What Will Spell the Demise of Vape Shops?

Vaping and vaping shops are a fairly new phenomenon. The industry is vulnerable, and its shop and stall owners are even more vulnerable. The global pandemic means that vape shops and stalls have had to close, and since shops and stalls are so new, it is unlikely the proprietors can withstand long-term closures. Furthermore, corner shops and supermarkets that stock vaping goods are being allowed to remain open. This means that when vape shops reopen, they will have to tear their customers back from the arms of larger companies. Will a global pandemic kill off vape shops, or are there other vape shop killers hanging around in the shadows?

The Death of Comic Books

Comic book shops are niche shops that have a similar problem to vape shops because they both rely on a trend, albeit long-lasting trends. Comic book shops have been killed off by the global pandemic and the lockdown because they too cannot afford to reopen after the lockdowns are over. Plus, the major distributor Diamond closed its doors, and Marvel and DC are launching digital titles, which will kill off mainstream comic books forever because once a property goes online, then it is essentially free. Plus, Marvel released a comic book called “Safe Space and Snowflake” in an attempt to pander to the LGBTQ+ crowd, but in fact, offended them greatly, and this negative press has damaged customer relations permanently.

The Comic Book - Vape Mirror

Comic books are dying because of the decline of the comic book trend, because of a distributor closing down, because shop owners cannot afford to stay closed during a lockdown, because the major comic book producers are proposing a format that cuts out comic books, and because Marvel has offended both left-wing and right-wing comic fans. Will the same problems kill vape shops?

The Trend

Vaping saw a big boost when it was trendy, and yet despite the trend falling almost completely out of the media, there are still dedicated vapers. People who have never smoked cigs are unlikely to move over to them, and vaping is addictive, so it is likely that the trend will ever die out completely.

The Distributor/Manufacturer

Some posited that the high death toll in China may kill off the vape shop suppliers in the same way that Diamond killed off comic books, but this is China we are talking about, and not to be callous, but there are plenty more where they came from. If one factory closes because of financial difficulty, then another will open the week after.

Shop Owners Cannot Afford a Lockdown

Of all the things to kill off vape shops and stalls, the global pandemic and following lockdown is probably the biggest threat. Many shops are going to suffer because of the lockdown, but even salons, antique shops and restaurants have had years to build up contingency funds and plans, whereas the newer vape shops and stalls have not. Many vape shops/stalls will not be able to afford to reopen, and most of their customers will be gone to other suppliers.

Producers Cutting Vape Shops Out

The comic book industry dies because digital comics mean comic book stores are unnecessary. One could say that online selling of vape fluid and vape pens will make stores and stalls unnecessary. However, online buying has been very easy since before vaping even existed, which means the industry is already primed for it. Online buying is unlikely to kill off vape shops or it would have done it already.

Vaping and Offence

Besides the occasional medical report saying that vaping is worse than smoking cigs, there is nothing out there to offend customers. Major news outlets have already attacked vaping and the vape industry brushed it off. There have been best vape liquid reviews online that have failed to offend, and there are no big online influencers who have come out against vaping. Unless there is a serious medical report showing that vaping does long-term damage, then it is unlikely that any sort of offensive act will cause the demise of vaping.

Final Thoughts - Post Lockdown

If you are reading this, there is a chance that the global lockdown has ended, and the Co-vid 19 pandemic is almost forgotten about. You will already know if the lockdown killed vape shops and stalls. However, barring some sort of massive health-related scandal, the only thing that will kill off the entire industry is if the vaping trend dies off in the same way that chewing tobacco died off or sniffing snuff died off.