South Korea: e-cigarettes play second fiddle to heated tobacco

The rise of the e-cigarette market in South Korea in 2015 was followed by a sharp drop in 2016 due to governmental regulations. However, the market seems to have recovered in 2017, with steady growth since. The e-cig market is tied in with the heat-not-burn (HnB) category and future market development partly depends on how consumers react to the latest moves in HnB regulation. Most sales are currently through offline specialist stores, with the biggest vape store chains having a large number of stores, while mainstream retail focuses mainly on HnB products rather than e-cigs.