice within its
fast-growing, environmentally-
friendly OCB range.
“Shoppers still want quality
and value, which OCB delivers,
but the plus point for the range is
its environmental credentials
which offer a clear point of
difference vs most other papers,
and this is really resonating with
roll your own purchasers,” says
Gavin Anderson, Sales &
Marketing Director at Republic
Technologies.
Organic and chlorine free,
OCB Rice Papers are made from a
blend of rice and organic hemp.
The unbleached, ultra-thin papers
deliver a premium rolling and
slow-burning experience in a
natural, brown paper. With 32
papers per pack, OCB Rice is
available in both Slim (RRP, £1.10)
and Slim & Tips (RRP, £1.73).
Republic Technologies also
underlining its environmental
credentials in the £78m filters
sector with the rollout of Just
Paper plastic free Swan filter tips.
Anderson explains that in a
category-boosting first for
tobacco accessories,
Just Paper Swan
Filters provide
consumers with an
experience that is
similar to traditional
cellulose acetate
filters, but with a
much lower environ
mental impact
The Swan Just Paper
range features a
“flip-a-tip” design
which dispenses loose
extra slim filters,
without the use of
plastic rods. Each box contains
120 filters, with 10 boxes per
outer, with an RRP of £1.45 per
consumer unit.
“Choice, innovation and
quality are well established
drivers of the tobacco accessories
category, and the Just Paper range
delivers in each of those areas,”
says Anderson. “Significantly
though, the range has advanced
the development of filter tips by
offering roll your own consumers
a product which not only delivers
on performance, but which also
has a significantly reduced impact
on the environment”.
Imperial Brands’ Andrew
Malm says, “Our world-renowned
Rizla range continues to domi
nate the accessories category,
with one in two papers sold in the
UK being Rizla Green [EPOS].
“We recently added a new
Classic King Size Combi variant to
our iconic Rizla range, including
32 unbleached king-size papers
and tips – offering everything for
the perfect, authentic rolling
experience. This was driven by a
trend of value-savvy consumers
increasingly migrating from
king-size to combi cigarette paper
formats for added value and
convenience. There’s also growing
demand for unbleached papers as
consumers seek a more natural
look.”
More than ever, the tobacco
gantry and its allied products need
to be paid attention to, updated
and stocked according to the
latest NPD and trends, in order to
safeguard and even increase
revenues – but the potential
revenues remain, and suppliers
are doing their level best not only
to help you sell now, but in the
future as well.