Alternative tobacco manufacturer TAAT Global Alternatives (CSE:TAAT / OTCQX:TOBAF / FRA:2TP) has received a purchase order for two containers of TAAT valued at €720,000 (approximately CAD $1,075,000) from a wholesaler based in London, England who will be the exclusive distributor for TAAT in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The same distributor had already placed an initial purchase order of €100,000 (approximately CAD $149,000). TAAT’s Beyond Tobacco material, which goes into its cigarettes, has no nicotine in it. Consequently it enjoys competitive advantages compared to other tobacco brands in the United Kingdom, where tobacco cigarettes must be sold in “plain packaging”..
TAAT gets green light for UK distribution
TAAT’s distributor has also been granted a Confirmation of Registration to the Tobacco and Related Products and Regulatory Competent Authority from Public Health England, providing clearance for TAAT to be sold in all of Great Britain (England, Scotland, and Wales).
The launch of TAAT in the United Kingdom will coincide with anticipated market changes in the coming years resulting from the planned withdrawal of Philip Morris International from the tobacco cigarette category in the U.K. by the end of the decade, which the firm announced in late July 2021.
With the recent ban of menthol cigarettes in the United Kingdom as of May 20, 2020, TAAT Menthol can provide legal-aged smokers who preferred mentholated tobacco cigarettes a familiar flavour profile that cannot be had with any combustible tobacco product in the country. Additionally, TAAT will be sold in the United Kingdom at an attractive price point compared to leading brands of tobacco cigarettes, which stands to allow legal-aged smokers in the United Kingdom to benefit from a cost savings by switching to TAAT.
Philip Morris’ plans to exit UK market could provide further opportunity
At a global level, Philip Morris International has been publicising its intention to stop selling cigarettes altogether. On the “Smoke-Free Life” page of its corporate website, the firm states “At Philip Morris International, we are focused on our mission to one day stop selling cigarettes”.
TAAT said this week it is closely following these initiatives to strategically introduce its tobacco-free and nicotine-free alternative to traditional cigarettes in markets where Philip Morris International intends to terminate cigarette sales, such as the United Kingdom where the tobacco giant has recently stated its plans to stop selling cigarettes by the end of the decade.
TAAT Chief Executive Officer Setti Coscarella said, “We fully support Philip Morris International’s plan to stop selling tobacco cigarettes in the U.K., not just because it creates opportunities for us as we enter that market, but also because it validates what we’ve been saying all along… that smokers of legal age deserve access to a better choice than tobacco cigarettes.”
Why TAAT retains an edge over tobacco cigarettes
TAAT has been aggressively positioning itself as an alternative to nicotine-based products like cigarettes and vaping. Its products contain no addictive substances and can be used as an alternative to nicotine patches by those who want to give up smoking. The company has just added distribution for TAAT in seven new U.S. states in two months, but the UK and Ireland deal represents its first and very significant move into the Europe market.
TAAT investors had been expecting some form of European authorisation this summer, following the first purchase order of its core product, with the UK and/or Ireland being seen as the primary market for distribution.
