LONDON – British American Tobacco has officially become an electronic cigarette seller with the debut of Vype, the Financial Times reports. The move makes BAT the first tobacco firm to offer e-cigarettes in the United Kingdom.

Currently, Vype is only available through a dedicated website, but BAT is working with retailers to add the e-cigarette brand to their stores. Across the United States, investors are flocking to e-cigarette companies, while retailers are cashing on the trend.

In the United Kingdom, the e-cigarette market has largely been made up by small companies, such as E-lites and Gamucci, but traditional tobacco manufacturers, such as BAT and Reynolds American, have been eyeing the market.

E-cigarettes are only 1% of total tobacco sales, but their popularity is accelerating, particularly because of the lower cost (70% less than regular cigarettes) and perceived health benefits. Starting in 2016, e-cigarettes will have to adhere to regulations for medicinal products in the United Kingdom. In the United States, anti-tobacco groups are pressuring the Food and Drug Administration to regulate e-cigarettes. 

BAT sees e-cigarettes as part of the future, and shelled out around £40 million to purchase CN Creative, an e-cig company, in 2012. “Ultimately, we’d like to become the leading player in the marketplace,” said Kingsley Wheaton, a board director at BAT.