Pointful Korea, the cigarette brand owned by International Korea Tobacco (IKT), has underlined its bold growth ambitions in travel retail by becoming a Diamond Sponsor of the upcoming MEADFA Conference in Bahrain on 27-29 November.
The independent Korean company was founded in 1998 and is led by 100% Owner and President Dae-Yoon Kang. Pointful said its mission is to become a major player in the cigarettes category globally.
IKT believes that travel retail can play a key role in accelerating that ambition. “It was not easy to enter the cigarette market due to competition from the existing large tobacco companies such as KT&G, JTI, PMI, BAT etc, therefore we decided to tap into the duty free markets which were more open to a new cigarette player,” a spokesperson told The Moodie Davitt Report.
“Our goal is to display our cigarette products for sale at all duty free shops around the world.
“We want to be one of the best suppliers of cigarettes with our Pointful brands in the duty free market globally with other retail markets around the world next.”
The brand’s lines include Pointful Regular 8mg, Menthol & Super Slim 8mg and Menthol, with other stronger lines under development to target regional markets such as the Middle East and varying consumer taste profiles.
Asked about the Pointful brand’s USP, the spokesperson told The Moodie Davitt Report, “Best ingredients; unique and rich flavour; a luxurious taste and aroma that cannot be imitated; reduced sputum and neck discomfort; minimising the smell of stale cigarettes; and we use a unique package created by a leading Korean designer.”
IKT has redeveloped Pointful from being a ‘cigar-type brand’ in the past to a much more contemporary version based on long-term research and development. “Compared to the past, the current Pointful is a brand that is much loved for its youthful and clean image,” the company said.
“The final goal of IKT is to promote K-tobacco around the world,” the spokesperson told The Moodie Davitt Report.
Strong ESG commitment
According to the IKT website, the company plans to evolve as a globally-competitive tobacco company through expanding its production facilities and through sound ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) credentials. “We will do our best for the public good of society and develop into a company that pursues our philosophy of ‘common good’,” the company said.