Sales of IQOS tobacco heating gadgets by Philip Morris in Ukraine in 2016 exceeded 7,000 units.

According to a Thursday press release of the company, the IQOS system has become available to adult smokers in Ukraine since February 2016. Until May 2016 IQOS and HeatSticks were sold only on the specialized website. In May 2016 the IQOS Space store was opened in Kyiv.

Since the moment of the opening of the store and until late 2016 the number of IQOS gadgets and HeatSticks soared by 10 times, and in 2016 over 7,000 innovative devices were sold, the company said.

Director General of Philip Morris Sales and Distribution Artem Kryvtsov said that seven out of 10 smokers who started using IQOS quitted smoking or started smoking less.

In the first quarter of 2017 Philip Morris seeks to expand geography of IQOS sales in Ukraine: gadgets can be bought in four more cities – Lviv, Dnipro, Kharkiv and Odesa. HeatSticks will be available to adult consumers in one of the largest supermarket chains.

IQOS was designed by Philip Morris International in its own research center in Switzerland. The HeatControl technology is used in the gadgets. It was designed exclusively for heating tobacco, but burning it, with no fire, no ash and less lingering smell. It has 90-95% less harmful and potentially harmful constituents compared to a cigarette.

Philip Morris International produces cigarettes at more than 50 factories, sells them in 180 countries.

Philip Morris Ukraine produces goods at a factory in Kharkiv region.

The company has been working on the Ukrainian market for more than 15 years. It sells cigarette brands such as Chesterfield, Bond Street, Marlboro, L&M and Parliament.