Vapouround magazine ISSUE 11 | Page 46

Bad for vapers and bad for the vape industry Everything you need to know about counterfeit vapour products As we’ve reported here at Vapouround; there are now almost three million vapers in the UK, half of whom are former smokers. The UK still has a potential vaping market of 10 million smokers, many of whom will reconsider their addiction as health issues, rising costs, and limited options (such as the ban on menthols) take hold. Vaping is booming, cutting into territory once held untouchably by tobacco, unmatched by other nicotine products like gum and patches. The industry’s successful, organised response to the trying tasks of the TPD, the emergence of the IBVTA as a force to be reckoned with politically, and vaping’s diversification in business and consumer options (exemplified at the recent Expo) has legitimised it. And that’s just at home. The global vape market will be worth over 45 billion dollars in the next decade, and politicians spearheading anti- smoking drives are coming around to the opportunities vaping presents. However, a booming, richly diverse, lucrative and global market doesn’t always attract the best characters. There are opportunists aplenty. Cloned knockoffs are becoming more than an annoyance, but a hindrance for vapers and businesses alike. This is especially true in an era seeing a downturn in traditional retail shopping in favour of online buying and selling, where consumers may have a harder time checking their products in a licensed, professionally- staffed setting. Counterfeiters are cunning, and now there are fakes almost as diverse and widespread as parts of the legitimate vape market. 46 ISSUE 11 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE