‘Vapers’ give thumbs-up to new bill

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This article was published 02/06/2015 (3979 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

REGARDLESS of how the province chooses to legislate them, some Winnipeg “vapers” say e-cigarettes and their retailers are here to stay.

David Lofchick, owner of Winnipeg e-cigarette seller Cold Turkey Vape Shop, said he’s not worried about losing business should the new laws pass. In fact, Lofchick said he hopes they do, and the province takes them even further.

“Where minors are concerned, I certainly hope (the bill) has teeth,” he said. “They say that sale to minors is prohibited, I’m hoping that minors are prohibited from entering establishments that sell the devices…. It’s a choice for parents to make.”

Lofchick opened Cold Turkey in December 2014, only six months after purchasing his first e-cigarette kit. After smoking for 40 years and trying to quit unsuccessfully for 30, Lofchick said e-cigarettes were the most helpful smoking cessation aid he tried. After starting vaping last July, he said he hasn’t smoked a single tobacco cigarette.

Lofchick said business has been “amazing.”

“We could open three more stores next month if we wanted to,” he said, adding, “there’s new stores opening all the time.”

Winnipeg’s first e-cigarette shop, Fat Panda, opened more than a year ago. Since then, Lofchick guessed about 15 stores have opened in Winnipeg, all responding to what he calls “large and growing demand.” With that in mind, he said it’s unlikely the new legislation would affect business much.

“The word is out there,” he said. “It might, at worst, slow growth, which would be a shame.”

Rusty Olson, a regular customer at Cold Turkey, agreed. Olson, who said he used to be “a pretty heavy” smoker, has been vaping for about a year, and said for him, vaping is as much about community as it is about the e-cigarettes themselves.

“I love just sitting and talking and chucking clouds with fellow vapers,” he said, referring to the plumes of vapour experienced vapers can exhale.

Olson said he doesn’t think the legislation would change how he and others use e-cigarettes.

“There’s a lot of people who are truly respectful about it,” he said. “They don’t want to be causing stress or anger in the community. We’re more than willing to have regulations and do things by the rules, but at the same time we want it to be fair for everyone.

“We want to keep our rights as well.”

aidan.geary@freepress.mb.ca