I want to provide never-before-seen tobacco products to many more consumers.

Creating new things means we must keep trying until they are completed.

I entered the JT Group in September 2017 after working for 10 years at a fragrance company. I was responsible for flavor technology development and in winter of that year, became involved with flavor development for the Ploom S. I started out as though feeling my way through total darkness because the heated device for Ploom S was still in development at that time, and moreover, flavor development for heated tobacco sticks was different in many ways from that for cigarettes which the JT Group had substantial experience in. My days were spent in efforts for exploration, trying out all existing element technologies from one end to the other, and picking out any that had potential.

This type of work may have the image of blending different flavorings, and mixing and adjusting them to formulate new ones, but flavor technology development actually involves developing technology to express flavors that have already been created by specialized flavorists to give the desired image in products. Flavorings are extremely delicate. Their components can change depending on conditions such as temperature, environment, time, and usage conditions. There could be a chance that the flavor images created painstakingly by flavorists cannot be delivered to consumers. For new concepts such as the Ploom S, it was difficult to yield sufficient results only with existing flavor technology. I am responsible for developing formulation technology to provide flavors in tobacco products consistently and reliably, so that the flavors and images created by flavorists can be conveyed to consumers as intended.

Since I create things that have not been seen before, the development processes I work on are full of unpredictable elements. There have more than a few times when I felt close to giving up. However, it is a fact that in my work, I have no choice but to keep pressing forward even while feeling unease or worry, and to keep trying until things are completed. The results we produced have now been made into commercial products as flavor micro-chips included in specialized refills for Ploom S, which are being sold overseas as well as in Japan. I was deeply moved when I saw these products lined up in stores, and all of the struggles I had felt seemed to disappear.

The appeal of the R&D Group is making new attempts that have never been tried before.

Flavor micro-chips are a technology unique to the JT Group. We began from the desire to create “tobacco products for a new age that can be fully enjoyed by consumers.” The question of how to make new ideas into reality all depends on how hard we try. The appeal of working in the R&D Group is truly the opportunity to make attempts that have never been tried before. I believe the R&D Group is an organization that is continually exploring “things for a new age.”

In the tobacco market over these past few years, the market for “Heated Tobacco Products,” in which vapor is generated from tobacco leaves by heating instead of burning them, has been growing larger. However, it may be my personal opinion, but I think that even the current state of “non-burning tobacco” is not yet the final completed state of tobacco products. I want to see “the form of tobacco products for a new age.” Just thinking about it gives me a feeling of anticipation, but of course, I realize that actually creating it will involve much hard work and struggle.

I want to surprise and excite consumers with tastes and flavors they have never experienced before.

In the R&D Group, employees regularly share and propose ideas to each other. This may be due to our company culture, and there is always an atmosphere of interest in new ideas. No matter who we talk to, we receive replies such as “That’s interesting””, “That’s worth looking into,” and “That’s really good!”, and we can think further about them together. Members will also listen to requests for work you want to do, so if you have any interest in flavor technology development, please get to know us!

From here on, I want to continue responding carefully to requests and expectations, and strive to deliver products with rich flavors. I intend to work in earnest together with my colleagues even if we encounter problems or difficulties. It would be wonderful if we can provide surprise and excitement to consumers in the future with tastes and flavors they have never experienced before.