FEATURE
JASON MONTI
Like many former smokers it was not an
easy journey for Jason to quit smoking
“I made a few attempts to quit over the
20-plus years I smoked,” says Jason.
“The last time I quit cold turkey and
managed to stay cigarette-free for a few
years. But then I started again and went
on to smoke for a further six years.”
Jason’s story is a familiar one. All it took
was one cigarette for him to fall back
into the addiction. It was only through
finding vaping that he was finally able
quit smoking for good.
You might say that vaping found Jason,
rather than the other way around.
“A life insurance customer told me that he
didn’t smoke but did use an e-cigarette.
But as e-cigarettes are considered
tobacco products he has to be classed
as a smoker.”
After quizzing the customer about
vaping, Jason picked up a basic starter
kit from a local convenience store. He
soon found himself spiralling down a
vaping rabbit hole, watching YouTube
videos and browsing Reddit for advice.
“None of the liquids I liked were available
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nearby, so I asked the companies to send
some to me to take into stores myself.”
One store owner introduced Jason to
Zac of East Coast Vape Distribution and
Zac suggested he have-a-go at selling
their brands over-the-phone. Jason
wasn’t interested. Instead he began
helping vape shop owners obtain lower
and more appropriate rates on their
credit card processing fees.
“As I got more immersed in the scene I
started to notice that no one was paying
any attention to the South American
market. Zac had ties to Colombia so in
late 2016 we started to talk about putting
an expo together.”
It took just 45 days to sell out the indoor
space at the inaugural Vape South
America in Medellin. They had to expand
outside but that area quickly sold out too.
While South America was still an
emerging market, the growth potential
was clear for all to see and many of
those who came in 2017 have leapt at
the chance to come back.
“We’re going to focus more on the B2B
side of things. We’ll introduce local
business owners to companies from the
US and UK. They’ve followed the path
that South American businesses are
now on so will be able to offer plenty of
invaluable advice.”
There is significant income disparity
in South America so costs will need to
be driven down if vaping is to flourish.
While vaping companies are free
to operate in Colombia, restrictions
hamper the industry in three potentially
huge markets: Venezuela, Brazil and
Argentina. But Jason remains optimistic
that the industry will continue to grow.
“There are vapers on the boundaries
of all those countries who are doing
business with one another so there’s a
lot of potential there.”
For his part, Jason hopes to put on
two or three expos a year, in Peru and
Paraguay as well as in Colombia.
He says, “I love working with the young
and enthusiastic people who make up
the vibrant industry that helped me
finally quit cigarettes for good.”