The UK is now a leading market for e-cigarette retailing and there is a growing appetite for the products, according to research firm FourFourtwo.
The study, which analysed e-cig sales across the UK and the UK’s EU partners, found e-cigs account for a third of all cigarette sales in the country.
The survey found that in the last year, the number of UK retailers offering e-liquids fell from just under 4,000 to just over 1,400.
FourFourtwo said that while there is no doubt the industry has been hit hard by the economic crisis, there are also signs that sales are recovering.
E-cigarettes are being marketed as safer alternatives to cigarettes, but this has come at a price, according the firm.
They said: The impact of e-liquid sales on cigarette sales has been negative for some time, with the number per cigarette falling by 3.5 per cent in the three years to March 2016 compared with the same period last year.
In the UK, sales of e, nicotine and other flavourings have risen steadily over the past three years.
In the UK in 2020, the UK was the second biggest market for flavoured cigarettes in the world behind China, according TOEFL data.
Although the UK has been a leader in e-smoking in the UK it is also a leading destination for other tobacco products, such as cigars and e-juices, which are often sold in other countries.
There are now more than 200 flavours available in e liquid and more than 100 brands, according ToEFL.