So Philip Morris changes: “Stop smoking cigarettes!”

It seems incredible, but so it is: the Philip Morris, the tobacco giant, is working harder than ever to get people to stop smoking cigarettes. There is a plan of action, a goal that the company calls “a smoke-free future”, a clear attempt to detach the image and business from cigarettes. “Our mission,” he says Stefano Volpetti, Chief Consumer Office di Philip Morris International (in the picture), «Is to eliminate traditional cigarettes as soon as possible: we are aiming for a future smoke free, proposing to smokers alternative technologies, capable of satisfying the expectations of those who would otherwise continue to smoke: this is how they were born Iqos, an instrument that heats the tobacco without burning it, e Veev, the new electronic cigarette. Our intention to be honest would even be to become a company with a positive impact on the world: the new technologies that we have developed in these years of studies and research we will put in place to develop other products that will have nothing to do with. see with cigarettes. In 2025, we will have $ 1 billion in revenue from a new business area beyond nicotine, beyond nicotine: we have many technologies in hand that could be applied to products that improve sleep, that administer drugs, which have a positive impact on people’s lives ».

What is the feedback you have from your consumers?
«Worldwide we have 30% of our net revenues already on smoke free products. A year ago it was 23%, two years ago less than 20%. We are making great strides and in 2025 we aim to exceed 50% of our revenues from these new products. In Japan it is a goal that we have already exceeded: there more than 60% of our revenues are smoke free and there is a strong reduction in traditional cigarettes. To do this, there are three decisive conditions: consumer information, which must be clear, factual and precise, capable of explaining well the risks and benefits of these products compared to cigarettes. There must be synergistic work between us producers, institutions, scientists and NGOs. Then a great work of continuous innovation is necessary: ​​we have invested 8 billion dollars in the development of smokeless products, with 400 experts in scientific subjects, to arrive at offering a technology that allows a rewarding experience for those who until yesterday smoked cigarettes. The third aspect is the regulatory framework: in countries that encourage innovation, smoke-free products are reducing the consumption of cigarettes at an exponential rate ».

With respect to minors you must have very careful policies: what precautions do you put in place?
«We are fundamentally convinced that non-smokers and minors should not consume any product containing nicotine. We sell our products after verifying the age of the consumer and certifying that he is already a smoker. Our mantra is: if you don’t smoke, don’t start, if you smoke, stop, if you don’t, change. By the end of 2023, we will have age verification technology for all of our devices. “

How do Italians behave with respect to cigarettes and smoke free tools?
«In Italy, Iqos is a success story: today there are more than one and a half million users and 75% of the people who have tried it have never returned to cigarettes. They choose it because it does not smoke, has no smell and is a consumption experience still similar to the ritual of the conventional product. Then there are those who choose Veev instead, which is an electronic cigarette that does not use tobacco, but heats liquids containing nicotine: it is more distant than the rituality of the cigarette, but allows a series of customizations that are creating aficionados. Veev connects to your smartphone from which you can calibrate the intensity of the vapor, the strength of the vibration every time you vape, you can lock the device or activate the find the device function. In short, it becomes a very personal object ».

What is Philip Morris doing that makes you proud to work there?
“I have been with Philip Morris for just over two years, I am not a smoker and I am a health conscious person: what makes me most proud is that with my everyday work I help to change the trajectory of a controversial phenomenon like that of smoking ».