Vaping firm IVG says it is expecting to increase revenue fivefold this year, with takings in excess of £100m, due to the soaring popularity of disposable vape devices.
The Preston-based firm is also investing £7m in a new 80,000 sq ft facility in order to “further enhance capacities and market share” it told The Grocer. The site will create 300 jobs when it opens later this year.
It will be the seventh consecutive year of growth for IVG, which in financial year 20/21 secured revenue of £20m.
“Our new facilities will further strengthen production capabilities and service values; it’s an exciting chapter for the sector and for IVG as a market leader,” said Asim Gulzar, head of marketing for IVG.
“We’re proud of Preston, it’s our home, so the opportunity to invest and expand here, and create new jobs, is a huge plus for us and the city,” Gulzar added.
IVG, which is behind the I Vape Great brand, was founded in 2016 and secured listings in 60 countries the following year. Having grown its business selling e-liquid for refillable vapes, last year IVG launched its own disposable device, IVG Bar, as well as delivering more than 30 million bottles globally.
It currently supplies 100 countries, with its disposables listed at Asda, Morrisons and Euro Garages.
The company also recently secured Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PMTA), which allows the sale of IVG in the US market.
Disposable e-cigarettes – non-rechargeable, pre-filled vaping devices – are now the most-used product among current vapers, according to Action on Smoking & Health (ASH).
Its share of current vapers has increased more than sevenfold from 7% in 2020 and 8% in 2021, to 52% this year. Elf Bar and Geek Bar are overwhelmingly the most popular, with only 30% of current users having tried any other brands, according to the study.
“It is clear, given our growth trajectory, that disposable vaping products play an instrumental role in helping adults looking to quit smoking – and we’re proud to be a key part of supporting them on that journey,” Gulzar said.
The rapid growth of the disposable category has led to a spike in counterfeit products, and fears their use is growing among children.
Elf Bar this month revealed it had intercepted more than a million fake products bearing its product names, “the majority of which would have likely ended up with UK retailers and in the hands of British consumers”.
The company has been working with Chinese authorities to close down more than 20 counterfeit factories, which were found to have collectively produced over a million counterfeits.
The counterfeiters were found to have created websites which looked identical to the official Elf Bar website, making product verification more challenging. Domain names created by the fraudsters include Elfdar.com, Elfbar-tech.com, Elfba.com, Elfbar.link, and Elfbar-teoh.com.
“The fraudsters are getting increasingly sophisticated,” said Victor Xiao, CEO of Elf Bar, “and setting up fake websites, which could mislead the consumers. Whilst we are locating spoof sites and taking them down, we caution our customers that the fraudsters may continue to set up new domains.”
A YouGov youth survey for ASH carried out in March found vaping among children aged 11-17 was up from 4% in 2020 to 7% in 2022.
“The disposable vapes that have surged in popularity over the last year are brightly coloured pocket-sized products with sweet flavours and sweet names, and are widely available for under a fiver – no wonder they’re attractive to children,” said Deborah Arnott, CEO at ASH.
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