E-cigarettes: A Long Journey Overseas, Upholding Two Major Defensive Lines
This article outlines the current development and challenges faced by China’s e-cigarette industry in overseas markets. From January to October 2023, China’s e-cigarette exports reached $9.049 billion, indicating industry growth and a trend towards international expansion. Businesses are reaching a wider consumer base through overseas market expansion and are addressing policy constraints and consumer needs in different regions. Technological innovation and quality control are strengths of China’s e-cigarette industry, but on the international stage, companies need to balance innovation with compliance to ensure that products meet the regulations of various countries. Compliant operations and monitoring changes in international market regulations are key for companies to maintain competitiveness. The article emphasizes that safety is the first step towards going abroad, and brands need to provide high-quality products with Chinese characteristics to promote continuous expansion in the international market.
According to the trade data of e-cigarette exports in October 2023, as reported by China’s General Administration of Customs, from January to October 2023, China’s total e-cigarette export value was approximately $9.049 billion (about 64.7 billion RMB).
It is evident that in recent years, China’s e-cigarette export business is gradually becoming regularized and growing stronger. Especially in the face of a series of new regulations, the domestic market is filled with uncertainties. To ensure the standardized operation of brands, many e-cigarette enterprises and manufacturers have already begun to vigorously expand into overseas markets. “Going global” has become a consensus in the entire e-cigarette industry, with an increasingly strong demand.
For enterprises, entering the overseas market means accessing a broader range of foreign customers, discovering new opportunities for development, and helping the company to tap into opportunities that were previously out of reach. In addition, with global expansion, enterprises can cater to consumers in various regions, offering more diverse tastes and more mature technology.
However, going global also means facing a more complex global market situation. To expand business globally involves multiple risks, mainly concentrated on local policy compliance and adaptation, as well as satisfying and innovating according to local consumer preferences.
Cultivating Internal Strength, Achieving Quality with Technology
China’s e-cigarette technology innovation and quality control have always had a clear advantage globally. E-cigarette enterprises, utilizing Shenzhen’s strong supply chain system, manufacturing capabilities, and innovative vitality, have become the manufacturing center of the global e-cigarette industry. The solid foundation and mature development of the upstream supply chain provide the basis for subsequent product innovation.
Although China’s e-cigarette technological foundation is solid and quality is controllable, in the process of going overseas, it still faces the challenge of evolving foreign consumer market demands, including meeting consumers’ pursuit of more possibilities and diversity.
Therefore, the export of e-cigarettes needs to be driven by both scientific research innovation and high-quality products, continuing to accelerate global layout and business expansion, and striving to make greater contributions to the country and the e-cigarette industry’s overseas trade. Through the empowerment of their technology and the innovation of their teams, enterprises aim to open up international markets and expand the position and influence of Chinese e-cigarettes in the global market.
Strengthening External Skills, Strictly Adhering to Local Policy Regulations
Looking back at the development of the e-cigarette industry over the past few years, it’s not hard to see that the industry has developed rapidly worldwide but also faces severe regulatory challenges. From the continuous evolution of regulations to consumers’ increasing concern for product safety, how e-cigarette enterprises maintain competitiveness in this grand transformation has become the focus of attention for all brands in the industry.
Changes in policy often have a domino effect on the development of e-cigarette brands. With the implementation of a series of policies and regulations in China, including the “E-cigarette Management Measures” and the mandatory national standard for e-cigarettes, the domestic industry has entered a new era of compliance. The same is true abroad, where countries and regions have tightened regulations to varying degrees based on local conditions.
E-cigarette enterprises must maintain their advantages in innovation and market competition while also ensuring that their products and operations comply with increasingly complex regulatory requirements. Therefore, whether e-cigarettes are for export or domestic sales, compliance is the main theme, especially for global e-cigarette brands, where compliance is an unavoidable crucial issue.
The author believes that in the face of increasingly strict international market regulations, brands need to find a balance between innovation and compliance to ensure sustainable development. This not only requires enterprises to continuously strive for product safety and technological innovation but also to demonstrate enough flexibility and acuity in regulatory compliance and market strategy.
At the same time, besides product compliance, we also need to recognize that, compared to brands mainly adapted to the overseas market, this also includes the management of marketing strategies and sales channels. Brands need to continuously monitor the changes in international market regulations and adjust their strategies in time to maintain the compliance and competitiveness of their products.
The journey of e-cigarettes going overseas is long, and product safety is the first step. Brands must ensure that their products can meet the regulatory requirements of different countries. On this basis, relying on China’s strong product research and development and innovation strength, they can provide overseas consumer markets with high-quality products with Chinese characteristics, thus continuously expanding the international market.
About Exhibition
China’s most renowned electronic cigarette industry supply chain exhibition, which has been held consecutively for six years, is set to take place from August 28 to 30, 2024, at the Shenzhen International Convention and Exhibition Center. The exhibition will feature a concentration of enterprises from various sectors including e-liquid vaporizers, heat-not-burn technology supply chains, OEM manufacturers, electronic cigarette accessories, raw materials, as well as companies involved in related trade and logistics services.
