EVENTS
BH VAPE, BOURNEMOUTH - 29TH APRIL
A TRULY EXTRAORDINARY DAY AT BHVAPE - BY GORDON STRIBLING
While no two days aboard the Vapouround bus
are the same, you do come to expect some
things to pan out in a certain way. One thing you
don’t expect is to be greeted at your destination
with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for
a cup-winning football team, but such was the
case at BHVape in Bournemouth.
As our expert driver inched the bus into a seemingly-impossible
space, Johnnie Lovell and his team waved excitedly, smiles
lighting up their faces. We hopped off and gratefully accepted the
first of many offers of coffee. Not a bad start to the day!
Before opening the bus to the public, we took a few minutes
to check out the shop. Packed with knick-knacks and curios,
BHVape has the air of a curiosity shop about it. You could
certainly imagine Johnnie operating it as such in another era.
Doughnuts-in-hand, we opened the bus to the locals and the
many customers already relaxing in the café area of the shop.
Long-time BHVape customer Tom shared his story - a familiar
tale of slipping back into bad habits before finally quitting for good.
“I would never go back now. I took a drag of a cigarette recently
and it instantly reminded me of my first ever puff as a kid. Such a
nasty, horrible taste. Vaping does come with its own set of issues
– I’m forever cleaning VG from my windows for one thing – but
that’s nothing compared to what you put up with as a smoker.”
188 | VM17
Throughout the day I alternated between the bus and the shop,
where it became increasingly difficult to find somewhere to sit.
Even a couple of pet dogs lay flopped below their owners’ feet.
One all-too-common criticism of some vaping shops is their
cliquishness. BHVape is the exact opposite - as much a
welcoming community centre as a supplier of vape products. It’s
no wonder people were sticking around.
As BHVape’s Alex played Mega Man X on the SNES on the
bottom deck of the bus, customers upstairs tried some e-liquids
on the Vape Station. Old Skool Vape’s Mayhem was proving to
be very popular, with one vaper commenting that it would go very
well with a vodka and coke. We, of course, stuck to coffee and
doughnuts (of which BHVape seemed to have a limitless supply.)