‘Left with no choice’: vape shops close, smokers reconsider options as Hong Kong ban on sale of e-cigarettes takes effect
- At least three vape shops in a shopping centre in Wan Chai have closed for good, the Post has found
- Some smokers say they could go back to traditional smoking, while others are thinking about quitting smoking after using up e-cigarette stock
A law banning the sale of e-cigarettes and other heated tobacco products in Hong Kong has forced some shops selling these items to fold, with users either considering a return to traditional smoking or quitting the habit completely, the Post has found.
The Post’s visit to a shopping centre in Wan Chai found at least three vape stores closed for good, with shutdown or lease notices on the shutters.
The law bans the import, sale and manufacture of electronic cigarettes, heated tobacco products and herbal cigarettes, with offenders subject to a maximum fine of HK$50,000 (US$6,370) and six months’ imprisonment. Consumers are still allowed to smoke vape items.
“The ban brings inconvenience to users … I still have one month’s stock of e-cigarettes. I will quit smoking after using up all of them as I am trying to do so,” said salesman Jacky So, 24, who has been smoking for a year.
A resident who gave only her surname as Wong said she had been smoking traditional cigarettes for seven years but started using heated tobacco products three years ago.
“It will be difficult to find supplies. If I can’t find any, I will go back to smoking cigarettes,” said the 40-year-old, who works at a bank.
Ryan Kwan Ho’s seven-year-old shop has managed to survive despite the ban as the store also sells video games and all heat-not-burn products were sold out before the law took effect.
The shop normally sold a few hundred such products per month, contributing to about a third of its business. Kwan had planned to cut supply in March, but customer demand meant that more than 2,000 products ended up being sold in April.