On 1 June 2025 the disposable vape ban will come into effect. From this date, any retailer found selling disposable vapes will face penalties.

In recent years the category has been hugely important to independent convenience stores. According to 2024’s edition of What to Stock, the top 25 bestselling disposable vapes combined brought stores average weekly sales of £324.58. This equates to average weekly profit of £172.77 based on wholesale margins at the time of writing.

With this in mind, it’s crucial to begin exploring the next-gen nicotine products not affected by the disposable vape ban. These are the lines that have the best chance of making up the gap in your store’s profits when disposable vapes go.

What products does the disposable vape ban affect?

The government has recently published guidance on what products will be affected by the disposable vape ban. Put simply, a single-use or disposable vape is a vaping product “that’s neither designed nor intended to be re-used.”

If a vape is both rechargeable and refillable, it is unaffected by the ban. However, if it is only one of these, it will be affected. If a vape has a battery that cannot be recharged, it will be banned. Likewise, if it has a coil you cannot buy easily and replace, it will be  banned. If a vape has a single-use container than you cannot buy separately and replace, and you cannot refill, it will be banned. The container could be a capsule, a cartridge, a pod or a tank.

Checklist to confirm if a product is compliant

Use this checklist if you’re in doubt about whether a product can be sold after the disposable vape ban comes into effect. Don’t wait until 1 June. Use it now to go through your stock and ensure you know what will be affected by the ban and what won’t.

For a vape to be compliant is must have all of these features.

The government has also laid out more details of how the ban will be enforced across the UK. It has also revealed details of the fines and penalties, and what retailers should do with leftover stock. Read more about that here.

How to prepare your next-gen nicotine range for the disposable vape ban

How the market will change once the ban has come into force is difficult to anticipate. While there might be some overall trends, it’s also likely to vary depending on customer demographics. For instance, more experienced vapers might turn to the flexibility offered by an open system. Vapers focused on convenience might opt for a pod-system. Others might turn to heated tobacco or nicotine pouches such as Nordic Spirit, Velo or Zyn.

With that in mind, it’s worth speaking to your shoppers to see what they prefer. In addition, if you have the space, cover as many bases as possible in June 2025. This will give shoppers choice and allow you to gauge what’s popular. Doing so could help you build an effective next-gen nicotine range post-disposable vape ban.

“Independent research conducted by KAM on behalf of Philip Morris Limited (PML) highlights that the opportunity is to be found in appealing to variety,” says John Rennie, director of commercial operations at Phillip Morris Ltd.

“Findings show that 68% of independent retailers believe that success will hinge on offering a varied product portfolio – one that includes a full range of e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn products, and oral nicotine pouches, rather than relying on a single category as they may have done so previously with disposables.”

Don’t delay, begin preparing for the disposable vape ban early

Testing and regulatory consultancy, Broughton, has also stressed the importance of a diverse range. They suggest it’s worth acting now rather than waiting until June.

“To prepare for any potential ban, retailers should consider gradually reducing their disposable stock while increasing their range of pod systems and open systems with e-liquids. Expanding product offerings to include alternatives such as modern oral nicotine products (MONPs) and HTPs would help align with evolving consumer preferences.”

What are pod systems?

Andrew Malm, UK market manager at Imperial Brands notes that at present, traditional and new pod vape devices account for 12% of the market.

“However, as a result of the ban, it’s expected that there will be an upsurge in demand for pod-based devices as consumers look for compliant products that deliver the same convenience and flavour experience as disposables.”

Malm continues: “To cater to this demand, retailers should add pod-based systems, especially those that offer the same flavour range and experience of disposables, to their in store range.”

Pod-based systems are those where the user buys a device. They can also buy separate pods to refill the device. They will typically come with a USB charger. Generally speaking, refillable pod-devices are considered easier to use for consumers than open systems as they have fewer components. Examples of pod-devices include:

• Blu Bar Kit
• Vuse ePod 2
• Logic Vape
• VEEV One
• Liberty Flights Dot

All of these pod-systems require specific pods. These are sold separately. Stocking these pods is a great way to attract repeat shoppers.

What will be the best pod flavours and brands to stock after the ban?

In 2024’s edition of What to Stock, Vuse’s ePod 18mg Chilled Mint pods were the top selling pod refills. Vuse ePod refills were four of the top ten bestsellers, all at 18mg.

In terms of flavours, 2024’s 25 top-selling disposables were all fruity flavour, SKE’s Lemon & Lime disposable placing top.

While menthol and tobacco flavours dominated the top selling pods, there were four fruity options available in the top ten. The key take home from this, perhaps, is that if you’ve previously only sold menthol flavoured pod refills, adding a few fruity options could attract customers who’ve had to give up fruity flavoured disposables.

Top-selling fruit flavour pod refills of 2024

What is heated tobacco?

Another option which could attract shoppers is heated tobacco. Also known as heat-not-burn, heated tobacco devices don’t burn tobacco but instead heat it. In doing so, they release a nicotine flavoured aerosol to inhale, rather than smoke. PML claims its Iqos Iluma contains 95% less harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes, and can enable savings of up to £3,000 per year.

Heated tobacco options include:

• Iqos
• Ploom

Like pod systems, heated tobacco works on refills which are sold separately. According to Phillip Morris Ltd’s Reenie, the heated tobacco market is growing rapidly.

“In the UK, as with many other markets, the growth of heated tobacco has been in sharp contrast to the decline in cigarette sales similarly to Europe where heated tobacco unit sales have increased by 9.4% during the first three months of 2024, reflecting continuous growth momentum for IQOS across the continent.”

Top selling heated tobacco refills 2024

Top selling nicotine pouches 2024

Prepare your team

When the ban comes into effect it will be crucial that you and your team members can answer shoppers’ questions. If you can give shoppers insights on the alternatives, they’ll be more likely to shop with you instead of going to a specialist vape store.

Things to consider include price comparison compared to disposable vapes, how the alternative products work and the flavour options you offer. Retailer engagement sites from major suppliers, such as JTI Advance, can provide resources to help train your staff.

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