Vape Weekly: Edison Chen Endorses Ono; JUUL Tmall Flagship to Launch

E-Cigarette Weekly | Edison Chen endorses Ono;JUUL Tmall flagship store will open

The weekly newspaper will take stock of and share major events that have occurred in the domestic and foreign e-cigarette industry in the past week, striving to make readers become senior figures in the e-cigarette industry.

1. Domestic developments

1. Ono announced that Edison Chen was the brand's specially invited creative officer and released new products
 
On August 27, the official Weibo of domestic e-cigarette brand Ono announced that well-known artist Edison Chen had served as the specially invited creative officer of its brand and released the first TVC brand advertising video. Blue Hole New Consumer learned from Ono that Edison Chen has provided creativity on a certain product of Ono's future, and may launch a joint special edition and creative periphery in the future.

In addition, Ono also announced the opening of pre-sales of second-generation e-cigarette products V1 and V1 Plus on Tmall and Jingdong. This is also Ono's new product launch after a lapse of four months.

2. Juul Tmall flagship store officially opened on September 9
 
According to E-Cigarette Home, the Tmall store of American e-cigarette giant Juul has opened on August 22, with the domain name juul.tmall.com, and the flagship store is operated by Hangzhou Taoyatao Information Technology Co., Ltd. The store will be officially launched on September 9.

Sky Eye Inspection shows that Taoya Tao was established on March 8, 2013 with a registered capital of 1 million yuan. The legal person is Lu Xiangyang, and holds 100% shares. Recently, a change in the business scope has been made to add the business scope of e-cigarettes, smoking equipment and tobacco oil.

According to statistics, Juul currently has 5 registered and existing companies in China, namely Jiuer Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Jiuer Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Suzhou Branch, Jiuer Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Shenzhen Branch, Shenzhen Weiai Moer Technology Co., Ltd., Shenzhen Weiai Technology Co., Ltd.

3. Liu Qiuming steps down as chairman of Geirui e-cigarettes and will join BLESS
 
On August 28, Blue Hole learned that Liu Qiuming, chairman of Burton's Geirui e-cigarettes, will officially leave his post in the near future and join the e-cigarette service startup BLESS.

When Lan Dong asked why he left Geirui, Liu Qiuming said that Geirui had completed engine construction and could innovate and develop itself. Production, R & D and sales have entered the fast lane. Coupled with the fact that another founder of Geary continues to take charge, he can find time to serve the entire China e-cigarette industry and do his best to consolidate the content of the industry into a healthier place.

Founded in 2006, Jirui Technology is a well-known domestic e-cigarette supply chain company, mainly engaged in the research and development, production and sales of e-cigarettes. As of January 2019, Geirui Technology holds 43% of patents in the e-cigarette industry.

4. Yueshi Face Recognition smart vending machine is officially launched
 
On August 28, the official public account of e-cigarette brand Yueshi announced that the Yueshi smart vending machine was officially launched. According to Yueshi, when consumers buy e-cigarettes at vending machines, they need to use Alipay's Face Recognition technology to pay. Users under the age of 18 are not allowed to pay. In addition, when choosing other payment methods to pay, you need to swipe your ID card for identity verification.

It is understood that vending machines currently only sell Yuexie disposable small cigarette products, priced at 39 yuan/cigarette. There are five flavors on the shelves, including strong mint, classic tobacco, and mung bean popsicles. As of that day, the Yueske smart vending machine project has covered 21 provinces and 42 cities across the country.

5. Tsinghua University research group released the first blue book of the e-cigarette industry
 
On August 29, the first blue book of China's e-cigarette industry,"Public Health and Technology Regulation Research Report: E-cigarette Industry Regulation Status Report (2019)" compiled by the Tsinghua University Public Health and Technology Regulation Research Group, was released at Tsinghua University.# p#pagination title #e#

The Blue Book recommends the implementation of industry legislation and regulatory systems. Specific strategies include: classification and supervision of products. For example, the management of products containing nicotine in tobacco oil is different from those that do not contain nicotine such as atomized coffee; the most common nicotine atomization systems on the market can be divided into batteries, atomization equipment and cigarette bombs. Among them, batteries and atomization equipment belong to electronic products, and what really contains nicotine is the cigarette bomb. Therefore, parts and components supervision must be divided according to the actual situation of the product; In addition, in the production and sales use scenarios, full-process management should be carried out.

6. Tmall tightens sales of nicotine e-cigarettes
 
On August 29, Blue Hole learned that Tmall Mall had recently made some adjustments and changes in the e-commerce sales of e-cigarettes. Products containing nicotine will be lightly recommended, and those that do not contain nicotine will be sold as the main promotion products. In terms of price, Tmall encourages manufacturers to promote low-priced small cigarette products, and recommends that brands lower the price to around 15 yuan after meeting testing requirements and conducting cost accounting.

In addition, Tmall also has strict requirements for new e-cigarette brands to open stores on its platform. Tmall requires that the registration time of the brand main company be more than two years, and there are also regulations on the time when the trademark is obtained.

2. Foreign developments

1. United Arab Emirates will host the World E-Cigarette Expo for the first time
 
According to the Gulf Today report, Dubai will provide a global platform for the e-cigarette industry from June 3 to 5, 2020, the World E-Cigarette Expo. Experts predict that the value of the e-cigarette industry will reach US$53.4 billion by 2024.

The exhibition aims to provide manufacturers with a unique opportunity to showcase their products to thousands of international retailers, wholesalers, distributors and consumers in Dubai. The first two days of the event will be dedicated to commercial buyers, while the third and final day will be open to the public.

It is reported that the Dubai government recently legislated to legalize the sales of e-cigarettes, vapor equipment and liquid e-cigarettes for the first time.

2. PMI Africa's first IQOS experience store landed in South Africa
  Recently, Philip Morris International announced to the outside world that it has opened Africa's first experience store for new heating non-burning products. The store is located in Johannesburg, South Africa and is the company's first flagship store in the region.

According to reports from foreign media, since the company launched a new heating non-combustible product in South Africa, an estimated 70% of South African adult consumers who have tried this product have switched to IQOS devices.

3. Australia study: E-cigarettes have less toxic chemicals than cigarettes
 
The University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia and the School of Public Health and Community Medicine jointly published a study of 5,105 adults. The study measured tobacco toxin levels in the urine of four different groups of people: steam users; smokers; dual users (who smoked both cigarettes and steam); and non-smokers.

Researchers tested 50 of the most important toxins typically found in tobacco smoke, including TSNA (tobacco-specific nitrosamines), PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), metals and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Dr. Colin Mendelsohn, associate professor at the School of Community Medicine, said the study's main finding was that vapor smoke users had 10-98% lower toxin concentrations than smokers who measured the toxins. He said all levels were lower in vaping users except most metals and three volatile organic compounds (toluene, benzene and carbon disulfide).

4. Juul raises approximately US$800 million to seek business
 
Tencent Technology According to foreign media reports, a document submitted by US e-cigarette giant JUUL to government regulators shows that the company has recently raised US$785.2 million through stock and bond issuance, seeking to expand its business globally.# p#pagination title #e#

A person familiar with the matter said Friday's filing was an expansion of a financing deal made earlier this month, when the company said it had raised $325 million in an effort to strengthen its balance sheet as the company continues to grow globally.

5. Philip Morris discusses merger with Altria
 
Tobacco giant Philip Morris International announced on Tuesday that it is in talks with another tobacco giant, Altria Group, to discuss an all-stock merger.

If an agreement is reached, Philip Morris International and Altria will remerge in more than 10 years. Altria spun off Philip Morris in 2008 and has been a mainly U.S. -centric company, selling Marlboro cigarettes domestically, while Philip Morris sells cigarettes mainly overseas. Market analysts have long speculated that the two companies will remerge. The tobacco industry is changing rapidly, cigarette sales are declining, and traditional tobacco companies are also looking for new growth paths.

Philip Morris International warned in a statement: There is no guarantee that these discussions will result in any agreement or deal. In addition, there is no guarantee that the transaction will be completed if an agreement is reached.& rdquo;