Tobacco Asia

38 tobaccoasia Issue 5, 2023 September / October Fact is that while Endura S1 was specifically designed to be refillable, it was not explicitly designed as a recyclable device per se. But that doesn't diminish its role in giving the industry a valuable nudge into the right direction. Product bundling to promote better transition While Jones pointed out that Endura S1 was helping vapers switch from disposables directly to refillables, he also admitted that actual conversion rates are generally very low. The convenience of "buy-vape-discard" remains enormously attractive to most users. To better promote a transition to refillables, Innokin recently partnered with the UK's leading e-liquid manufacturer, Kingston, which resulted in the rollout of the "Endura S1 starter kit". The kit bundles an Endura S1 device with a 10ml bottle of Kingston's Podbar Salts branded e-liquid. "We really believe in this marketing model, primarily because of the channels in which most pre-filled disposables are sold," said Jones. Convenience stores and supermarkets were popular points of sale for disposable devices, and since these were non-specialist retailers, it wasn't realistic to expect their staff to have a thorough understanding of vaping products, he explained, "Therefore, any vaping product sold in these channels needs to be self-explanatory and require no additional purchases." Flonq: "The world's first fully recyclable device" Although certain components of the Endura S1 are recyclable, its focus clearly lies on refillability and extended life cycle rather than practical recyclability. But there is UK vape brand Flonq, whose latest vape pen model, the Flonq Plus E, recently was hailed in press headlines as "the world's first fully recyclable vaping device". "We do have devices [in our portfolio] that are not refillable or recyclable, but the Flonq Plus E is indeed fully recyclable," confirmed the brand's head of sales UK, Rob Harvey. "As a responsible company, Flonq is now focused on creating more sustain- able products," he added. As such, Flonq Plus E's development is the direct result of the company's recognition of the significant environmental concern associated with single-use disposable vaping products. "It was a straightforward decision for us to begin contemplating and designing products that not only boast exceptional aesthetics and performance but also incorporate a sustainability aspect," Harvey told Tobacco Asia. Purpose-engineered to be recyclable Of course, the key to sustainability in this case is the point that Flonq Plus E was purpose-engineered from scratch to be easily disassembled. However, Flonq Plus E still remains a single-use disposable; i.e. is not reusable. But, according to Harvey, the company already has more products in the pipeline that are going to be both refillable and recyclable. And that, we presume, could be the ultimate solution to finally stem the waste tide created by non-recyclable disposables. Flonq Plus E was initially rolled out in the UK market only, but the company is planning to also expand to the EU by partnering with local distributors. Flonq Plus E's battery unit can be removed for appropriate recycling. Credit: Alfabet Labs/Flonq Robert Harvey, head of sales UK for Flonq. Credit: Alfabet Labs/Flonq Though supposedly the original "world's first fully recyclable vape de- vice," the Flonq Plus E is no longer alone in that particular category. Other brands have in the meantime released recyclable vape models, too. But amazingly, they still remain far and between. Harvey re- counted that during a recent vape indus- try exhibition he took the opportunity to observe competing products. "Interest- ingly, I found that not many brands had followed our lead in offering recyclables," he said. "However, we anticipate that this will change once the Plus E gains more traction in the markets." Yet… a quick internet browsing of the plethora of cur- rently available vaping brands revealed that most manufacturers claim their de- vices to be recyclable. But that really has to be taken with a pinch of skepticism.

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