FEATURE
German Vaping:
The Long And Twisting Road
Twisted Vaping CEO Michael Braunstein talks the past, present and
future of the vape market in Europe’s foremost powerhouse economy
With German national identity and business so heavily tied to
its prominent place in the EU as Europe’s leading economy,
the TPD has made waves, and forced its large vaping market
to adapt. We interviewed Michael Braunstein, CEO of Twisted
Vaping, to explain the situation for those of you who may not be
familiar with the recent story of German vaping.
Twisted Vaping have skilfully weathered the storm and lit a safe
path for others following in their footsteps; pushing concentrates,
aromas and distinct flavours in a changing landscape.
Michael started by addressing the strain caused by the TPD’s
mandatory registration period.
“Germany is currently grappling with a very long and thorough
screening process for its products under the TPD: six months,”
Michael says. “For manufacturers, six months means lagging
behind, it means obsolescence. Most vapers within Germany
end up ordering their products internationally and by the time
Germany’s have cleared, most of what we’ve pushed through
isn’t at the cutting edge anymore.”
Twisted Vaping sought ways to circumvent the specific
regulation on e-liquids and found a way to be creative. They
discovered this model was attracting interest overseas.
“At Twisted Vaping we sell flavour concentrates, which don’t
fall under the TPD’s banner; we sell nicotine-free flavour shots.
We’re also seeing an influx of international products from
companies that want to get involved in the rise of the flavour
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shot and concentrate phenomenon. There’s keen business
coming in from the USA, and the Italian juice market, who are
selling more and more to Germany. We can take in 20ml bottles
from America – nicotine-free liquids used for the flavour shot
model.”
Far from the decisive knockout punch many feared it would be,
the TPD is now having more of a reshaping effect on German
e-liquids.
“For us as a flavour manufacturer, the TPD has not been so hard,
but it has left deep wounds in German vaping. The market has
been well restructured for aromas and flavour shots. Finished
liquids a