Issue 30

LETTER FROM THE

This is a very proud moment for me as we celebrate our fifth anniversary with this edition of the magazine.

For this landmark issue we have a special gift for all our readers – a limited-edition souvenir copy of the publication which made Vapouround possible.

As founder and Managing Director Paul Caplin explains elsewhere in this issue, Vapouround was the direct result of a newspaper supplement we gave out to exhibitors and visitors at the very first Vaper Expo UK in July 2015. Such was the response to that supplement that Vapouround Magazine launched just three weeks later.

A lot would happen in the world of vaping during the next five years and we have reported on these changes every step of the way. I would like to thank every member of the Vapouround team, past and present, for the amazing work they have done and as we look forward to the next five years, I am sure the journey ahead will be just as exciting, eventful and dramatic as it has been to date.

We have made a lot of great friends all over the world and I would also like to thank all our supporters, industry partners, advertisers and readers for their continuing support.

In our early days, vaping was regarded as a niche product which was viewed with suspicion by the outside world. Vapers were seen as an odd bunch who took great pleasure from leaving huge clouds of vapour in their wake as they enjoyed their strange hobby.

Vaping’s role as a ‘reduced risk’ or ‘harm reduction’ product for adult smokers was not fully understood and we still have a very long way to go to get this message across more widely.

As we face the challenges ahead, we will do all in our power to let smokers know that vaping saves lives and help them realise that there are far better ways to enjoy nicotine than via a cigarette.

New

• JUUL already offers the No. 1 Closed System Tobacco flavour pod on the market.** • JUUL is the No. 1 vaping brand in the UK.***

CONTENTS 14 50 84

NEWS FEATURES

Short Fills Applications roll in as PMTA deadline hits

A long road ahead. Roadmap for Smoke Free 2030 Hong Kong stock market listing for Smoore

Data reveals sharp decline in US youth vaping Study linking youth vaping to increased covid-19 risk branded reckless

Quit today - More than 1m smokers quit during pandemic Vaping is not to blame Is California flavour ban “politics at its worst”?

Vaping Entrepreneur Diary of a Vaper Cover story - Innevape Online and upwards - VOXPO review

VOXPO Live 1: Mo from Dr Vapes

VOXPO Live 2: Clive Bates and Martin Cullip on the TPD review VOXPO Live award winners

New Zealand’s proposed vaping regulations borrow from UK Ireland - New vape taxes? How to win likes and influence people Eco-friendly vaping

Celebrating Five Years of ExcellenceVapouround Awards 2020 New study backs vaping for public health

Netflix and vape..Vaping on TV Impact of South Africa’s tobacco and vape lockdown sales ban

96 98 102 105 108 110 114 118 120 124 128 130

Campaign for Tabasco-Free Kids EU crackdown: Germany to ban vape ads

Belgium goes back to tabac Covid vape shop practices survey & interview with Dr Sharon Cox

UKVIA Conference. Combatting underage sales in the vaping industry Start spreading the news - Fifth birthday special: A message from Paul Fifth birthday special: Picture spread Fifth birthday special: All our front covers

Fifth birthday special: Shaky beginnings, false starts but ultimately…huge success Fifth birthday special: Best setups for new starters - then and now

Vaping Changed my Life - Dimitris Agrafiotis

“Investigation reveals emergence of black market in New York”

110 154

REVIEWS

HOBBYIST CORNER R H

Vaporesso - Gen Nano Innokin - Sceptre Shenzhen Uwell Technology

Voopoo Argus GT mod kit

Freemax MAXUS 200

Aspire - MIXX

Aspire - BP60 Kingston E Liquids

Flavour Art My E-liquids Vapetasia Supergood

Picture perfect: The Melo Shot interview The art of the coil with Falcohm Worth the Hype: Digby’s Juices

Short Fills

Three pages filled with short vape-related stories and research making news from around the world.

LET’S END SMOKING ERA

Juul Labs UK Sales Director John Patterson says vaping products can play a “pivotal role” in ending the smoking era. He said: “Juul Labs and the vaping category exist to help end the era of combustible cigarettes.” Virginia tobacco blends account for 93 percent of factorymade cigarettes sold in the UK and Juul has now added Rich Tobacco JUULpods to its range. The 18mg pods replicate the Virginia tobacco taste profile to encourage more smokers to quit. Meanwhile Juul has applied to the US Food and Drug Administration for permission to keep selling e-cigarettes under the Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PMTA), process. The application includes 125,000 pages of detailed scientific data from over 110 studies focused on examining the public health impact of the JUUL System.

GATEWAY? WHAT GATEWAY?

Youngsters who try e-cigarettes are far less likely to smoke in future compared to those who try any other tobacco product. The research - Association of initial e-cigarette and other tobacco product use with subsequent cigarette smoking in adolescents - was published in the journal Tobacco Control. It concludes: “Less than one percent of US adolescents who use e-cigarettes first became established cigarette smokers, significantly fewer than in any other product category.” It also said they were also less likely to become smokers than adolescents who tried other combustible or non-combustible tobacco products first.

PHILIPPINES TO REGULATE VAPING

The Philippines has approved a bill to regulate the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

The concept of “harm reduction” has gained support from Filipino advocates in recent years and the bill seeks to ensure that “noncombustible alternatives to cigarettes are properly regulated.”

RELX, RESEARCH

Leading Chinese vape brand RELX has started operations at its newly-established research laboratory.

The facility, based in China’s tech capital Shenzhen, will conduct research into the effects of vape products through in vivo and in vitro tests, in addition to conducting pre-clinical safety assessments.

The lab is currently conducting research on the impact of RELX products on animal cardiovascular, respiratory and nervous systems, in order to better understand the effects of vape products.

PANIC BARRIER

Misplaced fears about vaping are hampering the UK’s smoke-free efforts, according to campaigners.

Mark Oates, who runs the WeVape campaign, says that scare stories misinterpret the science. Oates argued that people should instead focus on the fact that vaping is much less harmful than smoking. He said: “The public perception of vaping is terrible. The scientific facts don’t transfer to the public perception and that is leading people to keep smoking.”

VAPERS OZTRICIZED?

Australians may soon need a doctor’s prescription to legally obtain nicotine vape products.

Vapers will be required to purchase products from a pharmacy if the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) proposals come to pass.

The proposals also ban the personal importation of nicotine.

Advocacy group The Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association (ATHRA) said: “The result will be that fewer smokers will be able to switch to vaping, a far safer alternative, and more people will die a smoking-related death.”

FOLLOW HONG KONG

Vape advocacy group ‘ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand’ wants the government to follow the lead of the Hong Kong administration and reverse the country’s e-cigarette ban. It has called on the government to establish an independent committee to “seriously study the science, commercial aspects, and regulatory framework for electronic cigarettes.”

Spokesman Asa Ace Saligupta said four out of ten Thai smokers were not even considering quitting and blamed the lack of less harmful alternatives such as vaping for the high number.

THE OLD SMOKE

The government wants to see London become “the first smoke free capital city before 2030” the House of Commons was told. Jo Churchill, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health, was asked what steps the government was taking to meet the 2030 smoke-free targets for London and England.

She said: “The Government remains committed to its vision of smokefree 2030. The aim is for London to become the first smoke free capital city before 2030.” She said the government would be publishing a roadmap setting out how to achieve this in due course.

FIRST STEPS

The Jordanian government has banned smoking and vaping in all indoor public spaces. Health chiefs in Jordan, where tobacco use is the highest in the world, have vowed that all enclosed areas would now become “100 percent smoke free.” More than 80 percent of men in the country smoke or consume nicotine in some form according to World Health Organization data.

Larissa Al-Uar from Tobacco Free Jordan, said the ban was a “huge change” and called for “strong implementation’ of the law while Princess Dina Mired, a member of the country’s royal family, said it was “a first step.”

NOW WASH YOUR HANDS

Spain’s Health Ministry is advising citizens not to smoke or vape in “social and communal settings” amid Coronavirus fears. It says that smokers and vapers could touch potentially contaminated surfaces in terraces and other public places and then move their hands to their mouths. The advice from Spain’s Public Health Commission says: “In situations where it is carried out, it should be in open spaces, and with personal hygiene by the consumer such as handwashing before and after and cleaning the devices used.”

UNDER PRESSURE

Organised crime gangs are circumventing the EU menthol ban by smuggling in lorry-loads of blackmarket products with names including Queen, Fest and Minsk. Menthol cigarette brands, sold legally outside the EU, are being illegally imported and sold under the counter by unscrupulous retailers, netting millions for the crime gangs. Border officials in Lithuania recently seized nine million menthols on their way to the UK. Former Scotland Yard detective Will O’Reilly, a consultant on the illegal cigarette trade, said: “Organized criminal groups will try to exploit any ban.”

BACK NEXT YEAR

The ENDS 2020 conference, which had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will not be rescheduled. The organisers of Europe’s leading e-cigarette conference focusing on scientific, commercial and regulatory aspects, will hold their next event in May/June 2021. They said: “We appreciate your patience and support during these difficult and uncertain times. By holding the event in 2021, we aim to uphold the quality of both the content and overall attendee experience to the level at which you are accustomed to from Smithers. “All updates, including new dates and location will also be posted online via www.ends-conference.com.”

INSPIRED BY NUMBERS

NO VAPING WHILE WAITING

SCOTLAND’S chief medical officer wants retailers to stop shoppers smoking or vaping while queueing to get inside. He said: “The Scottish Government would like to request that retailers take steps to discourage people from smoking or vaping whilst waiting in queues to enter premises. “While we stress that there is no scientific evidence to suggest that the COVID-19 virus can be spread though smoke and vape drift, this has been raised as a public concern over and above the fact that many find the passive inhaling of tobacco or vape drift unpleasant.”

The vice-chair of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board has described the news that more than a million British smokers quit during the lockdown as ‘inspiring.’ Councillor Paulette Hamilton said: “It is inspiring to see that a million people have quit for good and encouraging that younger people are giving up smoking earlier on in life.” She said councils needed “certainty” over their long-term funding for quit smoking services to help the government reach its smoke-free targets. See news story: “Quit Today.”

APPLICATIONS ROLL IN AS PMTA DEADLINE HITS

Words: Gordon Stribling

The deadline for vape companies to apply for their products to be authorised in the US passed on September 9, further deepening uncertainty across the industry.

The FDA’s controversial Premarket Tobacco product Authorisation (PMTA) system requires companies to prove that their products are beneficial to broader public health and unlikely to attract non-smokers and young people.

Only products that were available on the market before August 8, 2016 can remain on sale while the FDA assesses the new applications.

All products containing nicotine that are “made or derived from tobacco” are regulated by the FDA as tobacco products under the 2016 Deeming Rule, meaning the vast majority of current market is unauthorised.

FDA commissioner, Stephen M. Hahn, said: “In addition to premarket scientific review of tobacco products, the FDA is committed to taking actions against those who violate the law, including products that continue to be sold for which the agency has not received a product application.”

The FDA has a huge task ahead, with potentially millions of applications to process within a year.

The agency said that it was unlikely to review all the applications in that time since the volume of applications will be ‘several

orders of magnitude greater’ than anything it has ever experienced.

Each variation on a product will need to be authorised, such as e-liquids with different flavours and nicotine concentrations and combinations of mods and tanks.

The exhaustive process puts more simple, pod-based devices at an advantage over open systems despite these being more heavily implicated in the so-called youth vaping epidemic.

It will also likely be insurmountable for all but the biggest vape companies, due to the huge cost involved and the need to submit thousands of pages of supportive evidence.

JUUL Labs submitted a PMTA in July. The application included ‘comprehensive scientific evidence’ for their JUUL Device and Virginia Tobacco and Menthol pods.

JUUL Labs chief regulatory officer, Joe Murillo, said: “Juul Labs has committed all necessary resources to deliver the best possible PMTA based on rigorous scientific research and datadriven measures to address underage use.

“We respect the PMTA process and believe it is the right forum to determine the role ENDS products can play in transitioning and completely switching adult smokers from combustible cigarettes to potentially less harmful alternative products while combating underage use.”

No sign yet of FDA enforcement but agency says it will act where companies break the law

Meanwhile, VUSE Vapor, owned by tobacco company R.J. Reynolds, has submitted multiple applications and in October 2019 became the first company to submit a PMTA.

While fears over a tobacco industry monopoly persist, a number of well-known independent vape brands have submitted PMTAs of their own, including Vaporesso, SMOK and HorizonTech.

Meanwhile, Charlie’s Holdings, which makes Charlie’s Chalk Dust products, announced its PMTA submission on August 31.

Chief operating officer, Ryan Stump, said: "This is a day we've long awaited in our industry.

"After spending nearly $5 million over the past two years on our PMTA preparation and submission, we are extremely excited about the application we filed with the FDA.

“Today is a great achievement for our company and will greatly benefit our customers, our partners, and our shareholders."

The FDA began cracking down on non-compliant products back in January in response to rising youth use.

The agency prioritised enforcement against unauthorised flavoured pod-based products, products where their manufacturers took inadequate measures to prevent youth use and products that appeared to be targeted at underage users.

After spending nearly $5 million on our PMTA submission, we are extremely excited about the application we filed with the FDA.

A long road

AHEAD

Words: Gordon Stribling

The UK government must address inequalities if it is to achieve a smokefree England by 2030, the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health (APPG) has said.

The APPG met for a virtual roundtable a year to the day after the government published the green paper, ‘Advancing our Health: Prevention in the 2020s’ which laid out the plans.

Implementation of the policies outlined in the green paper has been slowed down since the coronavirus pandemic took hold.

Public Health Minister Jo Churchill said that driving down smoking was not a political issue and that the parties should work together to meet the 2030 target for the good of public health.

Smokefree status will be given once adult smoking prevalence drops below five percent.

Conservative MP and chair of the APPG Bob Blackman said: “The reality is that over 100,000 children are estimated to have taken up smoking since the publication of the green paper a year ago.

“More than two-thirds of those will become regular smokers on a daily basis which makes the action that we need to deliver on this agenda all the more urgent.”

Professor Linda Bauld of SPECTRUM Consortium (formerly the UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies) said that while the UK had an all-time low smoking prevalence of 14 percent, there was still a lot more to be done.

Almost one in five adults in manual jobs smoke tobacco which is two-and-a-half times higher than those in professional and managerial roles, she explained. Meanwhile, Professor Bauld argued that more should be done to further reduce smoking among pregnant women.

She said: “The inequalities around England and across the UK are substantial so we have a long way to go here.”

Dr Tessa Langley of the University of Nottingham noted that smoking disproportionately affects disadvantaged groups which has led to a significant disparity in morbidity and mortality rates.

Government must address inequalities to meet 2030 smokefree target

She also revealed that smokers spend an average of £23 per week on the habit which further exacerbates poverty.

Dr Langley said: “Whichever way you look at this, particularly disadvantaged smokers, people on low incomes are likely to be spending a substantial proportion of their income on tobacco and that expenditure has the potential to crowd out expenditure on other essential items, possibly food and housing.”

The green paper states that the government is open to the idea of implementing a ‘polluter pays’ approach, where tobacco companies would be required to fund tobacco control programmes.

Sue Mountain, a former smoker and two-time cancer survivor backed this approach in her comments.

She said: “I don't think it's fair that when tobacco companies are making huge profits from addiction that robbed me of my life, I don’t think they should be let off.

“It’s not fair that the NHS foots the bill for smokingrelated illnesses.”

The panellists also addressed the importance of

adequate tobacco control policies to minimise respiratory problems from COVID-19 infection.

Dr Langley noted that vape shops could play a role in supporting smoking cessation interventions during this period, noting that there are ‘potential avenues in terms of virtual support and I’m sure a lot of that has been happening during lockdown.’

The APPG has endorsed ASH’s Roadmap to a Smokefree 2030.

As well as requiring tobacco companies to fund tobacco control, the ASH guidance calls on the government to improve education, ensure universal access to smoking support and review and revise e-cigarette regulation, among other recommendations.

The anti-smoking charity has been largely supportive of vaping for smoking cessation but wants to ensure that vaping regulations are ‘fit for purpose in helping smokers quit while managing and minimising any risk of uptake by never smokers.’

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HONG KONG STOCK MARKET LISTING FOR SMOORE Vape

Words: Patrick Griffin

Chinese vaping giant Smoore International has been listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange following a hugely successful initial public offering (IPO).

Smoore’s initial IPO price was 12.4 HKD (£1.27) and its shares closed at 31 HKD (£3.17), giving it a market value of 178

billion HKD, approximately £18 billion. This is the first listing of an electronic atomization technology company on the Hong Kong market and Smoore said its mission was “to build the world’s leading vaping technology platform to bolster the innovation and development of vaping technology with a wide range of applications.”

“ “

Smoore is regarded as a global leader in manufacturing vaping devices and components and boasts advanced R&D technology, strong manufacturing capacity, an extensive product portfolio and a diverse international customer base.

According to Frost & Sullivan, Smoore was the world’s largest vaping device manufacturer in terms of revenue last year, accounting for 16.5 percent of the total market share.

Most of Smoore's customers come from overseas markets, covering more than 50 overseas countries or regions. In 2019, the company's revenue from the United States, Hong Kong and Japan markets accounted for 21.8 percent, 20.9 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively.

The Shenzhen-based company boasts three research centres and employs

645 personnel working on research and development alone. Last year Smoore was awarded the China Patent Excellence Award by the National Intellectual Property Administration.

The company is particularly proud of its research on heating technology. In 2016, its first generation of heating technology was introduced. Later that year, the company further launched its second generation FEELM. FEELM won the Golden Leaf Award at GTNF in 2018 and iF Design Award 2020.

Over the next four years it plans to increase production capacity, upgrade equipment and bring new automated production lines onstream.

Smoore is also exploring “new applications of atomization technology” such as inhalation therapy using electronic atomization equipment and said: “With increasing awareness of

practitioners in electronic atomization industry, medical applications may become an important part in the future. “Applying electronic atomization technology to the healthcare industry is one of the key points in Smoore's next phase of research and is also a potential driver for its future development.

“Currently, Smoore is developing core components for medical automation equipment. With its automated production technology, Smoore can simplify the existing medical automation equipment, accurately control the dosage and the size of aerosol particle, so as to improve the atomization efficiency of health care essence.

“In the precise calculation of medicines, Smoore has made breakthroughs, contributing to treat asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other respiratory diseases.”

PRESENTED BY

PRESENTED

Wednesday, November 18 - Friday, November 20, 2020, 10am-6pm US Central Time

Wednesday, November 18 - Friday, November 20, 2020, 10am-6pm US Central Time

DATA REVEALS SHARP DECLINE IN US YOUTH VAPING

But FDA criticised for not releasing smoking stats

Words: Gordon Stribling

US youth vaping has declined significantly over the past year, according to data from the 2020 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS).

The annual survey tracks youth vaping and smoking habits among middle and high school students across the country.

Current e-cigarette use (at least once in the past 30 days) among high school students dropped by almost a third, from 27.5 percent in 2019 to 19.6 percent in 2020.

Meanwhile, current use among middle school students more than halved over the same period.

Dr. Karen Hacker, director of CDC’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, said: “These findings reinforce the importance of continuing to focus on the strategies that work to reduce youth tobacco product use while keeping pace with emerging trends in tobacco products.

“Implementing these strategies at the national, state and local levels is integral to preventing and reducing youth tobacco product use, including e-cigarettes.”

Federal health officials have attributed the decline to public health campaigns and sales restrictions.

A ban on flavoured pods brought in to curb youth vaping has been in effect since January, while outright flavour bans are in effect in New York and elsewhere. However, the survey suggests that some youth vapers are just switching to different types of products as bans take effect.

Sales of disposable devices not impacted by the

flavoured pod ban increased by 1,000 percent, the survey revealed. The FDA faced criticism for not including youth smoking data in the September 9 press release as it had done the previous year.

Health economist and Georgia State University associate professor Michael F. Pesko wrote to the FDA, noting that it was important for policymakers and researchers to have access to all the information. Prof. Pesko wrote: “The CDC obviously has that number available. I don’t understand what the rationale could have been for including that information last year but not this year unless there is an effort to supress ‘bad information’ on youth smoking increasing.”

Pesko posted a follow-up on Twitter, saying that the FDA confirmed that they would make the smoking information available later in the year ‘probably right before Christmas when nobody is paying attention.’

These findings reinforce the importance of continuing to focus on the strategies that work to reduce youth tobacco product use

“

STUDY LINKING YOUTH VAPING TO INCREASED COVID-19 RISK BRANDEDReckless

Words: Patrick Griffin

A Stanford University study which claims that people are putting themselves at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 by vaping has been branded “reckless” by the UKVIA.

The study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, concluded that vaping was linked to a “substantially increased risk of COVID-19 among teenagers and young adults.”

It said: “Among young people who were tested for the virus that causes COVID-19…those who vaped were five to seven times more likely to be infected than those who did not use e-cigarettes.”

However John Dunne, director of the UK Vaping Industry Association, was highly critical of the research.

He said: “Whilst we welcome any research which can assist people in staying safe during the COVID-19

pandemic, the UKVIA is disappointed by the Stanford-led study which appears to dismiss the vital harmreduction role of vaping for smokers.

“It is also reckless in stating that vapers are putting themselves ‘at risk of COVID-19’ by vaping. The study draws disproportionate conclusions, is fundamentally flawed and inconclusive.

“It fails to demonstrate a causative relationship between vaping and the COVID-19 infection, which is particularly concerning given the number of factors involved.”

The UKVIA has also taken issue with the study for defining vapers as those who have ever done so, even if they no longer vape or may have done so only once or twice.

Critics have pointed out that when the study is adjusted for those who were vaping within 30-days of a COVID-19

diagnosis, the connection between vaping and the virus is no longer significant. Leading cardiologist Dr Konstantinos Farsalinos analysed the study and concluded: “There is no pathophysiological basis or rationale that only ever but not current use predisposes to positive COVID-19 diagnosis.

“The findings are in disagreement with a large number of studies showing…the potential protective role of nicotine in COVID-19, a hypothesis that has been presented since early April.”

Dr Farsalinos, who is known for his clinical and laboratory research on electronic cigarettes, later tweeted: “Data are completely unreliable! Huge response bias and failed transformation of a convenience sample to a population-based sample. Retraction needed.”

Leading cardiologist dismisses Stanford University research as ‘unreliable’ and calls for it to be retracted

QUIT TODAY

More than a million smokers have successfully quit since the coronavirus pandemic hit Britain. New research from University College London and charity Action on Smoking (ASH) found that 1,100,000 smokers had given up from mid-April to late June.

A further 440,000 had tried to quit during the same period, giving the strongest evidence to date that the worldwide health scare had caused people to seriously examine their smoking habits.

The survey revealed that while around 400,000 people aged 16-29 had successfully quit smoking, the number dropped to just 240,000 for those over 50.

People aged 30-49 have a slightly lower rate of quitting than the under 30s (13 percent of smokers and recent ex-smokers) but a similar number of people giving up smoking at around 400,000, due to the size of the population.

Smoking-related illnesses which have been linked to worse outcomes from COVID-19 include COPD, diabetes, stroke and other heart conditions.

ASH Chief Executive Deborah Arnott said: “Over

a million smokers may have succeeded in stopping smoking since COVID-19 hit Britain, but millions more have carried on smoking. We want to encourage those who’ve not yet succeeded, to wake up and decide today is the day to stop smoking.”

Respiratory consultant Dr Ruth Sharrock said: “Every day of my working life I see the terrible health problems caused by smoking. My message to smokers today is, please, do not wait. Whether you are healthy now or already unwell because of smoking, today is the day to stop. It can transform your life.”

Former smoker Lee, from Castleford, West Yorkshire, had to give up work as a painter and decorator after an epileptic seizure, which smokers are four times more likely to experience, caused him to lose his sight in one eye.

He used the COVID crisis to quit and has not touched a cigarette in five months. Lee said: “With the present climate and coronavirus, I’m so glad I have quit. I was sick of waking up, coughing and spluttering – so I made myself give quitting a go.”

Words: Patrick Griffin

“To those who’ve not yet succeeded, wake up and decide today is the day to stop smoking.”

…and join the 1.1million other Brits who did so during COVID-19 crisis

“ “

VAPING IS NOT TO BLAME

Words: Caroline Barry

A US study has found that higher rates of e-cigarette and cannabis use did not result in more vaping-related EVALI lung injuries.

The Yale School of Public Health study, published in the journal ‘Addiction,’ compared the rates of adult vaping and cannabis use in January to the pre-outbreak rates last year.

If vaping and cannabis use was responsible for the 2,800 hospitalisations and 87 deaths, the researchers would have expected to see an increase in use in areas with more cases – but instead the opposite was true.

The results showed that higher rates of vaping and cannabis use were associated with fewer lung injury cases per capita.

Assistant Professor Abigail Friedman, author of the study said: “If e-cigarette or cannabis use per se drove this outbreak, areas with more engagement in those behaviours should show a higher EVALI prevalence, this study finds the opposite result.

“Alongside geographic clusters of high EVALI prevalence states, these findings are more consistent with locally available e-liquids or additives driving the EVALI outbreak than a widely used, nationallyavailable product.”

In February this year the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) concluded that vitamin E acetate – an additive found in many illegal black market THC vape products – was the primary cause of the

deaths and illnesses. However, by then a number of restrictions on nicotine vape products had been imposed around the country including a temporary ban on all e-cigarettes sales in Massachusetts and flavoured e-cigarette bans in several states including New York.

This latest study showed that in the five earliest states to legalise recreational cannabis, (Alaska, California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington) all had less than one lung injury case per 100,000 residents. None of the highest prevalence states (Utah, North Dakota, Minnesota, Delaware and Indiana) allowed recreational cannabis use.

Friedman adds that in two of the highest prevalence states, medical cannabis laws prevented the use of smokable cannabis. She said: “If this policy led some recreational marijuana smokers to switch to vaping THC, perhaps in order to avoid detection, it would have increased their likelihood of exposure to contaminated e-liquids when those came on the market. This may have contributed to the higher EVALI prevalence in those states.”

Study finds rates of e-cigarette use is not associated with vaping lung injuries

“If e-cigarette or cannabis use drove this outbreak, areas with more engagement should show a higher EVALI prevalence, this study finds the opposite result.”

IS CALIFORNIA FLAVOUR BAN “POLITICS AT ITS WORST”?

Words: Patrick Griffin

The sale of all flavoured tobacco products will be banned in California from January 2021 after governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 793 into law.

The law, which was backed by both the American Heart Association and the America Lung Association, means retailers face a $250 fine each time they sell flavoured cigarettes or e-liquids. The sale of premium cigars and pipe tobacco are both excluded from the new law on the grounds that they don’t appeal to children.

Assemblyman Jim Wood described tobacco as “the most deadly consumer product ever created” and said the legislation would “save lives and prevent our young people from taking up the deadly and addictive habit of smoking.” Critics say the “gateway theory” - where youth vaping supposedly leads to increased youth smoking - is not supported by the evidence and bans like this will only serve to stop adult smokers from switching to less harmful alternatives such as vaping.

The law has sparked anger amongst both smokers and vapers and a tobacco industry advert branded Bill 793 “politics at its worst” and claimed it would

criminalise menthol cigarettes, “giving special treatment to the rich, and singling out communities of colour.”

Meanwhile in Florida, governor Ron DeSantis has vetoed a bill which would have banned flavoured e-liquids and raised the legal age to buy nicotine products to 21.

DeSantis said of the Vape and Tobacco Bill (SB 810): “While originally conceived as a bill to raise the legal age to buy tobacco to 21, (which is superfluous given this is already mandated by federal law) … SB 810 effectively bans tobaccofree vaping flavors used by hundreds of thousands of Floridians as a reduced-risk alternative to cigarettes, which are more dangerous.”

Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, said: “This would have been disastrous not only for the 5,000-plus vapor-related jobs in Florida, but for the 800,000-plus adult vapers in Florida as well.

“There is a reason why big tobacco companies did not ask Gov. DeSantis to veto this bill. Every ban on flavored vaping products results in more deadly combustible cigarettes being sold.”

Law banning flavoured tobacco products, including flavoured e-liquids, will take effect from January 2021

“This legislation will save lives and prevent our young people from taking up the deadly and addictive habit of smoking.”

Vaping w

Words: Gordon Stribling

Visitors to our first VOXPO: Vape Live event will be familiar with Barehead E-Liquids. The brand picked up two awards: First place in the Best Dessert category and third place in the best beverage category.

Florian Vogel is the man behind one of the brashest brands in the business. Its rocky image is more than a marketing tactic.

But before we get to that, where did it all begin?

“Like most people who get into vaping, I was a heavy smoker. I smoked my first cigarette when I was nine and was smoking daily by age 11,” Florian says.

“I hadn’t planned to get into vaping as a way out of smoking. A friend of mine got an e-cigarette and I had a few drags and decided straight away that I wanted to get one as well. I was amazed how great it tasted.”

Flavours were a revelation for Florian. But he soon found himself in a situation that will be familiar to many readers who were vaping in 2014. Most of the flavour options were bland or unpalatable.

But he powered through with the limited options available at the time. And as one tobacco-free day turned into two and then three, he realised that this was it – he didn’t need cigarettes anymore, and he completely switched to vaping.

“I started mixing my first flavours in early 2015 and then founded the company in summer of 2015. “It was super exciting for me. I’d finished my studies and was applying for different jobs and working freelance doing graphic design. I’d been applying half-heartedly for ‘real jobs.’

“I played in bands as well over this time. My dream would have been to be in a touring band.”

So along with the benefits to his health, vaping provided Florian with a huge business opportunity. Premium e-liquids were hard to come by, so why not develop some flavours to help other smokers quit? “What worked for me was discovering new flavours. In Germany at this time we didn’t have many innovating flavours and certainly none the like important US or UK juices.”

Florian’s creative skills would be put to good use as he developed his brand. He has, he admits, something of a love/hate relationship with graphic design. He’s constantly changing something or

adding something new, so he finds that the work never stops.

Given his musical interests, it’ll come as no surprise that the brand’s rocky image comes from Florian. After playing in bands from age 14 to 26, he quit feeling frustrated for not ‘making it’ after having made lofty plans. A new phase of his life had begun with getting a job and he thought he was over it. But then, in summer he joined ‘super poppy’ metalcore band, VITJA.

“I’ve never considered myself a musician because I’m not the one who sits at home and plays an instrument. I’ve never been that way. I’m just doing it to go out, play shows in different cities and have a good time.”

The coronavirus has, of course, scuppered VITJA’s 2020 tour plans. Germany’s music industry has somewhat adapted since lockdown was eased, with some bands playing drive-in shows and others, small, seated events. But Florian is of the opinion that it would be better for the band to wait until things are closer to normal before returning to the stage.

But until then, it’s all-hands-on-deck at Barehead. “We’re super-close to launching new flavours for our two existing lines and then planning a new line which will hold a lot of flavours.

“Meanwhile, we are preparing for the new regulations next year and we may do some rebranding, too. “Basically, it’s all about staying on track and having everything ready for whatever happens next year.”

“What worked for me was discovering new flavours.”

Diary OF A VAPER

James Swann, Founder of South Coast Clouds

My Journey began in 2012 when my first vape mail arrived after I had seen an advert for a vaping company on TV. My wife was pregnant with our first child and my thoughts of not being able to do fun stuff with my kids because of potential health implications from smoking really concerned me.

My CE4 and stick battery soon arrived along with a selection of juices. I didn’t really get on with it at first and it took some time to get into the routine of vaping. There were days when messing around with coils or charging batteries became a massive hassle, but I kept on.

For two years or so I was still also smoking, although I had managed to cut down a lot, but I was finally able to quit after I bought a good quality subohm device and tank, which balanced flavour and cloud production. The flavour satisfaction allowed me to stop smoking entirely and I haven’t looked back since. I went on to collect a varied selection of mods/tanks/RDAs and my collection grows each month!

I also began making my own e-liquid from one-shots and swiftly moved on to begin dabbling in making my own blends. They didn’t always go right but that’s all part of the fun of DIY e-liquid mixing. If you’ve never tried it, you should. There are loads of great companies out there specifically tailored towards the DIY side of vaping with some brilliant guides available on their websites, too.

Since switching over to vaping, my health has improved dramatically. I can breathe more easily, I don’t have a continuous cough and I feel generally better in myself. I regularly go on five to 10 mile walks with my wife and kids and feel great about doing so.

The two things I’ve learned about the vaping industry are that there’s always something new to learn and there’s always something shiny and new to buy. I’ve made some great lifelong friends within this industry. I’ve attended some absolutely cracking events and expos, each with their own unique memories for me.

Since my journey began, I founded e-liquid company South Coast Clouds and since 2018, this has been the path I have been travelling. I hope this can continue for many years to come as I love this industry so much. I have also really got back into photography in the past few years and have been in the fortunate position to support brands with their social media campaigns, posting product photos predominantly through Instagram. I’ve had the chance to take photos for some brilliant companies who either support fantastic causes or just have outstanding flavours in their e-liquid line-ups.

Without a shadow of a doubt I can say that vaping has changed my life for the better in so many ways.

Featuring

AFTER FOUR FRUSTRATING YEARS OF PMTA PREPARATION… NOW THE WAITING BEGINS

Innevape has invested millions of dollars and four years into meeting FDA compliance

Words by Gordon Stribling

Innevape’s Jeff Connell is one of those glass-half-full, upbeat and personable kind of people who are always a pleasure to talk to. A 25-minute chat about his twin passions of vaping and music is guaranteed to raise one’s mood, even in these challenging, Covid-ravaged times.

But when we talk in mid-September, Jeff’s trademark enthusiasm is somewhat tempered by the frustrated resignation of a man who’s been grappling with the FDA’s PMTA process and the applications which should, theoretically, be approved by the FDA within a year.

“I have a saying which is: Until 2020 is over, I am not going to say, ‘oh, yeah, that’s how that works, I know that to be true. Because in 2020, all that’s gone out the window,” Jeff says.

“I don’t know what’s up and what’s down anymore. So, I just don’t know.”

What we do know is that Innevape has submitted applications for its 12 top-selling products including The Berg, Heisenberg, Berg Menthol, Carousel and Carousel Ice.

It’s been a long and expensive road which started way back in 2016 with the passing of the notorious deeming rule. Since then,

Innevape has been subjecting its products to extensive safety tests to support the applications.

“The real thing that most companies didn’t do, but we did was we started all of our clinical trials, because they’re requiring full sets of not only clinical testing but also in vitro testing, childproof testing, one-year stability testing, you know, the whole nine yards. “Right now, we’re looking at Heisenberg and Heisenberg Menthol, which is what we did first. We’re about $2 million into that.”

Innevape was one of many companies to descend on Washington DC days before the deadline. The United Vapers Alliance let it be known that if Congress and the FDA did nothing, millions of products that help smokers quit would be removed from the market. And, if that happened, their voices would be heard at the ballot box in the forthcoming election.

The FDA didn’t want to extend the deadline. However, Jeff says, a representative said that they would allow companies to submit incomplete applications without having completed clinical trials in order to speed up the process.

“Now, the PMTA is flooded. The most PMTAs they’ve ever had before was 33 at one time. And that’s when Snus came over here. So there’s over 200 million unique products registered right now. So even if 1 percent of those come through, you’re talking two million-plus applications, and they have no idea how they’re gonna get through that.”

YouTube music project, Quazzistellar. His return to music was the impetus for a surprise he’s lined up for his wife’s birthday. “Way back in the day, to win her over I wrote a song for her because that’s what I do. It was an acoustic love song straight out of my heart. But I never really fleshed it out and I never recorded it.

“But then recently she asked me to record it. But I thought it was embarrassing and too personal. And she’s like, ‘no, you’ve got to do it for me’.”

Jeff threw himself into the project with characteristic gusto. He locked himself in his studio for days, barely taking a break to eat, drink or vape. Now, Jeff is preparing to present his song to her and bring some much-needed light into a dark year.

“I’m taking her to this real nice resort down on South Beach that she loves to go to. And they’ve got this little private area, where they set up a table right on the beach and you’ve got 12 staff looking after you.

“They’re going to wheel out a big-screen television and I’m gonna take her hand, walk her out there with a blindfold on, remove the blindfold and say, ‘may I have this dance.’

“And then they’re going to put her video on, and I’m going to surprise her with a slow dance.”

For all the panic that led up to the deadline, Jeff has heard that the FDA is unlikely to conduct large-scale enforcement anytime soon. Vape shops and distributors of non-compliant products may be left untouched through 2021.

However, Jeff expects them to continue to ‘make it look like they’re doing something’ by sending warning letters to companies infringing intellectual property rights or products perceived to be targeted towards kids.

Like many people in the industry, Jeff believes that the PMTA process is about more than ‘cleaning up the industry.’

He says: “The US is too tied in with the lobbyists from Big Tobacco and Big Pharma. I think they still think that they can wipe out the independent side of the vape industry.

“They realise that vaping is not going anywhere, but they think that they can hold us down and regulate us out of existence so that only Altria, Philip Morris, and all the big boys can come in, and they can take the vape industry as just another section of their industry instead of giving a part of that up to a new guy on the block, which is the small vape companies.”

For all he has endured in the run-up to the deadline, Jeff is more grateful than ever to have music to help him channel his frustration. And by his own admission, he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Over the past few months, he’s really thrown himself into his

“If Congress and the FDA did nothing, millions of products that help smokers quit would be removed from the market.”

It’s no secret that Vapouround Magazine loves vaping events. Since launching in 2015, we have travelled the world, attending exhibitions and conferences in order to provide readers with the latest industry developments and help businesses reach new audiences.

We are always looking for new ways to inform and educate adult smokers about vaping and organising an online virtual expo was one such project we had in the pipeline.

When the coronavirus pandemic temporarily shut down the expo industry, we brought our plans forward and VOXPO Vape Live became a reality.

Our new virtual exhibition platform went live on July 31 with a three-day virtual expo which was open to the world via the internet. In fact, VOXPO is two expos in one – there are separate Vape Live and CBD Live halls within the virtual space.

The VOXPO platform is online 365 days a year and during that time, there are four three-day virtual expos which can be attended from your home, office or anywhere you have an internet connection.

The statistics for our first event were certainly impressive. From

a standing start we attracted:

• visitors from 82 countries

• 23,654 booth visits

• 14,809 document views and

• 10,300 video views

Our technical team worked hard to bring all the different elements together so that the talks (both live and pre-recorded) went out at the right times and that the interactive elements of the event all worked as they should.

We have always made it clear that VOXPO was never intended to replace live shows but to complement them. There is nothing quite like the atmosphere of a crowded vape expo but even before the pandemic, not everyone could get to them.

VOXPO allows companies to showcase their latest products to potential buyers – both trade and consumers – using the very latest developments in online technology to make this happen.

VOXPO has live chat, video chat, video streaming, booth customisation, direct access to sales teams and so much more.

We had a huge amount of interest in VOXPO from the day we announced it to the world. Within just a few short weeks we had more than 100 exhibitors booking their VOXPO slots and the dual Vape Live and CBD Liveformat went down really well.

The auditorium was another huge hit with attendees. We wanted VOXPO to be a platform for both networking and education. The auditorium played a central role in our plans, providing a virtual stage for expert speakers to pass their knowledge on to businesses and consumers.

We decided on a mix of live and pre-recorded content, in order to allow for real time engagement and concise information. In total, our auditorium was able to host 27 pieces of content over the first three-day live event. If you missed them they can all be viewed on demand via the VOXPO video vault.

With topics ranging from vaping and the media, to compliance and the future of the legal cannabis industry, we are proud of what we were able to produce, with many experts weighing in remotely across the world. For our next live event, we hope to produce even

more content for visitors to enjoy and we are very grateful that so many people took time from their busy schedules to provide so much valuable information for our VOXPO visitors.

We knew that a true live chat system would be essential to creating a virtual exhibition. During the first three-day live event, thousands of users from across the world visited virtual booths and talked with representatives from our exhibitors.

Of particular note was the B2B success of this functionality, with several exhibitors forming new business partnerships on the opening day.

Now as we gear up for the next live show, we hope to build on the success of the first show and can’t wait to welcome everyone to our second virtual event on November 18-20.

For full details check out voxpo.vfairs.com/vapouround-awards/

WORDS OFWisdom

VOXPO’s Vape Live event opened with a rousing media critique from Mo Hassan of Dr Vapes

Words: Gordon Stribling

The coronavirus pandemic has crippled one of the key elements of the vape industry’s infrastructure, at least for now. Expos generate millions for the industry each year and also provide an invaluable platform for education and advocacy. It is against this backdrop that Vapouround and The Cannavist brought forward our plans to launch VOXPO: the world’s biggest online vape and CBD event. Along with exhibitors from around the world, the Vape Live auditorium featured leading voices from the two industries, including Mo Hassan of Dr Vapes.

Mo is a friendly and familiar face on the expo circuit so it was great to have him opening the very first Vape Live three-day event.

Vaping and the media is a difficult topic to address, not least because vaping has been massively vilified over the past couple of years, especially with the American ‘teen vaping epidemic’ and EVALI outbreak.

Mo highlighted the conflict between the public health potential of e-cigarettes and the way the industry is portrayed in the media, especially in the US.

He explained that things had deteriorated further since the spate of deaths linked to black-market THC cartridges last year.

Mo said: “Not all states have legalised cannabis and obviously for anything that’s illegal there is a black market and consumers went to that black market to buy THC cartridges. “As we know, people in black markets are likely to cut corners to maximise profits. So what some of these companies did was replace the most expensive ingredient with vitamin E acetate which should never be vaped.”

The link between black market THC cartridges and EVALI is well established and has even been acknowledged by the CDC. However, the ‘vaping is harmful’ narrative continues to play out in the media.

Rather than ignorance on behalf of journalists, Mo suggested that misleading articles were part of a wider agenda, where the media, and to a greater extent, the tobacco industry, come out on top.

Incendiary stories sell newspapers, so whether directly or indirectly, Mo believes that some unethical journalists are profiting from the panic. He said: “Tobacco companies used to be able to market their products on television and in newspapers with cowboys smoking cigarettes to make them look cool, but since tobacco advertising has been banned, where has that marketing budget gone? Every company has one.”

Mo said that America’s flavour bans will wipe out Big Tobacco’s competition, sending vapers back to smoking and generating huge tax revenue.

Thankfully, the UK has a much more positive approach to vaping.

“In the UK, healthcare is free to the citizens and the NHS actually spends more money treating smoking-related illnesses than it profits from smoking. And this is reflected in their media campaigns.

“It’s a sad truth that vaping is viewed in a negative way in some parts of the world due to the finances.”

Mo also had some great ideas about how we can move forwards in a positive way, saying: “Let’s support organisations such as the UKVIA and the IBVTA that are out there spreading the amazing truth about vaping and its benefits and share case studies and campaigns to increase exposure.

“There are a lot of YouTubers out there who comment on these subjects. They have put their heart, soul, sweat and tears into it too because it means something to us.”

WHO WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPEAK AT THE NEXT VAPE LIVE EVENT?

“

Let’s support organisations such as the UKVIA and the IBVTA that are out there spreading the amazing truth about vaping.

“

THEY WON’T MAKE IT EASY

The EU’s hard-won Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) is under threat from anti-vaping groups, misinformation and Bloomberg-funded lobbyists.

That was the takeaway from the VOXPO: Vape Live talk, ‘TPD Review: Opportunity or Catastrophe’, with Counterfactual and former ASH director Clive Bates and New Nicotine Alliance (NNA) chair, Martin Cullip. Now that the UK has left the EU we will not be obliged to adopt the third iteration of the TPD (TPD3) which is due to be completed by May 28, 2021.

However, the government may choose to continue following the EU framework to stay in alignment with our EU neighbours for ease of trade and to save money drawing up new regulations.

Clive said: “To me this is all threat. I don’t see any of the bad measures [such as bottle size] being rolled back. I’d like to be proven wrong. But I see it as all downside, particularly a risk to flavours and a risk to products requiring authorisation or flavours requiring authorisation.”

Clive expressed his fear that the new TPD may include a ‘whitelist’ of allowed ingredients with everything else

prohibited by default. This, he said, would impose an extra burden on smaller businesses and make it harder to justify the use of open systems - a situation not a million miles from the US PMTA process.

He said: “The Commission has been contaminated with the same kind of thinking that the WHO has picked up, a lot of the garbage that comes across the Atlantic from the United States, the youth vaping epidemic and the moral panic about flavours.

“Some of that is beginning to affect the way Europeans are thinking about this. So, I don’t see any good at all coming out of this.”

Public health in the UK has largely been supportive of vaping as a harm reduction measure, with the Royal College of Physicians’ ‘95 percent less harmful’ statistics underpinning the public health argument.

But Clive believes that we shouldn’t rely on the Department of Health or other public health bodies to stand up for vaping here. Instead, we should be fighting for the cause at EU level as the impact of TPD3 will be felt across the world.

He said: “I would not be complacent about this. You’ve

Former ASH director Clive Bates aired his fears about ‘TPD3’

Words: Gordon Stribling

got a huge superpower on the doorstep. If it’s going to go negative on vaping, it’s going to affect the whole world, and the whole region, including the UK.

“It’s our fight in the UK, not just for international reasons, though, it is that as well, but also for UK reasons.”

Some readers may recall what happened in 2013, when vapers and harm reduction advocates successfully overturned the European Commission proposal to medicalise e-cigarette regulations.

Clive said that given how anti-vaping the narrative has become, the struggle will be greater this time around and advised vapers to support advocacy groups such as the NNA.

He said: “I expect the lobbying to be better organised. It’s been going on longer, there have already been meetings such as the European Conference on Tobacco or Health which was attended by European Commission officials who made sort of anti-vaping speeches and groups like the European Respiratory Society.”

Clive is especially concerned by the ‘massive onslaught of Bloomberg-funded groups’ who have ‘tonnes of money’ and a more coherent agenda this time.

He said: “They’ve got the youth vaping ‘epidemic’ with flavours seen as an industry plot to hook young people on nicotine to catch them as customers. So the nicotine agenda is much stronger than it was and the flavours agenda much stronger than it was and they are better organised in this world, with more money.”

To me this is all threat. I don’t see any of the bad measures being rolled back.

“ “

A HARD bargain

If it could be said that there have been any winners in the ongoing battle against COVID-19, New Zealand surely comes out on top. Early lockdown, border closures and lots of testing meant that the tiny nation was declared Covidfree in early June.

With only 25 deaths recorded at time of writing, New Zealand life is now much like it was prelockdown, much to the envy of the rest of the western world.

This science-led approach has won Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern plenty of fans. But the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Vaping) Amendment Bill, which is now law and comes into force in November, has proven much more divisive - albeit not to the degree of Australia’s under-fire nicotine import ban.

The bill has four main objectives: The first is the introduction of the category ‘regulated product’, which encompasses tobacco products, vaping products and herbal products. This new category will enable new products to be brought under regulatory control without having to amend the act.

The second aims to ‘minimise the risk of initiation of nicotine use by non-smokers (particularly children and young people).’

The third aims to encourage smokers unable

to quit cold-turkey or with nicotine-replacement therapy to switch to less harmful alternatives such as e-cigarettes.

The final objective is to ensure that safety requirements are provided, such as nicotine warnings.

Until recently, the government took a fairly hands-off approach to vaping. It acknowledged the harm-reduction potential of e-cigarettes, much like the UK, but didn’t have an appropriate regulatory framework like the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) to draw from.

But, in an all-too-familiar narrative, fears about youth vaping habits have changed the game and triggered the new legislation.

It will come as no surprise that flavour restrictions are a key focus of the bill. The government’s approach resembles that of regulations that have been in force in Ontario, Canada, since July 1.

From November, vapers and speculative smokers will have to visit specialist vape shops if they wish to access the full range of flavours. While this is a win for vape shops, customers relying on convenience stores, online-only shops and traditional tobacco retailers will only be able to purchase tobacco, mint and menthol flavours.

The New Zealand Association of Convenience

New Zealand’s new vaping regulations are all about compromise

Words: Gordon Stribling

Stores (NZACS) submitted its recommendations to the Health Select Committee in June. More than 1,000 members signed.

Executive Director, Dave Hooker, issued a press release on July 7, stating that members felt that they had been ignored and shut out from the process.

“It makes no sense that retailers of tobacco will no longer be able to successfully convert smokers to vaping, and worse, small towns and provincial communities without access to specialist vaping stores will lose access to vaping flavours entirely, which risks losing people back to cigarettes.

“This unnecessary ban on vaping flavours, which for convenience stores consist mainly of vanilla, berry and mango will deal a devastating blow in excess of a 40 percent loss of sales.

“This will hit small business owners in the pocket, impact their viability to remain open, and comes at the worst possible time straight off the back of the COVID-19 lockdown.”

To further reduce youth appeal to products, the bill extends the current restrictions on tobacco advertising and promotion to vape products. This includesv standardised packaging, a requirement that could prove a challenge for established brands wishing to market within the country.

Parliament has acknowledged the potential for e-cigarettes to contribute to the country achieving its goal of being smoke-free by 2025.

The bill’s accompanying cabinet paper stated: “While many people want to quit smoking, it can be very hard to do so, particularly for those who face complex challenges in their lives. Some people feel that smoking is their only pleasure, even if they want to quit, and need support beyond ‘quit smoking’ interventions.”

However, along with the flavour restrictions, the law goes beyond the

scope of the TPD in prohibiting vaping in areas where smoking is banned.

This will be a tough pill to swallow, not only for those who maintain that second-hand vapour is close to harmless, but also smokers who may have been drawn to vaping because it would allow them to consume nicotine more freely.

But while some vapers will be unhappy with this and the flavour restrictions, it’s just another compromise that they will have to adjust to - one that Australians would almost certainly be happy to accept in favour of their harsh regulations.

IS IRELAND POISED TO IMPOSE NEW VAPE TAXES?

The new cabinet is led by Taoiseach Micheál Martin who wants to “discourage and denormalise” adult vaping.

Words: Caroline Barry

Irish politics has seen a historic first this year, with the formation of a coalition government between opposition parties Fianna Fáil (FF) and Fine Gael (FG) and the introduction of a ‘rotating’ Taoiseach (Prime Minister) position.

Leo Varadkar (FG) has now been replaced with Micheál Martin (FG) until December 15, 2022, when the position will return to Varadkar.

What could this mean for Irish vapers?

Earlier this year, Martin caused concern when he was asked to outline his position on vaping. Speaking in Dublin, he stated that he would support measures being taken to ‘discourage and denormalise’ vaping among adults.

The politician appeared concerned that there were not more checks being done to ensure that vaping was safe. He added that it was ‘extraordinary that vaping just arrived on the market with no health checks and with no assessment as to the potential harm it could do.’

Martin went on to say:

“We are not sure what impact it would have on the lungs in the future. I find that scary. It’s growing exponentially among young people, and that’s a big worry that I would have.

“We need to do what we did with tobacco and denormalise it.”

Martin is credited with being one of the first health ministers

to introduce a workplace smoking ban, in 2004.

The Irish Vape Vendors Association (IVVA) acknowledged the work Martin has done to reduce smoking harm. However, the organisation is concerned that he remains unwilling to embrace e-cigarettes as a public health measure.

Declan Connolly, Director of the IVVA said:

“In correspondence that IVVA has received from Micheál Martin prior to the General Election earlier this year, he states that he wishes to ban the sale of vaping products to under 18s, prohibit the use of flavours and ultimately wishes to see both a tobacco and e-cigarette-free society.

“He does not consider products that result in a reduction of nicotine addiction as being worthy of encouragement and does not see vaping as being conducive to public health.”

Minister for Health, Simon Harris (FG) will be replaced with Stephen Donnolly (FG).

Pre-election, Harris expressed his support of US flavour bans over Twitter. The minister said that he would bring forward legislation this year that would take into account what the US had done and that he would work alongside the Irish Cancer Society and the Irish Heart Foundation.

The Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill 2019 will now fall to Donnelly to implement.

A draft version of new government policies titled, ‘Our Shared Futures’ released in June, reveals vague promises to increase taxes on vaping and tobacco.

Tobacco and nicotine are mentioned in a section on Slaintécare’, the new Irish healthcare system.

Policies outlined in the document include moves to:

• Bring in a targeted taxation regime to specifically discourage vaping and e-cigarettes.

• Ban the sale of nicotine-inhaling products, including e-cigarettes, to people under 18 years, introduce a licensing system for the retail sale of nicotine-inhaling products and restrict the types of retailers who can sell these products

• Curb the advertising of nicotine-inhaling products near schools, on public transport and in cinemas. The wording is vague in relation to how much of an increase vapers can expect to see, nor does the document mention flavour bans.

Tax increases attached to cigarettes have been sharp in previous budgets, with a box of 20 cigarettes increasing €2 in three years to €13.50.

Ireland is now one of the most expensive places in the world to be a smoker.

Introduction of such a ‘sin tax’ would actively discourage smokers from switching to the much safer vaping alternative.

The IVVA’s Declan Connolly expressed concern that the introduction of a high tax could discourage smokers from seeking safer alternatives and has called on the health minister to release more details.

He said: “The main issue we have with the above is the introduction of a targeted taxation regime to discourage vaping.

“Introduction of such a ‘sin tax’ would have the adverse effect of actively discouraging smokers from switching from smoking to the much safer vaping alternative.

“The IVVA has written to Donnelly outlining the significant potential that vaping offers to improve public health and save the taxpayer money whilst at the same time providing employment and tax monies to the exchequer.”

Stephen Donnelly did not respond to our request for comment at the time of publication.

“

HOW TO WIN LIKES AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE

Words: Caroline Barry

Social media platforms announced big changes for vape content towards the end of 2019 as Facebook and Instagram tightened their rules about what influencers could show on their channels.

A small mention of the new ‘no vaping’ policy was added to a memo on how they would help content creators to increase their audiences in 2020. The memo read: “Branded content that promotes goods such as vaping, tobacco products and weapons will not be allowed. Our advertising policies have long prohibited the advertisement of these products, and we will begin enforcement on this in the coming weeks.”

Online trends change fast and already influencers are turning to newer platforms such as Twitch or TikTok which have even stricter restrictions. Earlier this year, panic over the new regulations meant

influencers were increasingly worried about what this could mean for their channels. However, little seems to have actually changed when it comes to the content they produce.

Birmingham vape influencer Elijah (@Edripss) has a following of 24.9k on Instagram and 72.4k on TikTok.

He said: “I’ve mainly been focused on Instagram. “However in recent months I’ve begun taking my videos over to TikTok. They’ve been a lot more strict on what I can post there, due to their tight community guidelines. But so far, I’ve been able to post what I want.”

He adds that he did see changes at the end of last year on his channels but it was soon back to being business as usual. “The changes that Facebook introduced did not directly affect the content I produced almost at all. There was a period of time

With Instagram, I can get a maximum of 30 to 40 likes whereas with TikTok, I can have up to 1 million views

Has the crackdown on vaping on social media made a difference nine months on?

where vaping content wasn’t being pushed out as much, but that seems to have levelled out. My audience engagement fluctuates quite a bit depending on the type of content I create.”

Martin (@martin_vapes19) says he gets better interaction on TikTok but content needs to be posted with warnings to avoid shadow bans where audiences cannot access a page. The bans are imposed if the platform thinks that a content creator has broken the rules.

Martin said: “On Instagram I can post vaping videos and promote vaping brands. TikTok is the same, however some vaping-related content can’t be allowed without a warning and there’s always a risk of a shadow ban without one. With Instagram, I can get a maximum of 30 to 40 likes whereas with TikTok, I can have up to 1 million views.”

All platforms have different official guidelines as to what is and isn’t allowed on channels.

Facebook said in relation to their platforms: “We don’t allow adverts that promote the sale or use of tobacco or tobacco-related products which includes vaporiser devices and electronic cigarettes. We’ve updated our policies to include clearer rules for promotion of certain types of restricted goods to bring them in line with our ad polices. Branded content that promotes goods such as vaping and tobacco products is not allowed.”

YouTube is another platform popular with vapers looking to learn new tricks.

A spokesperson said: “We remove content that intends to sell or provides links to sites that sell vaping products, but we allow for discussion or display of activities that while dangerous, don’t have an inherent risk of serious injury or death. We age gate content that features use or display of controlled substances. Many creators today voluntarily age restrict their content.”

The restrictions have not affected brands looking to work with influencers either. Martin is sponsored by Aquavape who send him free products. He is now, he says, a ‘proud brand ambassador.’

Elijah has also worked with companies. He said: “I’m always open to working with brands. There’s a healthy mix who reach out to me and some I try to contact. I tend to only work with those I have personally tried and can recommend to others or if I feel the product is something my audience would like to see.”

If content isn’t an issue, what do influencers hope to see with vaping channels?

Elijah hopes that the community of vapers will start to return to social media.

“I joined the vaping and tricking scene late. There used to be a lot of close communities of trickers, coil builders, mech enthusiasts and more,” he said.

“There are still lots around but it’s not as active. You don’t see many tricking or cloud competitions going on, which I feel social media could be a real home for. I’d like to see some of that come back.”

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SUPPORTING A GREENER FUTURE

The vape businesses doing their bit for the green recovery

Words: Caroline Barry

In June, the UK government announced its £40 million Green Recovery Challenge Fund. The fund aims to create thousands of jobs to support the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was followed by the news that the government would be investing £3bn improving energy efficiency over the next year.

Some critics have argued that the investment does not go far enough. But with or without government support, some enterprising vape companies are doing their bit to support a greener future.

James Eichner and Ron Basak-Smith run Sana Packaging, a company that produces vape pen packaging as well as packaging for the CBD and cannabis industries. Customers can choose between 100 percent plant-based material or reclaimed ocean plastic. The company partnered with Oceanworks, a recycled ocean plastic company to search the ocean for the plastic which they then transform into packaging.

James said: “When we were starting out and it came to cannabis legislation, we saw some of the negative areas caused by the industry. Some were on the cultivation side but we saw a lot being done to combat this problem.

“Other areas we saw were the packaging waste that was being created so we set off to address that one problem.”

He added: “We offer our product primarily in white. The main reason is that white has the most value on the secondary market which means the highest chance of being recycled because it can be dyed any colour.”

While the company is based in Denver, the problem of plastic pollution is just as relevant closer to home, where plastic makes up 75 percent of marine litter on UK beaches. While we are turning away from disposable products and focusing more on refills and reusing, there are still a lot of throwaway products on the market, from devices to e-liquid bottles. Bidi Vapor is based in Florida. The pod company has started a unique

recycling model called Bidi Cares which is aimed at getting people to return their old devices to be responsibly recycled. Bidi Vapor offers a free Bidi Stick to anyone who uses the scheme.

Niraj Patel, CEO and president of Bidi Vapor, said: “Because cartridges and many e-cigarettes are disposable, the vaping industry in particular should prioritise sustainability and recycling.

“More than that, people who vape are also concerned about the environment.

“To prevent leaching and promote maximum freshness, we use only glass bottles and keep the dropper off until it is ready to vape.

“In the EU where only plastic is permitted, we do use plastic 10ml bottles but the shelf life is much less than our glass bottles.”

SMOKO, a vaping company in Tunbridge Wells has revealed its strategy for going carbon neutral while supporting biodiversity around the world.

participate in Bidi Cares as word spreads.”

“We

Kind Juice focuses on making a different kind of e-liquid. The company offers a glass bottle that resembles a CBD tincture rather than a vape liquid but it also has an all-natural approach to ingredients.

The glass bottles can be easily cleaned and then recycled. The use of glass in this country is restricted. However, this could change when new vape regulations are drawn up in a post-Brexit UK.

Jonathon Sieling from Kind Juice explained: “Our liquids come in glass bottles with a sealed top and a glass dropper cap on the side. It is always best practice to keep natural and organic products exclusively in glass.

It has teamed up with Ecologi to support carbon offsetting programs that protect the Amazon rainforest in Peru and Brazil. It is also supporting a solar power project in India, a landfill gas capture project in Thailand and a wind farm in Turkey.

The partnership has also helped to plant 10,500 trees which will offset more than 3,100 tonnes of carbon in years to come which is the equivalent of removing almost eight million car journeys. Meanwhile, SMOKO gets its electricity from 100 percent renewable sources, runs a recycling program and uses completely recyclable packaging.

SMOKO co-founder, Mike Cameron said: “While we have hit these impressive milestones with our customers’ help, we wanted to ensure we are doing everything we can to reduce our company’s impact on the world around us. So, we have taken a look at our environmental footprint and CO2 emissions.

“For 2019, we overestimated our footprint to be approximately 62.5 tonnes of CO2, but becoming carbon neutral didn’t feel like we were doing enough.

“So, we have committed to offsetting 246 tonnes (that’s about four times our annual carbon footprint) of CO2 for 2019 and will continue to offset our footprint in the years to come.”

“Small towns and provincial communities without access to specialist vaping stores will lose access to vaping flavours entirely”

believe people will want to

Vapouround Awards Event Manager Abida Razaque said the decision to go virtual this year was difficult but public safety came first.

She said: “The Vapouround Awards ceremony is one of the most iconic and anticipated events in the vaping calendar every year. The awards celebrate and recognise the very best in the global vaping industry with many of the biggest brands and influencers all under one roof.

“But in light of the current epidemic and closely following the advice of the World Health Organization, Public Health England, the NHS and GOV.UK, our main priority is the safety of our guests. So, we decided to change the format and host the event on the VOXPO platform and we are looking forward to another great evening.

“The Vapouround Awards promise to celebrate another monumental year for the global vape industry. This year, everyone is invited to watch us present the virtual awards as we also mark five years in business.

“We will also present a new prestigious award, ‘Vapouround Hall of Fame’, for the very first time. So, it will be exciting to reveal and induct our first recipient this year.”

The ceremony will follow our remarkable five-year journey and feature some special guests along the way. But it wouldn’t be a virtual event without a Zoom call involved, so we will connect with nominees, winners and their acceptance speeches and a variety of well-known guests from the industry.

How the awards work:

This year the awards are divided into two categories – Readers’ Awards and The Vapouround Awards. The Readers’ Awards will be voted online by the public while the Vapouround Awards will be judged by us. Companies will still need to enter the e-liquid and hardware categories (there is a fee to enter) but no physical products need be submitted and the winning entries will be decided by a public vote.

For full details on how to enter, vote and attend the Vapouround Awards 2020 visit our website: voxpo-event.com/vapouround-awards/

StudyBACKS VAPING FOR PUBLIC HEALTH

Juul may have led to a 400 million drop in Canadian cigarette sales

Words: Gordon Stribling

Long-time readers will remember a period when pod giant Juul was a regular fixture in these pages. Barely a day went by without the company hitting the headlines. But since America’s controversial flavoured pod ban took effect in February, the company has slipped out of public view.

But now, a new study has revealed that the much-maligned brand may have had a significant impact on another North American tobacco market: Canada.

Canada’s Tobacco and Vaping Products Act (TVPA) was introduced in 2018 to much fanfare. It was heralded for getting the balance right between encouraging smokers to switch and deterring young people from using vape products.

However, America’s so-called youth vaping epidemic had politicians fearing a youth vaping spike of its own, with gas station pods like Juul blamed once more.

The new study, presented virtually at the AcademyHealth 2020 Annual Research Meeting, revealed that within the first 12 months of being entered onto the Canadian market, JUUL likely led to a 1.5 percent reduction in cigarette sales in one large retail chain. This would equate to more than 400 million fewer cigarette sales nationally.

Meanwhile, for every one percent increase in Juul’s store-level market share, there was a 0.5 percent reduction in cigarette sales.

Rasmus Wissmann, Vice President of Data at Juul Labs, said: "This work provides strong evidence that the availability of vaping products could reduce cigarette sales and suggests that providing alternative nicotine products to adult smokers could drive down combustible cigarette consumption.

“Further research is needed to determine the long-term impact of vapor products on cigarette sales, and the net population health impact of such products."

Juul will need to provide evidence of a public health benefit if it is to remain on the US market.

From September 9, all vape products, from liquids to mods, will require a completed Premarket Tobacco product Application (PMTA) to be authorised for sale in the US.

Juul Labs has built a ‘comprehensive research program’ which examines the public health impact of its products. The research analyses the impact on individual users, the product’s ability to convert adult smokers to vaping and the impact on wider public health.

The PMTA process will be prohibitively expensive for many independent vape companies, with some critics arguing that it puts Big Tobacco brands, including Juul of which Marlboro-maker Altria owns an 35 percent stake, at a significant advantage.

PMTA applications are confidential and only a handful of companies have publicly stated that they intend to follow the process.

British American Tobacco (BAT) Reynolds American has confirmed that it has submitted multiple applications for its VUSE vape products.

The company said that its application contained more than 150,000 pages of research and data.

The company said: “For adult tobacco consumers seeking an alternative source of nicotine, having FDA oversight of e-cigarette products is an important step to ensure those alternatives meet strict regulatory scrutiny.”

Vaporesso announced its intention to seek regulatory approval back in July. In a brief video published on its YouTube channel, the company said: “We have invested the most in the PMTA and gathered a professional team to do it right, to enhance long-term partnerships and to bring high-quality vaping experiences through our products.”

While the FDA had not announced when it would begin enforcement

of the PMTA regulations at the time of print, its recent actions paint a concerning picture for companies lacking the capital to follow the expensive process. In July, the regulator sent a batch of warning letters to the manufacturers of prohibited flavoured pod products, including Cool Clouds Distribution Inc, better-known as Puff Bar. FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn said: “The FDA continues to prioritize enforcement against e-cigarette products, specifically those most appealing and accessible to youth.

“We are concerned about the popularity of these products among youth and want to make clear to all tobacco product manufacturers and retailers that, even during the ongoing pandemic, the FDA is keeping a close watch on the marketplace and will hold companies accountable.”

“This study suggests that providing alternative nicotine products to adult smokers could drive down combustible cigarette consumption.”

Known worldwide for it’s unique one of a kind flavor. The Berg is consistantly the topseller in almost every vape store. Also available in Menthol version.

Known worldwide for it’s unique one of a kind flavor. The Berg is consistantly the topseller in almost every vape store. Also available in Menthol version.

A cotton candy mystery eliquid like no other.

A cotton candy mystery eliquid like no other.

A cotton candy mystery eliquid with an icey cool touch. A delectable strawberry cheesecake bite finished off with the perfect golden graham cracker crust. Blue Razzleberry “Rock Candy” eliquid.

A cotton candy mystery eliquid with an icey cool touch. A delectable strawberry cheesecake bite finished off with the perfect golden graham cracker crust. Blue Razzleberry “Rock Candy” eliquid.

NETFLIX AND… VAPE.

As smoking is falling out of favour with our favourite shows, TV is increasingly turning to vaping instead. Some shows are willing to show e-cigarettes in a positive light but others seem to go out of their way to be as negative as possible.

For a while, Netflix appeared to love vaping. In stark contrast to the decision made by Disney to eliminate all smoking and vaping references in their movies and TV content, Netflix programmes featured very positive mentions of vaping. Even their Broken episode which claimed to examine the vaping industry mainly focused on JUUL lawsuits instead.

Netflix has confirmed that its shows with the rating of TV-14 will now exclude cigarettes and e-cigarettes with the exception of ‘reasons of historical or factual accuracy.’

“Netflix strongly supports artistic expression,” it said in a statement. “We recognise that smoking is harmful and

Words: Caroline Barry

when portrayed positively on screen can adversely influence young people.”

Cheer

Cheer was a surprise success for Netflix after viewers became hooked on the documentary series about competitive cheerleading. Lexi was one of the featured athletes who is regularly seen vaping throughout the episodes. A fan asked her on Instagram why she vaped so much in the show. She replied: “I wish I knew. I did not expect them to make me look like I’m heavily addicted to vaping because I’m really not.” It’s a positive look at athletes using e-cigarettes.

Pure

Scottish series Pure features Marnie who moves to London to escape the intrusive sexual thoughts caused by her OCD. While she doesn’t vape, her intimidating editor at the publication she interns for does. In fact, she is never seen on screen without a mod in her hand. Sadly, Pure won’t be

returning for a second series.

Tiger King: Episode 5

Vape fans were conflicted about the appearance of e-cigarettes being used by Tiger King Joe’s presidential campaign manager, Josh Dial. Some felt that Netflix deliberately featured him coughing and wheezing as he vapes in Episode 5 which was not the representation vapers hoped for.

Grey’s Anatomy. ‘A hard pill to swallow.’ Season 16, Episode 11.

Grey’s Anatomy has the distinction of being the longestrunning medical drama, surpassing ER with 16 seasons. While they have tackled some of the more unusual incidents, in season 16, they decided to feature vaping.

A teenage boy is admitted to the hospital after he coughs up blood and X-ray scans reveal that he has the lungs of a lifelong smoker. It is later revealed that he has been vaping but outraged vapers labelled the portrayal of e-cigarettes in this episode as ‘lazy’ and ‘dangerous.’

House of Cards S02 E02

Whatever you think about Kevin Spacey’s personal life, his on-screen portrayal of Frank Underwood made this one of the most popular shows of 2014.

In season two, Frank’s wife, Claire asks him to quit smoking as it doesn’t suit his political image. She later catches him vaping. “You’re cheating!’ she says. He replies: “No I’m not. It’s vapour. You should try it. Its addiction without the consequences.”

Vapers online discussed what device Spacey had and it has been decided it was likely to be a blu e-cigarette. While the mention was regarded as positive, both characters eventually resort back to cigarettes.

True Detective S02

E-cigarettes featured prominently in the second season. Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell) admits that his partner Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams) suits vaping. “You pull off that e-cig,” he says. “Not many people do.”

Season three has a loose link to vaping. Stephen Dorff appears in season three. Dorff was the spokesperson for blu e-cigarettes in America in 2013. He said he quit a 20 year smoking habit by switching to e-cigaretttes. “We’re all adults here. It’s time we take our freedom back,” he tells the camera.

South Park S22 E4 ‘Tegridy Farms’

Nothing escapes the South Park treatment and vaping is no different. Butters decides to become a vape ‘dealer’ supplying flavours to the kids. The show also parodies the cannabis community as Randy refuses to sell his farm to a vape company. The reception to the episode was positive with vapers happy to see the show not focusing on JUUL products.

SA, OK

South African vapers celebrate as sales ban is lifted

Words: Gordon Stribling

On August 17, South Africa lifted its controversial tobacco and vape sales ban brought in to reduce the spread of coronavirus. Long queues formed outside shops around the country as patrons could finally stock up on tobacco products and alcohol following a decline in coronavirus cases.

The impact of tobacco on the severity of COVID-19 symptoms remains a highly contentious issue, albeit one that has been sidelined as nations emerge out of lockdown.

But in a country where a fifth of the adult population smoke, the ban on vape products could have done further harm to the respiratory health of smokers and on the wellbeing of a fledgling industry.

Industry advocacy group Vapour Product Association (VPASA) said in a statement: “The ban on tobacco and related products has likely also forced people who previously used vaping as a less harmful alternative to smoking, to return to cigarettes.

“It is common knowledge that illicit cigarettes have been widely available in South Africa during the lockdown.

“We hope that the lifting of the ban will drive not only economic recovery but also open the way for more smokers to again choose less harmful products.”

A video circulated on social media recently revealed the tricks some illegal cigarette sellers were using to make a profit during lockdown.

Police officers opened a plastic-wrapped carton of cigarettes only to reveal that the tobacco inside had been replaced with what looked like chipboard.

Meanwhile, illegal trade with neighbouring Zimbabwe boomed despite South Africa erecting a 25-mile fence across the border to curb the spread of coronavirus.

The cigarettes were sold from people’s homes with sales orchestrated over WhatsApp.

Health groups are now pushing for a bill that would formally regulate the vape industry and reduce the harms associated with tobacco use in the wider community.

National Council Against Smoking (NCAS) director Savera Kalideen said that the passage of the Control of Tobacco and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill would be of significant public health benefit. She argued that the bill will help safeguard the health of the majority of the population who do not smoke or vape, particularly as the vape industry currently operates in a ‘legislative vacuum’.

Kalideen said: “The bill is even more critical with the coronavirus pandemic still claiming lives – yet, it has stalled since published for public comments from May to August 2018.

“We call on the minister of health to urgently expedite passage of the bill to protect public health and reduce the burden on the public health system.”

Meanwhile, Public Health Policy and Development consultant Zanele Mthembu said that the passing of the bill would help ready the nation for the National Health Insurance system. The controversial medical overhaul aims to achieve universal healthcare to address significant health inequalities.

Mthembu said: “The health of our nation is key to building a thriving society.

“We implore our government to move to the next stage and process the Tobacco Control Bill to ensure proper regulation of the tobacco industry and the protection of the health of the nation, primarily the children.”

The tobacco industry is continuing to fight the government for introducing the lockdown sales ban that British American Tobacco South Africa (BATSA) called “bizarre and irregular.”

BATSA claims that South Africa lost $36m in taxes for every day that tobacco sales were banned.

The Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association (FITA) which represents 80 percent of tobacco manufacturing in South Africa is now seeking an order prohibiting the government from banning tobacco sales again, should the nation go back into lockdown.

FITA believes that minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma did not have the authority to ban tobacco sales under the Disaster Management Act.

FITAs president, Sinhlenhle Mnguni, said: “Medical evidence does not support the minister’s decision to ban tobacco products.”

“Bans like the current one in SA will drive many vapers back to smoking”

Germany has announced a ban on tobacco advertising which will eventually include e-cigarettes.

Tobacco companies will only be able to advertise their products in exceptional cases after a bill banning outdoor advertising was passed through the federal parliament (Bundestag.)

The bill was backed by conservative politicians and is due to be ratified after the summer. This is the second time that the country has proposed an advertising ban.

Billboards, posters and outdoor advertising spaces can no longer advertise tobacco products. The ban will also extend to cinemas if the film is not rated 18. It limits advertising to specialist tobacco stores only and further bans the distribution of free samples outside of these stores. There is no confirmation yet as to whether this will apply to free e-liquid samples.

The ban will be gradually introduced, with tobacco advertisements the first to go on January 1, 2022. Heated tobacco product ads will follow on January 1, 2023 and then e-cigarette adverts will be banned from January 1, 2024.

The Federal Government Drug Commissioner, Daniela Ludwig tweeted her support for the bill: “It’s not about banning smoking. It’s your own responsibility but its about banning advertising for a product that kills.”

The tweet was quickly attacked by vapers critical of the government’s slow response in recognising the harm reduction potential of e-cigarettes.

@TheRonRun said: “The e-cigarette is a real alternative for me to my traditional, age-old tobacco use. I am thankful that I have been informed about this alternative. I’m saving money and looking after my health. It’s a way to give up. Thank goodness for the adverts”

The German government is one of the last in Europe to implement tobacco advertising laws. The UK began implementing bans in 2003 under the Tobacco Advertising and Promotions Act, which has continued to be updated as recently as 2015, when plain packaging for cigarettes was introduced.

A number of doctors have voiced support for the 2020 version of the bill, along with the German Medical Association.

When the proposals were announced in 2019 Klaus Reinhardt, the head of the German Medical Association said it was "high time we protected

young people from picking up smoking and the serious health risks associated with it."

Philip Morris Deutschland GmbH was unsurprisingly critical about the inclusion of vaping in the advertising ban, which managing director Claudia Oeking called a ‘missed opportunity’ for more education into new products that could help smokers to quit.

Oeking said: “There has been a fundamental change in the tobacco market for some years now. E-cigarettes [and other harm reduction products] offer adult smokers a low-pollutant alternative to conventional cigarettes.”

A study by the Heinreich Heine University in Dusseldorf has shown that more than half of the German population supports a ban on e-cigarette advertising, including 43 percent of current vapers.

Bündnis Für Tabakfreien Genuss (BfTG), a Germany pro-vaping association, said that there had been a 40 percent increase in vaping in Germany in 2018. The group estimates that as many as 90 percent of the two million Germans who vape are ex-smokers who switched to vaping to help themselves quit.

Of those who still both smoke and vape, 96 percent recorded a significant reduction in their tobacco consumption.

Dustin Dahlmann, Chairman of the BfTG said: “Already in the last hearing on the draft law, we had to listen to several experts who ignored the scientific facts about the e-cigarette industry completely. The issues of harm reduction and successful tobacco cessation with the less harmful alternatives were either doubted or ignored.”

Dahlmann added: “The legislator equates [vaping] with the much more harmful tobacco and thus cements the market. Smokers remain smokers and the tobacco industry is the only winner.”

“Smokers remain smokers and the tobacco industry is the only winner”

BELGIUM GOES BACK TO TABAC

Online sales ban may have led to thousands of relapses during lockdown

Words: Caroline Barry

European vapers are pretty fortunate compared to their North American counterparts. The Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) has provided a framework that encourages smokers to switch while prohibiting the high-nicotine e-liquids that have been implicated in the comparatively high youth vaping rate in the US.

Nonetheless, national governments have the freedom to enforce their own restrictions. Now, it looks like Belgium’s sales restrictions may have had disastrous unintended consequences during the pandemic.

A survey, conducted by the University of Louvain titled ‘Vaping during the Covid-19 lockdown period in Belgium’ found that 14 percent of respondents reverted back to smoking during lockdown. Vape shops were prohibited from opening during lockdown and Belgium has a ban on distance selling vaping products, which meant that vapers could not place orders online.

Ipsos data for the Cancer Foundation in Belgium recorded 389,500 vapers in 2019. Based on this number, the researchers estimate that nearly 55,000 vapers could have reverted to cigarette smoking by the end of the lockdown period.

Sciensano Institute data on smoking habits during the early stages of lockdown showed a similar pattern. The figures show that 19.8 percent of the population smoked in 2018 but the figure rose to 21.9 percent by the end of April this year.

This is the only time an increase in smoking has been recorded since the figure began to decline in 1997.

While e-cigarettes were available from food stores and newsstands, there were access issues created by the limited supply.

Almost half of those questioned in the study had anticipated the shortages and stocked up on e-liquid. However, 55 percent said that they could not access the amount of e-liquid they needed. The report also revealed that an online black market is emerging.

THE RESEARCHERS WROTE:

“The majority of vapers have managed to maintain their vaping behaviour as usual, most likely due to the illegal purchase of consumables online.

“Foreign online stores have sold illegally to Belgian vapers while taking the risk of being punished for this.”

In a selection of 200 participants, the main reason given for a change in behaviour relating to vaping came from the ‘unavailability of e-liquid with nicotine, unavailable equipment, stress and concerns about contracting COVID-19.’

Polosa. Data from 1,825 non-smokers, smokers, dual-users and vapers was gathered over the lockdown period.

Unlike Belgium and much of Europe, vape shops in Italy were allowed to reopen due to successful lobbying.

Here, dual users and cigarette-only users perceived that their daily consumption decreased. Interestingly, the cigarette-only users reported that they had considered quitting over the period whereas the e-cigarette-only group did not consider stopping.

THE RESEARCHERS CONCLUDED:

“The COVID-19 era could be considered a “transition” phase and as such requires a search for a new balance.

“These changes in everyday habits can be a significant moment to use established and emerging strategies to create a definitive smoke-free world.”

Belgium is not the only European nation to be cracking down on vaping despite its public health potential. It’s neighbour the Netherlands recently announced a flavour ban which is set to take effect in January 2021.

Survey respondents registered as dual users of both cigarettes and e-cigarettes before lockdown continued to use both products but were ‘smoking more than usual.’

The COVID-19 outbreak may have done more to vaping behaviours than just leading vapers back to tobacco.

In response to conflicting reports that circulated in the early stages of lockdown, 14 percent of participants felt that exposure to nicotine would help to make them immune to COVID-19. Meanwhile, eight percent felt that nicotine worsened the effects of coronavirus.

The Belgian researchers compared the results to an Italian study coauthored by prominent tobacco and nicotine researcher Riccardo

“Foreign online stores have sold illegally to Belgian vapers while taking the risk of being punished”

SHOPS

Study aims to see how vape shops adapted during lockdown

The coronavirus lockdown was yet another challenge in what has been a difficult few years for the vape industry. And unlike issues such as EVALI and the teen vaping panic, UK vape shops were hit as hard, if not harder, than those in the US where lockdown measures varied by state.

Now, researchers from London South Bank University (LSBU) and the University of East Anglia (UEA) want to know how the UK’s vape shops adapted to the needs of smokers while the country stood still.

Dr Sharon Cox is a researcher specialising in e-cigarette-use for the Centre for Addictive Behaviours Research (CABR) at LSBU. Her past work includes research into the impact of the TPD on vaping behaviour and how e-cigarettes could benefit disadvantaged groups.

Dr Cox is working alongside fellow lead Dr Caitlyn Notley in the first UK study of its kind. She said: “COVID-19 has had a huge impact on businesses. One of the businesses that had to close down unfortunately was vape shops.

“We know that people are much more likely to revert to smoking if they can’t get supplies and are stressed,

not necessarily together. But people were put into that situation.”

There is already a lot of research into how COVID-19 has affected smokers. However, Dr Cox wants to find out how vape shops changed their operations. For example, whether they had to lay off or furlough staff, if they were able to operate online and how they managed social distancing.

“We know some vape shops that already had an established online shop did really well but that wasn’t everybody.

“We know that vape shops had already been hit quite hard since TPD having to change stock.”

While most UK high streets are now up and running again, local lockdowns may become more and more commonplace as the government tries to contain the virus. Dr Cox hopes that the data gathered from the study will help identify ways of working in the future.

“My local vape shop went around delivering supplies to people on the shielding list so we’re trying to capture all these good ways of working.

“They did that by linking up with the local GP and the local stop-smoking service.”

The voluntary and anonymous survey is open to all UK vape shop staff and takes about 10 minutes to complete.

To get involved, head over to tiny.cc/UEAvapesurvey or email

Dr Sharon Cox on coxs15@lsbu.ac.uk

Words: Gordon Stribling

FOCUS ON UNDERAGE SALES

UK youth vaping numbers remain low but retailers must keep alert to preserve the industry’s good reputation

Words: Patrick Griffin

There is no room for complacency when it comes to underage vape sales, a major online debate hosted by the UKVIA was told recently. The debate, sponsored by Vapouround, was held to discuss what more the industry can do to prevent underage sales in physical stores and online.

While UK youth vaping figures are reassuringly low – just 1.6 percent of 11-18 year old’s were using vape products more than once a week in 2019 - the sector is taking the issue extremely seriously, led by the UKVIA’s Youth Access Prevention Committee.

The debate brought together Jo Mahoney, a senior Trading Standards Officer at Buckinghamshire & Surrey Trading Standards; David Randall, Director Operations & Ecommerce at JUUL Labs; Marc Wood, Sales and Marketing Director at age and identity verification provider 1account and Ed Heaver, Director at Serve Legal, specialists in age restriction testing.

It was also used to launch a new guide produced by the UKVIA and Trading Standards to support vape retailers in preventing underage sales. The guide covers topics including current vaping age legislation in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and best practice enforcement of the Challenge 25 rule.

The guide also deals with ‘proxy purchasing’ where adults buy products on behalf of someone under 18, common deceptions regarding ID, digital age verification, staff training and online sales.

By following the requirements of the guidance, vape retailers will be able to demonstrate to authorities that they have taken all reasonable precautions and exercised due diligence even in the event of a purchase being made by a person under the age of 18.

During the debate Ed Heaver said the industry’s reputation was at stake when it comes to age verification. He said: “Some age restriction tests we’ve carried out need to be better. The issue is that non-compliance can lead to media stings which besmirch the reputation of the industry.”

Jo Mahoney pointed out that it was important for the industry to share best practice in keeping up with attempts by underage consumers to purchase vape products. She said: “Young people are thinking of new ways to beat the system all the time. Any tricks they are using should be shared amongst retailers so they are in the know and can be ready for them.”

David Randall said product manufacturers and not just retail stores, needed to ensure age verification compliance.

By way of example he said Juul Labs regularly conducted mystery shops at retailers stocking its products to ensure that under age vapers were not sold products. He said the company produced failure reports, conducted investigations and, where necessary, shared its findings with store owners and managers.

Marc Wood at 1account encouraged vape retailers to ask the question ‘what happens if I don’t comply?’ emphasising the importance of effective compliance, to ensure businesses demonstrate their commitment to responsible retailing.

There was a call for collaboration between regulators, test purchasers, retailers and trade bodies such as the UKVIA.

KEY POINTS

from the UKVIA/Vapouround debate on prevention of underage verification included:

• The industry’s reputation depends on complying with age regulations – doing the right thing is the only way.

• Carefully consider what your age verification provider can offer and ask the questions upfront.

• It’s not just retailers that need to be responsible for age verification – brands need to be too.

• Collaboration between different parties is crucial to preventing underage sales

• Position age verification processes so they don’t interfere with overall customer experience online.

• Share best practice, particularly methods used by underage purchasers to mislead retailers.

• Record refusals in physical stores and online – this demonstrates a responsible industry.

• Demonstrate compliance through regular test programmes.

START SPREADING THE NEWS

Vapouround founder Paul Caplin launched Vapouround Magazine in three weeks then spent five years bringing the brand to the world stage

Words: Patrick Griffin

I was in the Vapouround salesroom one Friday evening after work, watching a blindfolded colleague eating a heaped spoonful of gourmet cat food.

That evening’s ‘mystery food challenge’ was part of the entertainment laid on by Vapouround founder Paul Caplin and is a perfect allegory for Paul’s unique management style.

Paul regularly sets his staff different challenges (all voluntary and usually food-related) which are as much for his own amusement as they are to boost office morale.

But as Vapouround Magazine celebrates its fifth anniversary with this edition, it is clear that it has taken more than just an eccentric sense of humour to have driven the company to where it is today.

The magazine was launched when Paul, who owned a regional newspaper at the time, decided to run a feature on vaping to coincide with a new event launching at Birmingham’s NEC called The Vaper Expo UK.

Paul said: “We thought one or two exhibitors would buy ad space alongside the feature but there was so much demand that we actually produced a special stand-alone vaping

pullout and we gave this out to all the visitors and exhibitors at Vaper Expo.

“This was July 2015 and I knew we were onto something so I wasted no time in setting up a new magazine for the vape industry even though we knew next to nothing about it at that time.”

Paul set a seemingly impossible deadline too. He told his staff that the magazine would be launching at an open air vape event taking place in Shrewsbury in three weeks time and said he would take no excuses for it not happening by then.

Now Vapouround is a brand recognised around the world, it has secured media partnerships with the world’s best expos, is home to the international annual Vapouround Awards, employs some of the most knowledgeable staff in the industry and is seen as a global leader in the vape publishing sector.

Paul said: “Back then I knew we could sell the ad space but my biggest worry was finding enough things about vaping to fill an entire magazine on e-cigarettes.”

He need not have worried because we soon found our own unique content and featured a mix of news, features and human interest stories which reflected the issues and concerns that were felt by our readers.

Paul launched an aggressive drive to get the magazine known around the world and the Vapouround team were regular visitors to expos worldwide.

“We had only just launched the magazine and I took the gamble to take a team to America, to the ECC in California,” he said. “I didn’t know whether we would cover our hotel and airfare costs because this was all unchartered territory but I was determined to give it a go.

“The reaction was overwhelming. People were thrilled that a UK vape magazine had come all the way to America to their show and we did about £100,000 of business on that trip alone.”

Just days later saw Paul and the team back in America, this time in San Antonio for Texas Vapeblast 2015, a trip that would become one of Paul’s fondest memories of all of his Vapouround travel adventures to date.

“I met Keith Fairman from Diamond Vapor who was exhibiting at this show and his story was absolutely inspiring. Keith went from being a homeless drug addict who lived under a bridge with a cat, to being the multi-millionaire owner of his own juice company.

“We walked up to his booth to try to sell him a page of advertising in our magazine and not only did he buy two pages and pay on the spot with his credit card but he then walked around the show with us and introduced us to every single person that he knew – and Keith knew a lot of people.

“He basically said ‘these are my friends from the UK and you absolutely need to be in their magazine’ and all of these people started advertising with us based on Keith’s recommendation.

“I was amazed at how someone I had only just met had gone out of his way to be so helpful and not ask for anything in return. Now five years later we have attended many shows together and we are great friends.”

The Vapouround team would work hard during the shows and take full advantage of the opportunities to socialise in the evenings and while the drinking and partying would often extend into the early hours, they were still up in time to walk the floors of the expo.

This was a pattern repeated so often that Paul once worked out that he has spent the equivalent of six months at vape expos around the world…and that is a lot of walking and talking. The main thing that has changed in five years is that where Paul spent most of his time introducing himself to companies in the early days, now people seek him out when he attends a show.

I remember introducing myself to exhibitors at one of the IECIE expos in China only to be told: “Vapouround Magazine –yes we know who you are. Is Paul here?” There was a genuine look of disappointment when I explained that he was not there. Similar conversartions have taken place at almost every other international expo I have attended. Paul has become the face of the Vapouround brand and everyone wants to spend time with him.

He said: “Trust is vital in this industry so being a faceless owner just would not work. A lot of success comes from being out there, introducing yourself to the right people and building up long-term relationships.

“By meeting people face-to-face I can show them the magazine, explain why I started it and show them what it is all about and how it can help them achieve their goals.”

It is clear that Paul thrives on new challenges and is never content to sit still and relax. However the amount of international travel that he has done means he has to at least sit still on the plane to and from shows. He often uses that time to think of new business ideas or, sometimes, amusing staff challenges, which is why I ended up watching a blindfolded colleague eating a spoonful of gourmet cat food.

In the next issue, Paul will explain how launching the Vapouround Awards was the next logical step for him to take as he worked on how to expand the business.

BLOW OUT THE CANDLES

What a journey it's been.

It's crazy to think how much has happened at Vapouround since we launched five years ago. The magazine has gone from strength to strength and we've met some incredible people on the road, including many of our passionate readers.

Here's a snapshot of the past five years, and here's to many, many more!

CANCELLED

SHAKY BEGINNINGS AND FALSE STARTS BUT ULTIMATELY… HUGE SUCCESS

We’ve seen great changes in the vape industry during our five years as Vapouround Magazine but the vape story goes back much further than this

Words: Benedict Jones

We often describe vaping as a young industry. For the most part, this is accurate, since the widespread availability and awareness of vape products is a phenomenon of the last decade or so.

E-cigarettes and vapour products have a much longer history though and as part of our fifth birthday celebrations, we want to highlight the most important turning points for this life-saving technology.

1930 – Joseph Robinson was granted the first patent for an electronic cigarette. This was never commercialised and there isn’t much evidence of a functioning device being manufactured at the time.

1960s – Herbert A. Gilbert was granted a patent in 1965 after prototyping the first device that resembles the modern concept of an e-cigarette. Again, this was never commercialised, with Gilbert blaming the failure on companies preferring to let a patent expire rather than licence it.

1980s – Computing pioneer Phil Ray worked with his doctor Norman Jacobson to create the first commercialised e-cigarette which relied on nicotine evaporation to work. The duo are credited with coining the term “vape.”

1990s – Various patents were filed for nicotine inhalers and devices resembling e-cigarettes during this time. Some relied on evaporation or chemical reactions, while others were early models

of the current “heat-not-burn” technology.

2003 – Chinese inventor and pharmacist Hon Lik invented the modern e-cigarette. Unlike those who came before him, he was driven by a deeply personal desire to create an alternative to smoking, after losing his father to lung cancer and struggling with his own smoking habit. He is often credited as the father of the modern e-cigarette.

2006-2007 – E-cigarettes were introduced commercially in Europe and the US. During this time, vape products were quite primitive, mostly taking the form of pre-filled cigalikes. Many saw e-cigarettes as a novelty, rather than a legitimate alternative to smoking.

e-cigarette-forum.com (ECF) was founded in 2007 and is the first known online community for vapers to share and improve their experiences.

2008-2009 – Vapour products, though primitive, continued to steadily grow in popularity. In September 2008, the World Health Organization said it did not consider the e-cigarette to be a legitimate smoking cessation product.

Turkey’s health ministry banned the sale of e-cigarettes, then in January 2009, Australia banned the possession and sale of all nicotine-containing e-cigarettes. The US, Canada and Jordan all imposed restrictions on vapour products during this period.

In October 2009, Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives

Association was formed and went on to become the longestrunning advocacy organisation for vaping in the US. Meanwhile, Action on Smoking and Health UK (ASH UK) recognised that vape products should be made available to smokers because they delivered nicotine in a less harmful way.

2010-2012 – Although a limited number of specialist retailers were founded during this time, for the most part, vapers themselves led the charge on improving the experience of vaping.

From using tea bags to improve the wicking of cartomisers, to modifying flashlights to create the first mods, it was the consumer who demonstrated a desire for innovation and improvement of vapour products.

2013-2015 – During this period, the development of vape products sped up rapidly. Growing public awareness of vaping resulted in more specialist retailers and manufacturers, resulting in a far greater range of product choice and assistance for those who wanted to transition from smoking.

Online vaping communities flourished during this time, especially on social media platforms such as YouTube, where content creators could review products and create tutorials for less experienced vapers.

A particular focus for manufacturers during this time was the development of clearomisers and affordable regulated mods. Clearomisers, AKA tanks, were a significant step up from the

cartomisers and pre-filled cigalikes of the past. Affordable regulated mods allowed users to tailor their vaping experience, without having to modify a device themselves. In August 2015, Vapouround Magazine was founded with the aim of informing both businesses and consumers about the latest developments in the industry.

2016 – The Tobacco Products Directive regulated the vape industry within the EU. The TPD imposed new limits on vape products but gave manufacturers a clear framework of regulations and further helped legitimise vaping as an alternative to smoking. Vapouround became a B2B publication to comply with the new law.

2017-present – The vaping industry continued its trajectory of rapid growth, with specialist retailers thriving and new products providing dramatically better experiences for the end user.

Product choice and availability is now at an all-time high, making it easier than ever for smokers to switch. With so much choice, specialist vape stores have come into their own by offering smokers advice on how best to switch from smoking to e-cigarettes. Much more work needs to be done to get the message across as, worryingly, far too many smokers think that vaping is more harmful than cigarettes.

With the increased scrutiny of vaping, the industry has faced many challenges though and we must fight even harder than before to protect an industry which exists to save lives.

LOOK HOW THEY’VEChanged

Words: Benedict Jones

The vaping industry has evolved rapidly over the years and one of the most noticeable areas of change has been the new user experience. Now more than ever, entry level devices are reliable, widely available and provide excellent vape quality. In this piece, we’re taking a trip down memory lane to compare popular starter kits from yesteryear with their 2020 counterparts.

The CE4: The CE4 is one of the most ubiquitous vaping products ever made. Its true origin is contested, with early models produced by the likes of Joyetech, Innokin, Aspire and Kanger. Despite being released more than seven years ago, it’s still in production today, often with no indication of manufacturer. The concept was simple: a disposable tank with a top coil design and silica wicks, feeding e-liquid upwards. At the height of the CE4’s popularity, it was a solid choice, offering good value and vape quality that seemed decent at the time.

Looking back, the CE4 suffered from serious reliability issues, with poor wicking, flavour production and quality control, so you’d never know if your tank would last for a week, or just a few hours before burning out. The simple top-fill design and wide distribution made it the go to choice for many vapers though, especially before specialist vape shops became common.

The closest modern-day counterparts to the CE4 are refillable pod devices and within this category, one model really stands out. The XROS is Vaporesso’s latest pod kit, with a clear focus on simplicity for new users. At the time of writing, there are two distinct pod options for the device, catering to those who prefer a warmer or cooler vape. On top of its compact form factor, the XROS manages to provide some user adjustment with a simple airflow controller, allowing you to go from tight MTL to a more open draw, with excellent flavour across the board. This is about as simple as vaping can get and you don’t have to compromise when it comes to vape quality.

Entry level starter kits are now better, more reliable and more widely available than ever before

Kanger Subox Mini: The Subox Mini was released in 2015, when manufacturer Kanger was at the height of its powers. At the time, Kanger and Aspire were in fierce competition to be known as the market leader for subohm tanks. The Subox Mini kit was Kanger’s greatest success during this period, effectively delivering the full subohm vaping experience to consumers in a simple, affordable package.

With its compact form factor, external 18650 design and ever-expanding range of OCC coils, the Subox was an easy recommendation to make for any vaper who was interested in more vapour production, without venturing into rebuildable atomisers. Looking back, this kit has largely stood the test of time, though superior vape quality is easily found these days.

My pick for the modern counterpart to the Subox Mini is the Geekvape Aegis Solo. Though it has a similar 18650 form factor, the Aegis Solo has vastly improved reliability with its waterproof, shock resistant chassis and solid AS chipset. The Aegis Solo is also available as a kit, with the Cerberus subtank, which is compatible with a huge number of Baby Beast style coils, including Geekvape’s own X series mesh builds, which provide excellent flavour and longevity. The difference between these two kits in terms of construction and vape quality really is night and day.

Aspire Nautilus: Aspire is one of few hardware companies that has maintained a dominant position in the market for the best part of a decade. The original Nautilus put them on the map in 2014, quickly garnering attention for its BDC coils. This was followed up a few months later with the Nautilus Mini, which stepped things up a gear with the first bottom vertical coil (BVC) design.

Despite years of progression in vaping hardware, the Nautilus BVC coils are still some of the best options on the market for MTL vapers. The original 1.8Ohm and 1.6Ohm coil heads are less common these days but Aspire continues to support the fitting, with newer options such as the 0.7Ohm mesh build. Distribution has been key to the success of the Nautilus and you’d be hard pressed to find a vape shop that doesn’t stock at least one variety of the coil. This will always be a huge factor for newer vapers who benefit from the expertise of specialist staff.

If you’re looking for the best Nautilus experience in 2020, I recommend the Nautilus Prime, an all-in-one device that’s compatible with all Nautilus coils and manages to pack a generous 2000mAh battery, plus full airflow control into a compact package.

Eleaf iStick 20W: The Eleaf iStick 20W took the vaping market by storm when it was released at the end of 2014. It was one of the first affordable regulated mods with a compact form factor. Up to that point, most regulated devices were either expensive, massive or both.

The compact form factor and user-friendly experience of the original iStick made it an ideal device for the low wattage tanks that were popular at the time. These days, the 20W maximum output and 1Ohm minimum resistance are likely deal breakers for many vapers but luckily, we now have a wealth of mini-mods to choose from.

My pick would be the Innokin Coolfire Z50. It’s even smaller than the iStick but still packs in a practical 2000mAh battery, up to 50W of regulated power and is bundled with the excellent Zlide MTL tank. This combination of tiny mod and top tier stock coil performance make for a package that should satisfy just about any new vaper who is looking to make the transition from smoking.

Will the UK’s new public health body embrace vaping?

The UK government is to create a new body replacing Public Health England (PHE) with a single command structure focused on tackling COVID-19 and “protecting the nation’s health”.

Health secretary Matt Hancock announced in August that the new National Institute for Health Protection (NIHP) will be operating from spring 2021.

Very few further details have so far been unveiled – and none about how tobacco-alternative policies will be affected by this major structural change in public health organisation.

Gerry Stimson, a public health social scientist and emeritus professor at Imperial College London, believes there will not be any change for the worse, and possibly a change for the better, in the medium term.

“The UK government – not just PHE – has been supportive of vaping and the few people who are anti-THR [tobacco harm reduction] are mostly left-wing academics with little influence on this government,” he told ECigIntelligence.

But this organisational shift in public health administration and policy could be “far more significant” for the position the new institute will

take in regards to the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) once the country leaves the EU.

John Mallon, spokesperson for the smokers’ group Forest, believes the NIHP will be judged purely on how it reacts to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. “If they should begin life with an attack on e-cigs as their priority, their tenure may be short,” he said.

For Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), it is not possible to anticipate now whether there will be any change in the UK’s approach to tobacco alternatives. Nevertheless, he believes the scrapping of PHE “will not be helpful” for the industry.

The NIHP will bring together PHE and the National Health Service (NHS) Test and Trace service as well as the Joint Biosecurity Centre, and will be led by Dido Harding, a businesswoman with no health experience, as interim executive chairman.

Michael Brodie, CEO of the NHS Business Services Authority, has been appointed as interim chief executive officer of PHE. Duncan Selbie, the outgoing PHE chief executive, will become a senior advisor to the Department of Health and Social Care on global and public health.

In a public message, Selbie said that “no public body has done more to protect the health of the people than PHE”, including its work on tobacco control policies.

ECigIntelligence is the leading provider of detailed global market and regulatory analysis, legal tracking, and quantitative data for the e-cigarette, heated tobacco and combustible-alternatives sector worldwide. Customised research and consultancy are also available.

We offer tools to navigate the complex market and regulatory landscape through independent, analytical and actionable data insights, in-depth country reports, regulatory trackers and legal analysis. We also publish CBD-Intel.com for the global CBD sector, and our new launch TobaccoIntelligence covers products such as heated tobacco and snus.

POSTPONED UNTIL 2021

CHANGED MY LIFE Vaping

Vaping advocate Dimitri Agrafiotis is on a mission to change hearts and minds

Words: Caroline Barry

Dimitri Agrafiotis is the director of the Tennessee Smoke Free Association (TSFA), an advocacy group and trade organisation founded in 2013. Dimitri was two years old when his father passed away from smoking aged just 39. This family tragedy was enough to give him the push he needed to quit cigarettes himself. He switched to vaping and immediately realised the life-saving potential of

e-cigarettes. “When I was approaching my dad’s age, I had two young kids and I was a heavy smoker coming from Greece where smoking is the national pastime,” he said. “I attempted to quit with various patches, gums and even hypnosis but nothing worked for me. I tried vaping and it was an automatic switchover from the first day as I never touched another cigarette again. I was fascinated by the technology and told my wife, ‘this has the potential to eliminate cigarettes’.”

As well as establishing the TSFA, Dimitri moved into YouTube videos as he didn’t identify with the younger vapers who he felt spoke to a different crowd. At 40-yearsold, he wanted to make videos that would help his peers quit smoking. “The next thing I know, it had and by 2014 I had 25,000 subscribers,” he said.

Realising that vaping was under threat from lawmakers, Dimitri turned his attention to activism. He started to educate himself about politics and learned how to network with politicians. The experience helped him create the TSFA which is now used as a template for independent associations across the country. Dimitri now gets to travel the world to talk about vaping.

“We have to understand that politicians have other groups that are financially backed by the Campaign for TobaccoFree Kids and the Cancer Society who tell them vaping is

vaping actually is to help dispel the myths. His goal is to provide them with the most current information as well as hard facts about harm reduction. By making connections and building rapport, he can get into meetings and challenge political minds that may be predisposed to certain opinions. And it seems that some politicians, at least, are listening.

“What I’ve found is that a lot of the politicians I talk to, once I am able to sit down at a table with them along with my lobbying team, they start to look at it with different eyes. It makes them pause before making a decision that’s going to affect the industry.”

Tennessee remains one of the few states without harsh bans or regulations for vapers. Is this likely to change following flavour bans in states like Massachusetts or New York?

“We are fortunate that we are a red state here and there is a bit more freedom for businesses. Attempts have been made to bring in flavour bans, taxation and regulations to lump us in with cigarettes. So far, Tennessee has absolutely zero restrictions, flavour bans or taxation. We

“

don’t anticipate that coming in the next year. We are going to see some taxation because of COVID-19 which will create a budget shortfall.” Between a successful Platform Series and Zenith tank, travel, several podcasts and Youtube channels combined with advocacy and activism work through the TSFA, Dimitri doesn’t appear to stop. He’s hoping to start travelling again as more and more places open up. Then, of course, there’s the full-time job of raising two daughters. But when he believes in the product, it’s a balance that he will find a way to maintain.

“I truly believe in vaping because I have a personal connection to it. I regret that vaping wasn’t around in the 60s or 70s because my father could have used it and would still be around instead of dying at the age of 39 when I was just two.

“I really believe this product can change the population as a whole.”

never touched another cigarette again.

THE NEW PROHIBITION

New York’s flavour ban has forced the industry underground

Words: Caroline Barry

New York has become a great example of the reality of flavour bans as a new underground market has emerged to meet the demand for e-liquids. The state introduced a flavour ban during lockdown which means it is now illegal to sell flavoured nicotine e-liquids there.

“The ban is catastrophic to the entire industry,” Lane Shannon, owner of e-liquid line, Phoenix Elixirs, says. “The reaction was a mixture between fear and anger. This is a life-saving technology and it was a consumer-driven answer to a problem that the government couldn’t solve. Now the government wants to regulate the solution but they are still allowing cigarettes to be sold. We are not going to allow the less harmful alternative to be taken away from consumers who choose not to smoke.”

But as politicians introduce bans aimed at reducing injuries caused by illegal THC cartridges, they risk driving sales further underground, creating a market of illegal and unregulated e-liquids which have not passed safety checks or are manufactured in unclean facilities.

Phoenix Elixirs’ wholesale account manager Matthew Elliott says that he has witnessed this: “I’ve already seen multiple companies pop up overnight as people have thought they can make a liquid, charge $15

for 500ml of it which is completely preposterous. If that liquid is being made in a clean environment, it's going to cost a lot more than $15 for it.”

He adds: “One of the fears is that you don’t know where it's being made. It could be made in a very clean area of your kitchen but if you have pets then pet hair can get mixed into it. If someone has an allergy, they could end up in hospital. The fear is very real and you have a few that don’t care about anything other than profiting so don’t be surprised when these companies pop up and people start getting sick.”

The penalty for being caught selling flavoured e-liquids can be steep. The fine is $100 per product, which could add up to many thousands for stores with large inventories. The legal loophole is that stores are able to sell flavoured nicotine-free e-liquids as long as they assert that they are not to be used with nicotine. Whatever happens away from stores is not their responsibility.

Rather than operating over the dark web or encrypted messaging, customers can make orders over social media. Phoenix will ship anywhere - regardless of state flavour laws. And if they get in hot water, Elliott’s lawyers are ready to go: “I have lawyers who are literally

chomping at the bit ready to go as soon as I say the word. I’m not a citizen of a state that has a flavour ban so I’m not violating any federal laws. I’m violating the laws in states where I don’t exist to them, other than being a shipper of package.”

The flavour ban has been compared to prohibition, where a ban on alcohol from 1920 to 1933 caused blindness and death due to bootlegging and a lack of regulation.

It was lifted during recession years, creating a new job market and income, something vape stores could help with today as the world faces a post-pandemic recession.

Meanwhile, Elliott says, New York is missing out on its 20 percent tax on vaping products that could have helped clear the state’s ‘very large’ deficit: “Vaping is a billion dollar a year industry in the US. But Governor Cuomo decided to ban and the old saying ‘you can't get blood from a stone’ is gonna turn out to be very true here because they're not making the tax revenue on shops that are closing down.”

The ban has forced compliant businesses to either convert to smoke shops or shut down completely. Others sell under the table

to customers they can trust to keep quiet. Elliott says: “The ones that are still blatantly selling are the ones that are going to be made an example of. Some are selling pipes, bowls, rolling papers, anything that will keep them open. I can’t say that I blame them because they have to make money. A lot of people invested their life savings into this business and they still believe it works.”

A few businesses don’t care about anything other than profiting so don’t be surprised when these companies pop up and people start getting sick.

Hardware

VAPOUROUND REVIEWS E-liquids

Please note: All hardware and e-liquids are reviewed by external reviewers and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Vapouround Magazine. All e-liquids are reviewed at 3mg nicotine level. Hardware reviews are rated on specific criteria depending on the style of products received.

By Benedict Jones

Construction, fit and finish of the Gen Nano are excellent for a mini-mod. The textured polycarbonate chassis results in a light device and as with the previous Gen and Swag 2, it also makes for a scratch-resistant finish which holds up to daily use. During testing, our sample unit experienced a particularly nasty drop on to concrete, which resulted in a side panel popping off. This easily snapped back into place and has caused no lasting damage to the device. Suffice to say, I am confident in the build quality of this mod.

The AXON chipset returns once again, this time with a few minor tweaks. The main features are still present, including variable wattage, variable voltage, temperature control, power curves, pulse mode, smart TC, bypass, super player and eco modes.

One addition to the chipset is a wattage recommendation feature. Upon scanning for the resistance of your coil, the device displays a recommended wattage, seemingly tailored to Vaporesso’s own GTX coils. I’ve had mixed results with this feature. For example, if a 0.3Ohm GTX coil reads 0.28Ohms, it will recommend the wattage range for Vaporesso’s 0.2Ohm GTX coils. I fear that this could result in some less experienced vapers using more wattage than their coil can handle. This should be fine tuned or removed in my view.

Aside from this flaw, the chipset is still one of the best on the market, with extremely snappy power delivery, great temperature control and enough customisation to satisfy just about any vaper.

The Gen Nano is bundled with the GTX 22 tank and for the most part, it’s a solid inclusion. It’s compatible with all GTX coils used with the PM series devices, which is a consumerfriendly move. It uses a simple press-fit design that makes coil maintenance a breeze. Unfortunately, the top-fill design leaves something to be desired.

Removing the top cap is easy enough but instead of revealing top-fill ports, you’re simply removing the top of the tank altogether. This makes re-filling easy, since there’s so much room, but it also adds quite a lot of pressure to the system when replacing the top section. This can result in

Dimensions: 115mm*40.3mm*24.2mm (height includes tank)

Power output: 5W-80W

Battery capacity: 2,000mAh internal cell

E-liquid capacity: 3.5ml/2ml (TPD edition)

Charging: 2A Micro-USB fast charging Display: 0.91” OLED screen

flooding on occasions. The bottom of the tank is host to the airflow control, which is made up of three large slots. Wide open, airflow is only restricted by the inner bore of your installed coil. It can be closed to a very restrictive direct lung draw but MTL isn’t really an option here. I think a hybrid DTL/MTL airflow system would have been more desirable, considering the size of the Gen Nano.

The kit is supplied with two coils as standard. The first is a 0.6Ohm GTX mesh, rated for 20W-30W. I found this coil to shine at 28W, with airflow closed to a quarter, where it provides a warm vape with excellent flavour. As noted previously, longevity is fantastic with all GTX coils.

The second coil is a 0.2Ohm GTX mesh build, rated for 45W-60W. I found this coil to perform best between 50W-60W, with airflow closed halfway, where it provides a very warm vape, with intense flavour. Despite the excellent performance of this coil, I must note that it seems a mismatch for the 2000mAh internal cell.

Battery life is going to depend on your choice of coil and power setting. I was able to get just under a full day’s vaping at 28W when using the 0.6Ohm coil. This is cut down to just over an hour of use with the 0.2Ohm build at 50W+. The 2A quick charging mitigates down time, charging from flat to full in around an hour.

In summary, the Gen Nano kit provides a very solid mini-subohm experience.

A true MTL airflow setting would make the GTX 22 tank more versatile and Vaporesso would do well to include one of their 0.3Ohm GTX coils over the 0.2Ohm option, which seems a little power hungry for the device. In the grand scheme of things, these complaints do seem like nit-picks, though.

VAPORESSO GEN NANO specifications

C M Y CM MY CY CMY K

INNOKIN

By Benedict Jones

Hardware giants Innokin impressed us recently with the Podin and it seems they’re keen to continue developing a selection of miniature AIOs. Their latest release is the Sceptre, so how does it fare?

Construction, fit and finish of the Sceptre are excellent. Although this is a small device, it has a reassuring weight, with a mix of polycarbonate and what appears to be zinc alloy construction. A magnetic connection holds the pod section firmly in place, with a small amount of play that goes unnoticed when in use. The pod-style form factor should be familiar to most vapers, though in this case it has been beefed up to accommodate a 1400mAh internal cell. The side-fill port is admittedly small, but has caused me no problems when using standard sized bottles and doesn’t suffer from overflow issues, despite the 2ml capacity.

As with previous entry-level Innokin releases, the Sceptre provides a simplistic user experience. Three clicks power the device on/off and when powered down, holding the power button toggles between two wattage settings, which change depending on the resistance of the installed coil. The Sceptre can be fired automatically by drawing on the device or manually using the power button. LEDs above the fire button provide three levels of battery feedback, which is plenty for a 1400mAh cell. An airflow valve is embedded in the bottom of the pod, with clear markings for MTL and DTL settings. That’s all there is to the Sceptre and I’m in favour of keeping things simple with starter kits.

At the time of writing, there are two coil options for the device, providing drastically different experiences. The first is a 1.2Ohm round wire build, rated for 9W-10W. Due to the 1W increment between power settings when using this coil, I was unable to detect any substantial difference in warmth. This coil is intended for MTL vaping and provides a moderate-loose MTL draw with the airflow closed all the way down. For me, the vape it provides is a little cool, with average flavour output. I feel a slightly higher wattage ceiling is needed for this coil to really shine. Longevity is respectable considering the size of the coil, though. I was able to run 25mls of moderately sweet e-liquid through it

Dimensions: 106.8mm*29mm*18mm

Battery capacity: 1400mAh internal cell

E-liquid capacity: 2ml

Charging: 1A Micro-USB

PROS

- Good build quality

- User friendly

- Great flavour from 0.5Ohm coil

CONS

- 1.2Ohm coil produces cool vape

before a replacement was needed.

SCEPTRE specifications

The second coil is a 0.5Ohm mesh build, rated for 18W-20W. Again, the wattage increment on offer is small but in this case there is a more noticeable difference, with the full 20W resulting in faster ramp up time and increased warmth. Despite being designated for DTL, I found this coil to work nicely with the airflow closed down for MTL also at the 18W setting. In my view, the vape quality of this coil totally surpasses the 1.2Ohm option, handily competing with my favourite miniature AIOs. Coil longevity was good too, withstanding 30mls of moderately sweet e-liquid before needing to be replaced.

Though I do enjoy the 0.5Ohm option, I feel that a middle point would be beneficial to the mass appeal of this device. An MTL-focused coil with more warmth than the 1.2Ohm build would be nice to see in the future.

Battery life will depend mostly on your choice of coil. I was able to get just shy of two full day’s vaping time on a charge with the 1.2Ohm build installed at 10W. This is cut down to just under a full day’s vaping when using the 0.5Ohm coil at 18W. The Sceptre charges from flat to full in just over an hour, which is acceptable considering the run time.

In summary, the Sceptre is a promising device, with good build quality, a user-friendly design and widely available coils. I think further coil options are needed for it to reach its full potential, though.

Dimensions: 92mm*37.3mm*17.2mm

Materials: Aluminium, PCTG

E-liquid capacity: 3ml/2ml (TPD edition)

Battery capacity: 1250mAh internal cell

Power output: 25W maximum, output dependent on coil and battery voltage

By Benedict Jones

Uwell built its brand with the Crown series of subohm tanks but was catapulted into the stratosphere in 2019 with the release of the Caliburn, one of the best-selling pod kits ever. The Valyrian Pod System is a miniature AIO with big shoes to fill, so how does it stack up?

Construction, fit and finish of the Valyrian are good. With an aluminium alloy chassis and PCTG pod, this is a light device, but it doesn’t feel cheap. Rounded corners and clean lines make for a rather sleek, minimal-looking AIO. The pod itself is held quite firmly in place, with a little play that goes unnoticed during normal use. This isn’t the most rugged or fancy AIO on the market, but it certainly feels nice in the hand and is very compact.

In terms of user experience, the Valyrian is as basic as AIOs get. Five clicks of the fire button power the device on/off. An LED at towards the bottom of the device provides three levels of battery feedback, which is plenty for a 1250mAh cell. A sliding door with membrane seal comprises the top fill system, which I’ve found to be mess-free when using bottles with small nozzles. Airflow is controlled with a slider on the front of the pod, providing a tangible level of adjustment and clear visual indication of how open or closed your current setting is.

Changing out coils is also user friendly, with a basic press fit system that provides a nice amount of tension, without being tricky to prize out. There’s no wattage control or menu to contend with here, just the bare essentials like short circuit protection and that’s fine in the context of a starter kit.

Vape quality is the most important thing with a kit like this, especially when we’re talking about a potential successor to the Caliburn, which is known for its excellent flavour and coil longevity. Two coils are provided as standard with the Valyrian Pod System kit.

UWELL VALYRIAN POD SYSTEM specifications

The first coil is a 1Ohm Kanthal round wire build, rated for 8W-15W. With the airflow fully open and a freshly-charged device, this coil provides moderate warmth, excellent flavour and a moderate MTL draw. Airflow can be closed to extremely tight settings, which should satisfy even the

most hardcore MTL vapers. Longevity is great too, lasting for more than 30mls of moderately sweet e-liquid before needing a replacement. In short, this is one of the best coils in the mini AIO class for MTL vaping.

The second coil is a 0.6Ohm Kanthal round wire build, rated for 18W-25W. With the airflow fully open and a freshlycharged device, this coil provides a warm restricted direct lung vape, with excellent flavour. Again, airflow can be closed to MTL levels if desired, though loose MTL would be my personal limit due to the warmth produced. I found longevity to be slightly improved over the 1Ohm variant, lasting for 40mls of moderately sweet e-liquid. Another impressive coil that serves as a great introduction to direct lung vaping for newer users.

Battery management seems to be good across the board. With the 1Ohm coil installed, I was able to consistently get a full day’s vaping from the Valyrian before recharging. With the 0.6Ohm coil installed, this is cut down to about four hours of use, which is still reasonable. The device charges from flat to full in approximately one hour, which is well within acceptable bounds considering the run time.

In summary, the Valyrian Pod Kit is a worthy follow up to the Caliburn. It’s a slightly different proposition of course, due to the replaceable coils rather than pods, but if you can get to grips with this aspect, the Valyrian is a straight upgrade from its older sibling. This is a very simple device but the vape quality of Uwell’s coils is compelling in and of itself.

Since the coils have a recommended wattage range, I can only assume that a larger model with adjustable wattage is in the pipeline and I can’t wait to see it.

PROS

By Benedict Jones

The Argus GT is a slim and compact device as dual 18650 mods go but retains the robust construction that Voopoo has become known for.

Construction, fit and finish of the Argus GT are excellent. The chassis primarily consists of zinc alloy but features a rubberised coating and variety of finishes on the grip section at the front of the device. This mod feels solid, with tight tolerances, tactile buttons and a sturdy battery door.

It’s clear that Voopoo has listened to feedback regarding the boxy nature of previous releases. The Argus GT is, by far, its most ergonomic mod to date and is one of the smallest dual 18650 devices released this year. The C-frame form factor is comfortable when held for finger or thumb firing, which is nice to see.

In terms of user experience, Voopoo has kept things simple, while offering enough functionality to please enthusiasts. A standard five clicks of the fire button power the device on/ off. From there, three clicks toggle between Smart, RBA and TC modes. Smart mode detects the resistance of your installed coil and prevents you from setting a wattage that would exceed its capabilities. RBA mode simply turns this feature off for those who are using a non-Voopoo atomiser, or any rebuildable.

TC implementation is simple but user-friendly. After toggling to the TC menu with three clicks, a long press allows you to select from Ni, Ti or SS wire types. From here, you can set your preferred temperature and hold + and – to change TCR values, wattage output and lock resistance. I found temperature control performance to be solid when using a standard stainless-steel build and I feel the simple menu system on offer makes this a good choice for a first temperature control experience.

As with previous mods powered by Voopoo’s Gene chip, the Argus GT has extremely snappy, aggressive power delivery. Battery management seems to be fine across the board too, achieving the expected battery life using a number of tanks and RDAs at a variety of wattage levels. The Argus GT boasts 2A USB-C charging, which can be useful in a pinch, but I’ll always recommend using an external charger for any external cells.

The PnP tank should be familiar to Drag S and X owners, since it’s essentially a PnP pod, with an added 510 adapter. Its PCTG construction feels solid and stands up to acidic e-liquids without issue. A seal on the bottom of the pod

- Dimensions: 131.6mm*52mm*26mm (height includes tank)

- Power output: 5W-160W

- Battery capacity: 2x external 18650 cells

- E-liquid capacity: 4.5ml/2ml (TPD edition)

- Charging: 2A USB-C charging

ARGUS GT KIT specifications:

reveals a generous fill port that has caused me no issues during testing.

A basic airflow control is situated at the base. It does the job, but with its large openings, it can produce a slight whistle at particular settings. I would prefer a honeycomb design here to smooth things out. Since the PnP tank is essentially a pod with an adapter, the tank section can be swapped out at any time due to the magnetised connection. This is an interesting feature that could prove useful for vape shops or enthusiasts who like to have several flavours on the go at once. The Argus GT is supplied with two coils as standard. The first is a 0.2Ohm VM5 build, rated for 40W-60W. I found this coil to perform best at 55W, with the airflow closed halfway. It provides a good level of warmth and saturated flavour, though not quite best in class. It was able to withstand 50mls of moderately sweet e-liquid, which is fine as far as longevity is concerned.

The second coil is a 0.15Ohm VM6 build, rated for 60W-80W. I found this coil to perform best at 70W, with the airflow closed halfway. The significantly denser mesh offered here produces far more warmth and noticeably more flavour, competing with my favourite stock coils in this wattage range. Longevity was also impressive, withstanding 70mls of moderately sweet e-liquid before needing to be replaced. In summary, the Argus GT is an impressive package. I am happy to say that the Argus GT mod is Voopoo’s best dual battery release to date, with its excellent construction, great ergonomics and updated Gene chipset. The PnP tank allows users to access a huge range of PnP coils, which perform nicely and are well supported by Voopoo. As far as dual battery mod and tank kits go, this one is easy to recommend.

PROS

- Great build quality

- Compact for a dual 18650 device

- Simple chipset

- Lots of coil options

CONS

- PnP tank could be improved with more thoughtful airflow design

By Benedict Jones

Construction, fit and finish of the Maxus 200W are great. This is not a mod for stealth vapers, coming in at a hefty 189g before adding a tank and batteries. The chassis is solid, with no rattles or gaps, while the battery door is a simple side panel design, secured by two sets of strong magnets.

Freemax has struck a good balance between functionality and simplicity. The standout feature is “smart load” technology, which allows you to install your two 18650s in any orientation. You can even run the device on a single cell if you wanted to.

Navigating the menu should be a familiar experience for any seasoned vaper. Five clicks of the fire button powers the device on/off. When powered up, three clicks of the fire button enters the main menu, where you can choose from three sub menus. The “mode” sub menu allows you to choose from power, VPC, bypass, temperature control and TCR settings. These are all fairly standard features and most vapers will stick to wattage, but they’re still nice things enthusiasts appreciate.

The “set” sub menu is mostly focused on UI. Settings for screen timeout, puff counter, vape time, coil check and toggling between Celsius and Fahrenheit are all available. The final sub menu, “info”, allows you to check the voltage of your installed batteries, along with the installed firmware and internal temperature of the device. I don’t think most people will need these features but it is nice to have this information for troubleshooting.

The Maxus 200W has very snappy power delivery and great battery management. I tested temperature control using a stainless-steel build and it performed well, though it was a little on the conservative side in terms of cutting off power. Further tinkering can be done in the TCR menu for those who really want to fine tune their temperature control experience, though.

On the Mesh Pro 2, the combination of stainless-steel and resin inlays feels like overkill. Fortunately, that’s where my complaints end. It is compatible with all previous Mesh Pro coils, which are some of the best on the market. The top-fill

Maxus 200W specifications:

Dimensions: 135mm*52.4mm*28mm Power output: 5W-200W

Output modes: VW, VPC, bypass, temperature control, TCR

Battery capacity: 2 external 18650 cells

Weight: 189g (mod only) Charging: 2A USB-C Mesh Pro 2 specifications:

Dimensions: 60mm*25mm (height including drip tip)

E-liquid capacity: 5ml/2ml(TPD edition)

Materials: Stainless-steel, resin

MAXUS 200W specifications

system has been improved, providing a better seal and ideal resistance to opening. The tank is substantially quieter in use than the original model, which is nice to see. In all, this is a solidly built, if large, subohm tank.

The kit is provided with two coils. The first is the 0.2Ohm 904L M2 dual mesh build, rated for 60W-90W. I found this coil to perform best at 80W, with the airflow closed halfway. With these settings, the M2 coil provides outstanding flavour and warm vapour. Longevity is excellent too, having been through over 65mls of e-liquid without showing any signs of slowing down. This is one of the best subohm coils on the market today.

The second coil is a 0.15Ohm 904L M1 single mesh build, rated for 40W-70W. I found this coil to perform best at 65W, with the airflow closed a touch more than halfway. With these settings, this coil produces excellent flavour and warm vapour but it doesn’t quite reach the heights of the M2 build and also has a slightly more turbulent draw. This is still a fantastic option for vapers who like less extreme wattages, though.

In summary, the Freemax Maxus 200W kit is hard to fault as a package. If you’re looking for a cloudy vape, with a solid, feature-rich mod, this is an excellent choice. Assembled, this is on the heavier end of the spectrum but for many that’s a feature rather than a bug.

CONS

- Quite heavy and large as a kit

specifications

Materials: Stainless steel

Dimensions: 86.5mm*48mm*24mm

Power output: 1W-60W or 0.5V-8.4V

Battery capacity: 1x external 18650 or 18350 cell Charging: External charging only

By Benedict Jones

Aspire has long been one of the biggest names in vaping and throughout its history has been known primarily for producing top-tier starter kits. The MIXX is its latest device, designed in collaboration with Italian modders Sunbox. Construction, fit and finish of the MIXX are sublime. This device features an all-CNC stainless steel and aluminium chassis. From the first glance, to the way it feels in the hand, the MIXX stands head and shoulders above the average mod. Sure, it’s a little heavier than most single 18650 devices but this weight is reassuring and tolerances are precise.

The compact size and side-by-side form factor means that the MIXX can maintain a tiny footprint, even when using taller tanks. Small details, like the finger cut out for the fire button, have been given proper attention, resulting in a highly ergonomic device that feels every bit as premium as many of the small batch boutique mods coming out of Europe.

The MIXX is regulated by Aspire’s ASP chipset. Frankly, I thought it was an Evolv DNA60 at first and this seems to be Aspire’s intention. The small, relatively oldschool screen is located on the bottom of the device and manages to display all the basic information you could need.

Operation is simple. Five clicks locks and unlocks the device, while holding the fire button for two seconds when locked powers it down fully. Holding the fire button and + cycles through VW, VV and bypass power output modes. Holding + and – flips the screen, while fire and minus locks power adjustment. That’s it for functionality and for those who don’t enjoy temperature control, that should suffice. One of the key selling points of the MIXX is its modularity. Two large screws hold the top “cuff” in place. Once removed, the 18650 battery tube can be uninstalled and replaced with the provided 18350 tube. I am glad that the additional tube was included, as it increases the versatility of the device. The modular design allows for plenty of customisation down the road, which enthusiasts will appreciate. Strangely, a hex key is not included to perform this change, though it is a standard size that is found in most screwdriver kits.

The cuff can be removed entirely, for those who prefer a bare bones aesthetic. This device is my first experience of the ASP chipset and I have been particularly impressed by its battery management. The Evolv DNA60 is loved for its efficiency and Aspire has managed to emulate this trait with its strikingly similar board. Using an MTL RTA at 15W, I was able to consistently get three full day’s vaping time from a 3000mAh cell. Using a DL RTA at 45W, I was able to get a full day’s vaping on a charge. These are strong results, outperforming the average single cell board by a tangible margin.

Outside of the stellar build quality, Sunbox co-sign and chipset, the biggest draw of the MIXX for most vapers will likely be that side-by-side form actor. Although it’s a subjective merit, it’s one that appeals to me. It creates a regulated 18650 setup that’s no larger than your average AIO, while maintaining an elegant look. Enthusiasts have been asking mainstream manufacturers for designs like this for some time and it seems that we will be experiencing a side-by-side glut in the second half of 2020. I’m all for it. In summary, the MIXX is an outstanding mod for low to

PROS

- Outstanding build quality - Great chipset - 18350 battery tube included

CONS - No hex key included

specifications

Dimensions: 99mm*38mm*23mm

Battery capacity: 1400mAh internal cell

E-liquid capacity: 5ml/2ml (TPD edition)

Power output: 1W-60W

Charging: 2A USB-C

By Benedict Jones

Aspire’s Breeze line became incredibly popular when pod systems dominated the market. In some ways, you could say that they predicted the success that AIOs are now enjoying. The BP60 is the latest entry to the Breeze family, so how does it stack up?

Construction, fit and finish of the BP60 are solid. This is a fair bit thicker than previous models but maintains a low overall weight due to its aluminium and polycarbonate construction. While being on the larger side for an internal cell AIO, it’s still a pocket-friendly device.

The magnetised pod connection is solid, which means no play when using the device. The Golden Flame finish on our sample unit is nicely done and has been holding up well to everyday use, with no visible scratches or imperfections. A rotating airflow control system is found to the left of the screen, which provides a restricted direct lung draw when fully open, all the way down to a tight MTL when closed.

The BP60 offers more functionality than previous Breeze devices but still remains user friendly for less experienced vapers. Holding + and – toggles between “auto” and “manual” modes. Auto mode restricts wattage control to a range suitable for the currently installed coil, while manual gives the user free reign of the full 60W of power on offer. Fire and – toggles between A, B and AB modes which result in draw to fire, press to fire or both respectively. Fire and + clears the puff counter. That’s it for functionality and this is more than enough for a simple AIO.

Though draw to fire and press to fire options are both available for this device, I found myself using the press to fire function almost exclusively and disabled the draw to fire feature early in my testing. It works just fine but ramp up times are noticeably faster when pressing the fire button. Options are never a bad thing, though.

The BP60 is supplied with two coils as standard. The first is a 0.6Ohm round wire build, rated for 15W-25W. This build performs a kind of hybrid role, able to switch between MTL and restricted DL airflow settings. The large mouthpiece hasn’t really been designed with MTL in mind but with the airflow closed down, the 0.6Ohm coil does provide

a warm, flavourful MTL experience at 15-18W. With the airflow opened to approximately 1/3, this coil produces a moderately warm and flavourful restricted DL vape at 25W. I was able to run 40mls of moderately sweet e-liquid through this coil before it gave out, which is quite impressive for longevity.

The second coil is a 0.3Ohm mesh build, rated for 30W-40W. I feel this coil shines at 35W, with the airflow closed down anywhere from 1/2 to 1/3 of its maximum. With these settings, it produces exceptional flavour and warmth, to the point that it’s among the best mid wattage coils currently on the market. Longevity is outstanding too. At the time of writing, I have run 60mls of e-liquid through this coil and it’s still going strong.

The 1400mAh internal cell performs surprisingly well considering the mid-wattage coils on offer. I found the device to last approximately half a day’s vaping at 35W when using the 0.3Ohm coil, or a full day’s vaping at 17W, when using the 0.6Ohm coil with a higher strength e-liquid. The 2A USB-C charging mitigates most down time concerns, charging from flat to full in under an hour, which is excellent.

In summary, the Aspire BP60 is a well-thought-out AIO, with excellent coils, large e-liquid capacity and versatile airflow system. My only complaint is that the “duck bill” style mouthpiece isn’t really suited to MTL vaping. This could easily be addressed with an aftermarket pod using a 510

PROS

CONS

-

Lemon Meringue Milkshake

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Moderate bakery lemon is the top note here. There is some of the syrupy sweetness of lemon curd present, but it’s accompanied by more sharpness than I would expect. This is complemented by a mild meringue note, which provides additional sweetness. The profile is finished with a substantial cream base, which adds volume to the mix without becoming cloying. The bitter note from the lemon remains on the finish and lingers after vaping. This may be suited to those who enjoy a lot of lemon zest in their bakeries.

Fizzy Cola Bottle

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: High Throat hit: Mild

Many brands have tried to emulate this sweet shop classic so how does Kingston’s offering fare? Immediately, it’s clear that this is pretty much spot on to the classic sweet, with that distinct candy cola note, which is quite different from the beverage. Along with plenty of sweetness, this flavouring coats the palate after vaping with sticky mouthfeel. There’s a noticeable sour finish too, which points towards some kind of acidic additive in the mix. A simple, but accurate, emulation of fizzy cola bottles.

Gazillions Blue Raspberry

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Fruity bubblegum is the dominant note in this mix. It’s a close replica of the flavour found in a certain brand of blue chewy sweets that are popular throughout the UK. This is complemented by a mild blue raspberry flavour, which adds moderate tartness to the finish and brightens up the fruit medley top note, without becoming the main flavour. The mix is finished with a very mild minty note, which is likely part of the bubblegum flavouring. A little sweet for my all day vape preferences but profiles like this have proven very popular over the years.

Blackcurrant Raspberry Lemonade

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Blackcurrant is the dominant note in this mix. It’s sticky and rich, with a mild medicinal note. This is accented with a much lighter raspberry, which adds further candy sweetness. The lemonade element of the profile is moderate in strength, with a nice level of tartness on the finish, resembling homestyle lemonade. The blend is rounded off with a mild level of coolant, which cuts through the fruit elements and keeps things light. A competent beverage profile.

Grapeberry Ice

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: High Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

An intense blast of candy concord grape is the top note here. It’s exactly what you would expect from American-style grape sodas, with lots of sweetness and a mild floral note that lingers after vaping. This is complemented by candy berries, including notes of blackberry and blueberry, which bolster the floral notes from the grape, while adding some variety as the blend is vaped throughout the day. The mix is finished with a moderate coolant, which stops the potent grape from becoming overbearing. A solid grape soda profile.

Blue Raspberry Slush

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: High Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

If you’re looking for a light, subtle flavour, you’ve come to the wrong place. Kingston E-liquids’ Blue Raspberry Slush punches you in the mouth with bright candy sweetness from the start, combined with a noticeable tartness that is quite unusual, even for a candy profile. Along with the intense blue raspberry, there seems to be a mild citrus note but it’s difficult to fully place. The profile is finished with a moderate helping of coolant, which slightly tapers back the intensity of this in your face flavour. A candy mix that’s not for the faint of heart.

The world’s largest VAPE Party - Shenzhen IECIE has ended perfectly. UWELL appreciates that every vaper and customer who came to the booth to participate in our events. Because of you, the vape expo has been a success. Thank you for moving forward with us.

Considering that most overseas brands and vapers are unable to join the IECIE because of the pandemic, many domestic brands reduced the booth area on the eve of the IECIE to save budget. However, after 5-year growth, UWELL has the ability and confidence to overcome this dilemma. UWELL actively prepared and further improved brand promotion and events for this IECIE, so that global vapers, fans and customers can feel the warmth from the brand, and make the company philosophy "I wish U well " no longer just empty words, but an optimistic attitude that we will be there for you whether the market environment is good or bad.

Our theme in the IECIE is "Flavor Factory". UWELL highlights the common label of the series of products - the ultimate flavor. UWELL presented different series of products and some new products for the VAPE EXPO, the Valyrian POD, with high-quality manufacturing and great flavor, it won’t let you down.

Spacious booths, high-profile hot products, the latest cool products, and rich and interesting on-site activities ensure that the on-site booth crowds are endless. UWELL hopes that everyone can have an optimistic attitude and firm belief in moving forward side by side through this exhibition. We will spend this special period together. Together, we look forward to meeting again

Tutti Frutti

Percentage used and VG/PG ratio of mix: 3% at 70/30

Tutti Frutti is one of Flavour Art’s more mysterious offerings but medley flavours can often be great tools for newer mixers who need something to act as a base for recipes. For me, candy banana and pear are the dominant notes of this flavouring, with mild hints of citrus on the finish. The resulting flavour is akin to a fruity bubblegum. I think that this concentrate would be a good starting point to build a more complex tropical vape and could be a useful tool for adding complexity to simple mixes.

Royal Orange Juice

Percentage used and VG/PG ratio of mix: 2.5% at 70/30

Orange has long been a difficult flavour to capture in e-liquid. Most concentrates on the market provide a decidedly candy orange or orange soda experience. This one is a little different. On the nose there are certainly hints of orange soda but in a mix it behaves differently. It has a bright sweetness, with plenty of authentic tartness and a sharp finish. It’s certainly the most authentic orange juice flavouring I’ve tried and for this reason, I think it’s well worth picking up if this is a profile that interests you.

Hypnotic Myst

Percentage used and VG/PG ratio of mix: 2% at 70/30

Flavour Art give little away when describing this e-liquid. I know it’s from their tobacco range and that’s all I have to go on. A sharp citrus is the first thing I recognise and it reminds me of bergamot, though I can’t be sure. This is joined by a very mild creamy mouth feel which doesn’t seem to be adding too much in the way of sweetness. The profile finishes with a very mild tobacco note. Personally, I’m not sure how I would use this in a mix but I can see it being popular as a one shot for tobacco enthusiasts who enjoy unconventional flavours.

Apricot

Percentage used and VG/PG ratio of mix: 2.5% at 70/30

Apricot isn’t often seen in the vaping world, so how does Flavour Art’s offering fare? There are notes of candied peach here, but this quickly gives way to a deeper, jam-like note that really sells the apricot flavour. It has a slightly sticky mouthfeel, which could be useful if you were trying to create an apricot bakery profile. This is a solid flavouring, with no off notes that is likely suited to desserts rather than straight fruit mixes.

Peanut

Percentage used and VG/PG ratio of mix: 1% at 70/30

Immediately upon opening the bottle, it became clear that this is a potent flavouring. Flavour Art’s Peanut differs from every other peanut concentrate I’ve tried in that it seems to be aiming for a raw peanut flavour, rather than peanut butter, or some kind of sweetened peanut. The result is an intense nutty note that can easily be dropped into bakery mixes at low percentages and still have an impact. When pushed higher, this flavour begins to transform, providing dark tobacco and even leather notes. I feel that this concentrate is best used by experienced mixers due to its potency.

My Ice – Berry Limonada

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Commercial-style lemonade is the dominant note here. It’s very bright, with a good level of sweetness and mild sharpness that lingers after vaping. This is supported by a medley of candy berries. Blackcurrant and blueberry are most noticeable, with mild floral qualities and a sticky mouthfeel. There is a hint of strawberry present but it’s quite low in the mix. The profile is finished with a moderate dose of coolant, resulting in a bright, refreshing soda-style vape.

My Ice – Tutti Frutti

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Tutti Frutti is described as a blend of tropical fruits. There’s a lot going on here but to my palate, the standout flavours are pineapple and kiwi. The pineapple contributes a bright sweetness, with some tartness, while the kiwi is softer, with hints of a deeper earthy note. These main flavours are complemented by a large number of accenting fruits, with hints of citrus and mango. The profile is finished with a moderate dose of coolant, which doesn’t interfere with the balance of flavours. An excellent tropical vape.

My Salts – Grappy

VG/PG ratio: 50/50

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Grappy is described as a blend of grape and apple, with an icy kick. Green candy apple is the dominant flavour for me. It’s rather sweet, with a noticeable sticky mouthfeel. This is contrasted by a much sharper green grape flavour, which has an almost citric quality with a lingering tartness after vaping. The blend is finished with a moderate dose of coolant, resulting in a light, moreish fruit and ice profile.

My Salts – Strawberry Watermelon Lemonade

VG/PG ratio: 50/50

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Moderate, with cooling

Candy watermelon is the star of the show here. Unlike some watermelon e-liquids, this one is fully saturated but doesn’t impart the soapy off notes that can sometimes be present. This is complemented by a decidedly candy strawberry, adding further sweetness and sticky mouthfeel. A moderate commercial lemonade note contrasts the sweeter top notes, adding a little tartness to the mix, without overpowering it. The blend is finished with a subtle coolant, which doesn’t impact the balance of flavours. A solid beverage vape.

My Salts – Blue’Z

VG/PG ratio: 50/50

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Blue’Z is described as a blend of blueberry, blue raspberry and ice. Blue raspberry is the dominant note. There are countless blue raspberry e-liquids on the market but this is about as close as it comes to the mysterious blue raspberry hard candy flavour, which eludes many mixers. This note is complemented by a milder candy blueberry, which mostly adds some floral elements to the top note. The mix is finished with a very mild coolant and though it’s pleasant, I think I would enjoy this flavour even more if this was turned up a notch or two.

My Salts – Pink Sweets

VG/PG ratio: 50/50

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

The simplest of the My E-liquids products that I’ve sampled. The strawberry on offer here is clearly of the candy variety but it’s not quite as bright as I would have expected. Instead, we’re left with a softer note that is reminiscent of taffy-style candy. There is some volume and sticky mouthfeel but unfortunately for me there’s not enough going on in the mix for this to be an all day vape.

Killer Kustard

VG/PG Ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

There are countless custards on the market but Killer Kustard is one of the most well-known and it can be credited with putting Vapetasia on the map. This is a simple, unpretentious custard blend. The top note is a bold confectionary vanilla, which gives way to a mild butterscotch. This is supported by a rich custard base, with plenty of dairy and significant mouthfeel, which results in a long finish. A classic, moreish flavour that’s stood the test of time.

Killer Kustard – Honeydew

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

One of the more recent additions to the Killer Kustard line. On paper, mixing honeydew melon with a custard profile seems like madness. In practice, it works surprisingly well. Honeydew is front and centre here, with its super bright sweetness and juicy finish. This transitions to a lighter Killer Kustard base that interacts in a strange but very pleasant way with the honeydew. This might be an acquired taste, but I’ve found myself coming back to it whenever I need a break from straight dessert profiles.

Vape Parfait – Strawberry

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

This offering is described as a blend of strawberry, yoghurt and granola. A moderately potent, slightly jammy strawberry is the top note here. It’s not quite candied but it does have a noticeable sticky mouthfeel. This is supported by a rich, creamy yoghurt note that adds significant volume and has a distinctive tang that sets it apart from a standard cream. The mix is finished with a mild, dark bakery note that does a good job of emulating granola. A fantastic parfait mix.

Milk of the Poppy

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Milk of the Poppy is described as a blend of dragon fruit, strawberry and cream. A vibrant candy dragon fruit is the top note here. It’s reminiscent of pineapple but with slightly more tartness on the finish. This is complemented by a milder candy strawberry, which adds a soft sweetness to contrast with the dragon fruit top note. The profile is finished with a light, authentic cream that adds volume to the blend, without making it a full-on dessert. This is a simple, but nicely balanced, fruit and cream profile.

Vape Parfait – Blueberry

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Another offering from the Vape Parfait line, with a slightly different balance. The blueberry is the first thing you’ll notice here but it’s not the most dominant flavour. It’s slightly floral and earthy, resulting in an authentic, rather than candied, connotation. Due to the mildness of the blueberry, the yoghurt and granola notes are given more room to shine for this particular blend and this works really well. That yoghurt base has such great volume that it feels like it’s coating the palate. The granola is more apparent too, imparting a dark sweetness and almost toasted finish to the profile.

Blackberry Lemonade Iced

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: High Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

The lemonade range is one of Vapetasia’s newer offerings, so I was excited to give this a try. A bold homestyle lemonade is the star of the show here. It’s tangy and sweet with a noticeable tartness that lingers after vaping. This is complemented by a moderate blackberry, which imparts some floral notes, along with a darker sweetness, which contrasts nicely with the brighter lemonade. The mix is finished with a moderate coolant, that cuts through the sweet notes and makes for a refreshing beverage profile.

Butter 01

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Butter 01 is described as a blend of mango, passionfruit, meringue and cream. Passionfruit is the most prominent note to me. It’s bright and sweet, with a good level of tartness on the finish. Somewhere between the real fruit and a beverage representation. This is accented with a lighter soda-style mango, which adds further brightness, along with slight earthiness. The cream and meringue layers merge into one, adding volume to the profile without over sweetening it. A pleasant tropical dessert vape.

Butter 02

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Billed as a blend of cream, biscuit, jam and meringue. Strawberry jam is the top note here. It’s sweet but not quite as potent as I would normally expect from a jam note. This isn’t a criticism, though, since it’s supported by a cream base, which works wonderfully with the sweeter jam. The biscuit note is mild, adding some texture and dark sweetness on the finish. I do not taste a distinct meringue flavour in the mix but perhaps it is adding to the richness of the dairy elements.

Butter 04

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Chocolate cookie, cereal, ice cream and milk come together for Butter 04. Chocolate cookie is the star of the show here. Chocolate vapes are notoriously hard to get right but the Supergood team has done well to bring the flavour out. This is supported by a moderate bakery note, which to me is a merging of the cookie and cereal elements. The blend is finished with a sweet dairy base that stops those bakery elements from drying out the mix. An impressive chocolate vape.

Butter 05

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

A mix of marshmallow, custard, vanilla cream and cinnamon. A distinct marshmallow note is most prominent here. It’s hard to describe, mostly providing a bright confectionary vanilla and lots of volume. Both the custard and vanilla cream notes are quite mild, though they are likely contributing to the volume and saturation of the marshmallow note. The profile is finished with a very light bakery cinnamon accent, which adds a little spice to keep things interesting, without overpowering the lighter nature of this flavour.

Butter 03

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

A mix of lemon, blueberry, cake and cream. An even mix of bakery lemon and blueberry occupy the top notes. Their contrasting flavours work nicely together, the blueberry providing a deeper sweetness and florals, while the lemon’s tartness makes it pop. This is supported by a moderate cake flavour, which increases the bakery connotations. The mix is finished with a light cream note, which stops the cake from drying the mix and the lemon from being too harsh. This has become my personal pick of the Butter range.

Butter 06

VG/PG ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Moderate Throat hit: Mild

Described as a blend of blueberry, candyfloss, cookie and cream. Candy blueberry is the top note in this case. It’s a similar flavour to the one found in Butter 03, though in this case the candy connotation is bolstered by the addition of candyfloss, which gives it a sticky texture. This is supported by a light cream note, which adds some volume to the mouthfeel and smooths out any rough edges of the blueberry. The mix is finished with a light cookie accent, which ties things together.

HOBBYIST CORNER

Picture perfect: The Melo Shot interview The art of the coil with FalcohmInterview with Falcohm Worth the Hype. Digby’s Juices.

Words: Benedict Jones

PICTURE PERFECT @Themeloshot

In the last issue, we featured @Nik_shotz and highlighted the fact that Instagram has become a melting pot for creatives who are passionate about vaping. This time, we’re taking a look at the work of José Melo AKA @themeloshot (formerly @melovapes) who has been posting his work since early 2018.

José boasts some of the most acclaimed photography in the vaping industry and has an enviable list of clients.

Q: How did you learn about vaping?

A: After 26 years smoking two packs a day, I had my first smokerelated health issue in 2018. I knew I had to quit, but just didn’t know how. I saw vape starter kits in a store so I decided to give it a try. This wasn’t a proper vape store and they recommended 18mg nicotine e-liquid and a kit that came with 0.3Ohm coils. You can guess the cough! Two days later I visited a proper vape store, they gave me better advice and since that day I never smoked again.

Q: When did you become interested in photography?

A: I’ve flirted with photography a couple of times before throughout my life, knew some theory and enjoyed shooting every now and then, but nothing serious. I had always been focused on my music and sound design career and I didn’t really dive deep into photography until I discovered vaping.

Q: What inspired you to apply your skills to the world of vaping?

A: Well, being honest, those really have been earned along the way with vaping photography. But coming from the world of arts, I’ve been able to apply some of the things I’ve learnt as a musician and a sound designer to photography. Just like sound, light and colours can be understood as frequencies. Also understanding things like harmony, composition and improvisation helps. In the end, it’s just artistic expression but targeting different senses.

Q: When did photography become a career for you?

A: I would say a year ago, when I started getting contacted by more brands and the demand for paid professional work started to increase. That was when I decided I needed to invest in better photography gear, along with investing more time to exclusively focus on my photography skills and work.

Q: What equipment and software do you tend to use?

A: As of today, I’m using a Canon 5D Mark IV, I mostly shoot with a Canon 100mm 2.8 L macro lens, but often use a Sigma 50mm ART Lens for flat lays. I also use a couple of AD200 Lights and some spare speed lights depending on the work. I edit on a 16” MacBook Pro with a Wacom tablet, using mainly Photoshop but I do like to start my edits in Lightroom. All this being said, I wouldn’t want to discourage any reader who wants to get into vape or product photography. Some of my most acclaimed work was done using a Canon Rebel camera and a cheap 50mm lens. Expensive gear can make the job easier, but it won’t make you a better photographer.

Q: When did you sign your first client and how did it happen?

A: I really enjoy remembering my first real step in this business. That one came very early to me, I think I had been vaping for barely a couple of months. I was shooting with my phone back then and it was this British company called Vaping Outlaws that contacted me.

That’s the moment I decided I should buy a proper camera and learn. No matter the skills you have, I seriously feel it’s a big responsibility shooting someone’s product. They are depositing all their work in your hands, and you’re responsible for making it look good, or totally ruining it. So I got that camera, and tried to do the best possible job for them. A month later I was contacted by Ultroner and by October the same year I was shooting for Glas.

Q: Could you describe an average day in the life of José Melo?

A: Work, work, work… Hahaha. Well, I currently have a very peaceful life in the countryside of Tenerife. I spent a lot of years living in Madrid with a very different lifestyle but tasted the joy of living in the countryside when I moved to Portugal.

I still keep my old job, which I basically do from home and most usually isn’t time consuming. So I just go for a walk with my dog in the mornings and the rest of the day I’m in the studio shooting or on my computer editing, weekends included.

Q: What pieces in your portfolio make you most proud?

A: That’s a tough one! It might sound cliché, but I’m definitely my own worst critic and a bit of a perfectionist. I would say, normally my most recent work is the one I’m most proud of, until it’s not that recent and I get to see it again. Then I think of a hundred things that I could have done differently. I guess a photograph is never finished, it’s just published or posted.

Q: In recent times, you changed your name on social media and started to share non-vaping work. How did this come about?

A: Well, some non-vape companies became interested in my work. Although the name wasn’t really a problem, this fact just gave me the idea that a more inclusive name as well as featuring other products along with vape ones, would be a good way to try and normalize vaping for non-vapers.

As we all know, the industry has been struggling with fake and negative news. I feel vaping has been stigmatized somehow. So it’s just a way to say “Hey, vaping products exist, it’s 2020 and they are just a part of our society’s everyday life, just as any other product.”

I really think people should start seeing vaping as a normal thing. Vapers and people from the industry have a big responsibility in achieving this.

Q: What would you like to be creating in five years’ time?

A: I honestly don’t know, life and also the vaping industry change so quickly that it’s hard to tell. I normally focus on the present, I truly believe that when you are passionate about what you do and give your 100 percent, good things arrive in the future.

Q: Finally, do you have any upcoming projects you’d like to tell us about?

A: It’s still in the early stages, but myself along with @igotvapor, @widowmakervapor and @nik_shotz , have been talking recently on creating this platform to help spotlight some of the best photographers on the scene. This could be potentially helpful for assisting vape companies in choosing the best and most experienced shooters. With so many Instagram accounts, it can be really difficult for some companies to find the right photographer, ending in some poor product images or worst case scenario, in hiring accounts that have only fake followers and almost zero reach.

Expensive gear can make the job easier but it won’t make you a better photographer.

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THE ART OF THE COIL: Falcohm

The coil building community has grown and changed hugely in the past few years. What started as a few passionate vapers sharing their latest ideas has morphed into a fully-fledged art form. Now, we are seeing builders design miniature sculptures in wire. One such builder is Sebastian Asensio, AKA @Falcohm (Instagram) and we wanted to find out more about his process.

Q: When did you first discover vaping?

I was trying to quit smoking in around 2015 and bought an eGo CE3. Unfortunately, it did not work well and after a few weeks I started smoking again. It wasn’t until 2018, seeing how vaping had evolved, that I tried again and this time it was a success.

Q: Why did you start building your own coils?

In 2018 when I saw what was a new coil format for me, I thought, “I can do this.” So, I started to work to get Ni80 and the first night of work I did Chain coils, Fused Claptons and Aliens.

Q: What inspired you to create art, instead of coils meant for vaping?

As I was learning and achieving new models of coils and wanting to show them as well as possible, I became involved in photography. This allowed me to see building from another perspective and awakened my creative side. I like to use common and unusual techniques to make coils to create something else. I like the observer to wonder, “How did he do it?”

Q: What is your process for planning and then executing a build? How long does each one take on average?

Often the ideas just come and I draw them so as not to forget them. I cannot always execute them immediately and they wait for the right moment. Sometimes the ideas are about the artistic presentation or the installation and I have to think about what type of structure I can create. Other times it is about some type of new structure

which presents a more complex challenge, since it may require a new technique.

When I’m in a coil building competition, the pressure of a deadline and having to comply with the requirements and rules is a very powerful stimulant. In that context I can complete a complex build in one day. Usually it’s a process that can take a week of quiet work.

Q: You also sell hand-crafted coils, do you think the coil art has helped build your profile in this category?

I produced and sold a good number of coils for vaping but since vaping is not currently legislated for in my country (Argentina), I prefer to avoid problems and I stick to the coil art. At some point, of course, the coil art gave me publicity but with that came questions like “why do you do that if you can’t vape it?” “Can that be used in a mech mod?” or my favourite, “how do you wick that?”

Q: What are your favourite atomisers to build on?

I like them all! Each one can be challenging and that makes it fun. But if I have favourites, some of them are the Resurgence by Immortal Modz, Profile by Wotofo, Cosmonaut V2 by District F5ve and, of course, the Occula by Twisted Messes. Although the most important thing for me is that I have a lot of space to place the leads, there are some that are aesthetically beautiful and help photography a lot.

Q: Which vaping products do you normally use, outside of creating art?

For daily vaping I find it comfortable to use regulated mods and if it is a squonk, even better. I currently use the Dovpo Topside Dual with the Cosmonaut V2. When I get home I use a tubular mod. I don’t have a lot of mods, I prefer to invest my money in attys that I use to vape and to work on.

Q: Are there any other coil artists out there who our readers should follow?

Definitely! The first ones I will recommend are the members of my Build Team Acolytes Of Ohm (IG @acolytes_of_ohm) they are my fam and support. Other great builders that I recommend include @n.devine83, @twistedmesses, @zenith_coils, @bigbluedragon88, @snappy_builds and @slim_builds. The truth is that there are many good builders around the world. This makes interaction and friendships rich and diverse.

Q: Finally, do you have any projects in the works that you can tell us about?

I have many projects and ideas but there is one that I have been working on almost since I started with building, which I want to do with the seriousness that it deserves and that is jewellery. Maybe to start with wire wrapping and work my way up. I have it on my to-do list and it is something that I would love to achieve.

WORTHthe hype?

In this instalment of “Worth the hype?” we take a look at two of the latest releases from veteran e-liquid producer Digbys Juices.

Custard Cream

VG/PG Ratio: 65/35

Additional sweetener: Minimal Throat hit: Mild

Custard cream biscuit e-liquids have been attempted numerous times but usually fail to emulate the profile properly. Often, the result is a vanilla custard with a mild bakery accent. Digbys has taken a different approach with Custard Cream. Blonde biscuit is the star of the show here, with plenty of bakery sweetness and a mild brown sugar note. This is complemented by a moderate vanilla cream, rather than a custard, which results in a much more accurate representation of the biscuit than I’ve experienced previously. This is a seriously moreish bakery vape that delivers full on flavour, without cloying sweetness. My search for a great custard cream is over, for now.

Dark Bargain

VG/PG Ratio: 70/30

Additional sweetener: Minimal Throat hit: Mild, with cooling

Dark Bargain is a fruit, anise and coolant profile, which is among the most ubiquitous on the market. The medley of dark summer fruits takes centre stage. I’m mostly detecting blackcurrant, raspberry and grape and these notes lean towards authenticity rather than a candied connotation. The anise note is quite subtle, mostly appearing on the finish, along with a moderate coolant, that doesn’t impart much of a mentholated flavour. There’s quite a lot going on with Dark Bargain and that makes for a compelling vape. Along with our take on their latest releases, we wanted to learn a little more about the Digbys brand. Who better to talk to than Digbys founder, Sam!

Q: Most e-liquid brands release full ranges at once. Digbys tends to wait a while between each individual flavour, is there a reason for this?

A: It’s just the way I work on flavours. We all know that getting a recipe just right takes time, usually a couple of months of testing/ steeping and then when it's right it is time for launch. By the time something is released I and a few others have already been using it for a good while. I mean we could just wait and release three or four at a time but after the development time and all the work I’m usually too excited to hold it back.

Q: Mum’s Custard has a very loyal following. Is it challenging being so well known for one flavour?

A: No not really. It is a huge seller and there is no getting away from the fact that it needs to be produced in much larger batches but the same can be said for the likes of Dr Jekyll, a juice on the opposite end of the flavour spectrum. We frequently have to scale up production of that to satisfy the Italian and Japanese markets.

Q: During your time in the vaping industry, what are the biggest changes that you’ve noticed?

A: In a word, hardware. Back when pens and CE4s were the go-to devices, getting a decent flavour to pop out in a juice was not always easy. Then, as the hardware evolved so did our recipes. The sheer flavour you can eek out of stock coils now is very impressive.

Q: Finally, do you have anything in the pipeline that you can tell us about?

A: I have had a little bit of a passion for Biscoff lately, the spread. Already being in the biscuit zone post Custard Cream, I think it's only fair to continue. After that I think it's back to fruits.

Words: Benedict Jones

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