A few days ago on 11th September, a platform was set up in France with the explicit aim to help consumers take advantage of different prices in neighbouring EU Member States of common staples like cigarettes and alcohol.

Carklop's idea is to use the model that BlaBlaCar has perfected for cross-border carpooling to France's neighbours (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, and Andorra), so that users can buy cheaper cigarettes and alcohol while respecting the EU quota limits.

The platform, which takes a 15% commission on each ride, was created by Philippe Poulard, a 52-year-old entrepreneur from Haute-Saône, who observed that tobacco prices were almost three times higher in France than in Germany.

According to an example detailed by Carklop, a round trip to Germany with three passengers allows everyone to save 379.5 euros on 33 packs of hand-rolling tobacco purchased per person, for a carpooling cost of 11.5 euros per person (petrol, toll, and the 15% commission taken by the application).

This has of course angered the traditional tobacco shops, especially those near the borders, and the SNTL, the National Union of Light Transport, which has reported the platform to the Ministry for Transport because Carklop is a "tool for facilitating and almost legalising smuggling", according to SNTL.

The president of the National Confederation of Tobacco Shop Owners called it "completely outrageous" and said they're considering legal action.

For context, EU quotas allow each adult to bring back up to 800 cigarettes, 400 cigarillos, 200 cigars or 1 kg of tobacco. For alcohol: 10 litres of spirits, 20 litres of intermediate beverages, 90 litres of wine, and 110 litres of beer.

Whether this platform will survive the legal and political pressure remains to be seen, but it highlights the stark price differences that exist across EU borders and the creative ways entrepreneurs are finding to exploit them.