People ask, “are you smoking?” when they see a vape in someone’s hand. That’s when you can inform them, “It’s not smoke, It’s just vapour.” Coincidentally, that’s exactly what Lars VanKessel did when opening and naming his own vape shop in London. With It’s Not Smoke, It’s Just Vapour being the oldest vape shop in London, VanKessel has had his fair share of stress due to the events that occurred surrounding vaping.
VanKessel knows that the vape industry is a brand new industry compared to the cigarette industry, and within that short time, having massive events concerning vaping and taking a toll on business. The nicotine ban from July has not been the worst thing to happen to the industry. “But our businesses hasn’t been affected that much. It wasn’t nearly as affected as the valley scare from a few years ago, when the kids were getting the illegal vapes and dropping dead. That did a number on business. We lost over $100,000 that one year.” VanKessel says as he remembers 2018 and 2019.
Although the nicotine ban has put a strain on business, it hasn’t been the worst thing for it. “In essence the idea isn’t bad. Right? But it comes about because the people who are doing regulating don’t really understand what they’re regulating. And I think that’s the biggest problem in this whole industry is that the the main regulators don’t really have a clue and the ones pushing the hardest, really are not looking at the best interest for the people.” VanKessel says that he just wants regulators and the industry to become more in-line with the product and their consumers.
With the decrease in strength, there have been times where people have gone to cigarettes to try and get the same effect from before. “Quite frankly, you couldn’t stop vaping those and then switch to cigarettes and then think you’re satisfied because there’s no cigarette that would produce that much nicotine. So in that it’s not bad.” VanKessel says hoping that people will stay away from cigarettes.
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