FEATURE
SEEING
THROUGH
THE FOG
INNOVATIVE PREMIUM LABS LEAD THE
WAY ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ATLANTIC
Given how widely-known his juice ranges are, you’d think that
Premium Labs head honcho Samuel Boucher had been in the
e-liquid game for a long time. In fact, it’s only been three years –
during which time his juices have won four Vapouround Awards,
made waves in the UK and Europe and all but sewn up the US
and Canadian markets. Better known as Sammy (‘Dr’) Fog,
he’s an incredibly hard-working and passionate former smoker
who’s thrown everything into his business, both financially and
practically, and who continues to help shape the direction of the
industry with iconic flavours and innovative ideas. But vaping has
become far more than just a job or hobby for him.
“I love hearing from people who’ve benefited from vaping,” said
Sam. “I especially like getting emails from old people. It’s saving
lives and I love playing my part in that.”
The industry is under attack from all directions. In order to
thrive in the UK and Europe, Premium Labs have had to adapt
to meet the requirements of TPD. Meanwhile, regulators and
politicians in the US and Canada continue to snap at the heels of
e-liquid manufacturers whose only crime is that their respective
governments misleadingly lump tobacco-free products together
with combustible cigarettes. Nonetheless, Sammy is confident
that Premium Labs will continue to thrive, regardless of the
obstacles the regulators throw at them.
“There will be some smaller American and Canadian companies
that cut corners and fail,” he said. “It’s like a cheap phone that
falls apart after six months – the manufacturer will eventually fall
by the wayside. As long as I continue to put out the best products
and stay ahead of the game, Premium Labs will thrive and set the
industry standard for others to follow.”
Sammy is right to trust in his e-liquids. He has some of the most
recognisable juice lines on the market – Dr Fog and Decoded in
particular are staples of e-liquid collections the world over.
Then there are the accolades. Premium Labs came away from
the first Vapouround Awards in 2016 with gongs for Best Fruit
(Dr Fog – Alpha) and Best Sweet/Chocolate (Convicted Vapes
– Heavy Metal), following up a year later with Best Tobacco for
Dr Fog - Mocha and Best Cereal for Dr Fog – Tiger Flakes with
Raspberry. Pretty impressive for a company still in its infancy.
As the cliché goes, success is a journey, not a destination.
78 | VM15
If Premium Labs is to stay ahead of the pack, Sammy will need to
keep a keen eye on emerging trends such as nicotine salts, which
is a hot topic at the moment. Ever looking ahead, Sammy has
taken nic salt a step further by blending it with freebase nicotine
to create his new ‘Mix Nix’ line.
“I’ve developed something revolutionary – an e-liquid that
actually feels like a cigarette when you vape it. More so than any
other e-liquid, Mix Nix has huge potential to help smokers quit
cigarettes. That’s why I’m in this business, after all.”
The main benefit of using a blended nicotine e-liquid is that it can
be sub-ohmed, as well as being used with an RDA, RTA or pod
system. Plus, this should give you the best of both worlds: the
fast absorption of freebase nicotine with the smoothness of salt
nicotine.
It’s going to take some time for people to adjust to blended
nicotine. You certainly shouldn’t jump in at the deep end. Sammy
has found the perfect ratio for him – 3mg of nicotine and 3mg of
salt nicotine.
He said: “I can vape that all day. Six milligrams of nicotine gives
you a buzz very much like you’d get from a cigarette. But any
more than that would be too much for some people, so they
should tread carefully.”
Aside from salt nicotine and shortfills, 2017 was a huge year
for the podcasts. By the time this issue has printed, Sammy will
have recorded his first Dr Fog podcast, featuring interviews and
discussions with members of the team.
“I’ll be explaining Mix Nix in the first episode, and there’ll be
interviews, reviews and conversations with Premium Labs staff.
After that it’ll open up to figures in the wider industry,” said Sammy.
On talking to Sammy, it’s easy to see how he’s managed to
achieve so much in such a short period of time. There are no non-
committal ‘I’m hoping tos’ or ‘I think I haves’ in his vocabulary–
just confident absolutes. It’s an attitude that’s propelled him to
succeed since the beginning.
“I tried vaping but wasn’t impressed with the flavours on offer in
the US and Canada,” he said. “If people are to quit smoking they
need an enjoyable alternative. I said to myself, ‘I’m gonna take
over this business!’”
A mere three years later, he’s well on his way to doing just that.