For those familiar with Schmitty’s, we have a great new announcement to make. Schmitty's is officially proud to present our new tobacco-free pouches. These pouches are much more versatile than traditional tobacco as you can use them to meet various needs, like traditional, reserve, energy, and sleep. Not only that, but they come in such great flavors too, including original, wintergreen, and mint.
Now people can truly enjoy a great dip without the harmful side effects. Our journey towards making our product a success has not been so simple and easy, though. There have been many obstacles to overcome for this product and this company to truly shine.
The Start of Our Mission
There was an unwavering goal that we had set on in the beginning of 2021—that goal was to successfully market our tobacco-free pouches into a viable market. However, one of the biggest challenges we faced was that a pouch that was both tobacco-free and nicotine-free was a considerably new concept.
Not only did this provide us with rather unpredictable market expectations, but our methods for producing them would have to be created almost entirely from scratch. Although this wasn’t the case at first with our prototype pouches and samples, those products met our expectations with flying colors in the domestic market.
The international market was an entirely different beast. There were so many new changes that needed to be made to accommodate the overwhelming scale of demand from so many different markets and tastes.
Doubling Down on R&D
The overall process for this entire transition took much longer than we anticipated. The old system was simple and efficient for our market, but the much larger scale we encountered made it entirely obsolete. Simply putting the products into bags one machine at a time would not cut it anymore.
An entirely new system that was capable of producing hundreds of thousands of pouches at a time was needed to handle the massive influx of international orders. Retrofitting our old equipment was our initial plan, but the machines just weren’t up to the task.
Replacing Our Outdated Equipment
The equipment needed to handle all of this had to be custom-built to our specifications, a burden that was, unfortunately, ours to carry. Food-grade stainless steel, fabrications, and mechanical components were all needed to accomplish our goal. Even with the increasing prices and decreasing availability of parts, nothing would stand in our way.
Four months later, through all of the redeveloping and inventing, our machines were finally ready to produce our pouches efficiently. If only that point was where the problems ended.
A Much-Needed Revamp
There were so many aspects of the process that needed to be created or reestablished for us to truly be ready for a proper public release. Not only did we need to improve our methods for how we performed in the workplace, but we also needed to fix the issues with the actual product as well. With the delays caused by the previously outdated machines, we were officially 2 months behind our desired launch date.
As for the actual snuff, the grueling process of actually recreating the product that performed so well in initial testing was thrust upon us. As painful and bone-breaking as this entire experience was, we endured and broke through every obstacle we faced. Weeks later, the product was finally ready for a large-scale market release, and Schmitty’s tobacco-free pouches would not pull any punches in terms of production and competition.
The Motivation and Science Behind Our Product
The biggest initial draw of nicotine is that it gives you a buzz and makes you feel good in some way. So naturally, there has to be some way to make our product stand out from the rest of the competition.
Our team at Schmitty’s has worked tirelessly, brainstorming methods and finding further utilization for our formulas—however, our competitors have been doing the same. The worst part is the fact that the companies that work the hardest are also the ones that have nicotine in their products.
The Rise of Zyn
Zyn is a company dedicated to selling smokeless tobacco/nicotine products. During the 1st half of 2020, Zyn experienced a massive revenue increase of nearly 500%. However, the problem is not just the revenue spike; the real issue lies in the demographic that is the source of this increase in sales.
Teenagers and young adults alike are fueling the company, with 13% of 15 to 24-year-olds using their products for at least a month. The cause of all this trouble is rather obvious. Zyn is able to market to younger age groups by promoting their products similarly to candy and other confection companies, using tactics like fruity flavors and eye-popping designs to attract customers.
Our Solution to the Problem
Our hope is that we can provide a substitute for any nicotine/tobacco product that not only surpasses the quality of said products, but prevents and reduces the health risks associated with them as well. Delivering the exact same product without nicotine/tobacco is out of the question, as it will likely be seen as a cheap knock-off that is not worth anyone’s time.
So we have to think of all the benefits that we can provide to give us that competitive edge. The first one that comes to mind is the moistness of the product. So many pouches are dry and are a bit underwhelming when it comes to the impact of the flavor. We have created a bag that is arguably the moistest one on the market, which allows the strong flavors to be much more effective as well.
The flavor is great and all, but what truly sets this product apart are the benefits it can provide. Some people have trouble sleeping and need to find a way to relax. Others need a pick-me-up to get them through the morning when a good ol’ cup of joe just won’t do the trick anymore.
We have retooled our formulas to craft pouches that are not just substitutes, but can function as something closer to actual medicine. This is the goal and purpose of Schmitty’s products: our product genuinely helps people, and does not harm them or fail to satisfy them like so many products that exist in the market.
Our Future Awaits
There’s not much left to say about what we’ve done, but there is something that can be said about what we aim to accomplish. First, you should not take the health risks and problems caused by nicotine lightly. Nicotine pouches can cause symptoms such as hiccups or sore mouth, which are bad, but pale compared to what comes next.
Tobacco is far more dangerous and could lead to horrifying consequences ranging from heart disease to oral cancers. Therefore, we hope that at some point, we can stop or at least greatly reduce the amount of nicotine and tobacco sold and used for the foreseeable future.