Within the past few years, there has been a new trend in the way people consume nicotine: pouches. With their appeal and accessibility growing at a fast pace, their popularity as a smoking alternative has provoked the worry of critics, educators, and guardians, even with a proven success rate when it comes to reducing smoking. While the wide range of flavors could be seen as appealing, a similar argument was made when vapes and e-cigarettes were at the stage nicotine pouches are at currently.
“When vaping was gaining popularity in the United States, the FDA panicked and heavily regulated the market in an unhealthy way. As a result, an extremely large proportion of the products on the market were not allowed to be sold. This created a large gray market of unregulated and unsafe products,” said Markus Lindblad, Head of Legal and External Affairs at online tobacco-free nicotine seller Nicokick.
Nicokick, an online tobacco-free nicotine seller, is dedicated to informing its customers about the available alternatives and ensuring accessibility to the majority of the United States. The company believes that, by addressing the issue while acknowledging the state-by-state legalities surrounding nicotine products, it can create attractive products for adults without attracting young people.
Nicokick has found three distinct factors that are part of the solution:
- Flavors and Flavor Descriptions
- The first is that flavors are a vital part of a smoker’s quitting journey as they move from cigarettes to alternate products. According to Nicokick’s consumer data, smokers generally want to shy away from the taste of tobacco and prefer fruity flavors instead. Although flavor bans are widely debated in the States, they can be counterproductive and may decline smoking conversion. It is, however, essential to avoid descriptors that attract youth, including using words like fizzy or candy.
- Extensive Marketing
- We must exercise caution regarding target audiences and how marketing campaigns are executed. In the early days of the vaping industry, flashy gimmicks—such as descriptors of candy flavors and unique packaging designs—flared the popularity of vaping within younger demographics. Nicokick believes that the industry should adopt self-regulatory measures and ensure that marketing practices do not target the demographics of those who are below 25 years of age.
- Product Self-Regulation
- Most consumers are not aware that vaping was introduced with extremely high nicotine levels. There is no need for products with such a high amount of nicotine to be on the market. With nicotine pouches being new and underdeveloped, there is a risk of players wanting to take the opportunity to present unsafe products and unethical practices. Nicokick has a maximum limit of 20 mg of nicotine per pouch on nicotine pouches, which is enough to satisfy former smokers’ nicotine wants while being safe for use.
The absence of regulation in the e-cigarette industry has allowed vape products to reach underage users. However, by reflecting on these past mistakes and their societal impacts, we can apply critical insights regarding flavors, extensive marketing, and product self-regulation to advance toward a healthier and more promising future.
Those looking to move away from tobacco leaf-based products can look to Nicokick’s diverse array of nicotine pouches, gums, and lozenges, that help vapers and smokers transition more easily. Whether you’re looking to quit nicotine altogether, transition from cigarettes, or want to cut down on the smoke that is more often present in traditional methods of use, Nicokick’s products may help.