Cigge was one of many brands affected by Eurobrand's bankruptcy. But under new management and with new forces at the helm, Cigge came back online after more than six months in the shadows.
"We have broadened the range and are focusing on what works. It's great to have the chance to run Cigge in a new form," says Patrik Grönberg, CEO of the new owner NNVEN AB.
When Eurobrands went under via bankruptcy in January, it left big holes in the established vejp market in Sweden. Eurobrands owned several online retail sites, including elekcig and Cigge, and seven physical stores in central Sweden.
"Impressed by "Cigge"
Two of the physical stores have now been effectively reopened under the Ecigg chain (in Västerås and Karlstad).
And now it's time for the biggest online site, Cigge.se, to get your business back on track. Patrik Grönberg, former employee of the retailer Haypp group, bought large parts of the bankruptcy estate via the newly established company NNVEN and have spent the spring planning for the future.
"Eurobrands was a company with a lot of activities and I have been particularly impressed by Cigge online. It feels great to be able to continue it. We have now streamlined the range and refined it based on what works today." he tells Vejpkollen.
How will it be different from the past?
"Much is the same. But in short, I can say that there are more disposable models than before, and that we only sell nicotine pouches and not traditional snus as before."
No business to business
Eurobrands was previously a major player in business-to-business and supplied single-use models to many neighbourhood shops and chains around the country. But that particular business will not remain under NNVEN's auspices, says Patrik Grönberg.
"No, we will focus exclusively on online retailing to private individuals. And we won't be opening any physical stores, but will focus entirely on the internet. We have noticed that the Ecigg chain has taken over some of the previous stores, and I see this as nothing but positive. The more the sector can grow, the more people who find smoke-free alternatives, the better for everyone," says Patrik Grönberg.
You used to work for Haypp group and Snusbolaget, chains that now also sell vejp products. Do you think vejpning can become as big as snus is and has been in Sweden?
"To be honest, I don't think so. But that's because snus and nicotine pouches are so big here. At the same time, I see that we still have almost 500,000 smokers left in Sweden, which is about five per cent of the population. I would like to see that figure drop to one or zero per cent. And I believe that vejpningen will play an important role in attracting the last smokers to less harmful nicotine use," says Patrik Grönberg.
Staff from Haypp and Eurobrands
Cigge online will have mostly staff from old Eurobrands and Haypp behind the helm. Dennis Danielsson and Simon Paajanen come directly from Eurobrands, while Uygar Duzgun and Ali Omran are former employees of Nettotobak and later Haypp Group, Cigge writes in a press release to customers.
