On Sunday, August 14, from 12pm to 8pm, an e-cigarette event, Vape the Block, was held at the Event Hall of Denver, Colorado. But this was not a B2B Expo, it was open to the public, vaper or non-vaper.
This is the second year that Colorado’s largest vape shop has hosted the event. The atmosphere is unique, but this time it’s entirely community-based. However, any creative effort to promote change in a community is bound to encounter some resistance from those who are jealous or deliberately scornful of the noble endeavor. However, there are ways to avoid those pesky people on the way to endless success.
Vape Expo shows are typically B2B.
Programs and events about e-cigarettes for the community, vapers or non-vapers who are interested in learning about e-cigarettes are rarely organized. Most of the events organized are usually for this industry, are advertisements of essential oil manufacturers or stores, etc. Simply put, the events organized are mostly B2B (Business to business), a time for manufacturers to have the opportunity to promote their products, so this cannot be said to be an ideal place for newcomers to the vaper community to learn.
However, many vapers have also noticed that this industry has created a community of different individuals but with a passion for creativity and the same ideas. They are very interested in learning about the art of vaping and the values it brings. As for those who are not involved, they are often not interested and never intend to learn about a strange concept from programs with the participation of product stores when they still do not understand anything about it.
There are also vapers who are interested and attracted to special e-cigarette products, they definitely want to participate in events where many new products are introduced. So what should these vapers do?
An event for all vapers - No business endorsement required
What about casual vapers who just want to learn more about the industry in a more social way? Or vapers who want to meet like-minded people, or vapers who want to expand their network within the vaping community? Where can they go? Surely there must be a way, right?
We were fortunate enough to attend one of the only vaping events open to the public in Denver, Colorado. The festival-style “Vape the Block” community event was held in the Denver City Hall Event Hall. We had a chance to meet and talk with the media manager for the organization that organized the event, one of the state’s largest and most popular vaping stores, Inno-Vapor Digital.
Largest E-Cigarette Store in Colorado
Inno-Vapor Digital has a total of nine stores in the Denver area, and as we read this, they are making preparations to open their tenth store. The person we spoke to is not only in charge of communications, he also holds many other positions within the Inno-Vapor store. He is also the business director, the Littleton store manager, and the technical training manager.
We knew we had the right person to talk to about this event, so while the Vape The Block event was taking place, we met with Jeremy Eldridge, who, of all his positions in the store, actually holds the position of program manager.
Interview with Inno-Vapor Digital
When we asked him what inspired him to create this program, Jeremy Eldridge told us that this was the second time “Vape the Block” had been organized and its goal was to create and maintain a sense of community. It is a term that most vapers know and respect. As mentioned above, vapers are also part of the community, so Inno-Vapor’s efforts to create a strong vaper community are very valuable.
“Inno-Vapor hosted its first Vape the Block event in July 2015, in the parking garage at our Englewood store,” Jeremy told us.
The event was a huge success with over 400 attendees crammed into a small space.
“It felt like everyone was at a festival, there were games, little competitions and music. It was a chance to try and bring the vaping community together and it worked.”
“This year we are doing it with a festival theme to make it more fun for people.”
Vape the Block this year also featured live music, raffles, giveaways, photo booths, basketball games, competitions, spins of the wheel, food trucks, and more carnival games. Not to mention 17 vendors and sponsors from e-cigarette manufacturers. This year’s slogan was “no one goes home empty-handed!” It was executed perfectly, with many vapers leaving Vape the Block with dozens of e-juices and a ton of other goodies they could take home.
Learn more about Vape the Block
The stores and sponsors of the event range from small to large – from Charlie’s Chalkdust, to Marina Vape, Traditional Juice, Rogue Gourment, Coastal Clouds, 5280 Vapor, Underdog Distributions, Longhorn Vapor, and of course, Inno-Vapor Digital. This is not a complete list of participating stores, but it does illustrate how the event showcases a diverse range of vendors, both large and small. There are also a number of local shops that are featured in this list, again making a great impact on the Denver vaping community.
All booths for local shops are free at the event. Jeremy says “as the largest shop with almost 10 locations, it makes sense to spread the love and make the community bigger, so that the smaller shops around can add some variety.”
Jeremy also said, “With where we are now, with the vaping laws, we don’t need to make more enemies within our own industry, we’re joining together. So by offering free shelves to local stores, we’re trying to create camaraderie between stores in the area.”
Some stores decided not to participate.
However, when invitations were sent out to local stores, some declined. So there was a bit of a backlash from the local vaping community. This was because some stores didn’t participate because they thought what Inno-Vapor was doing might be illegal. “Rest assured, all of the e-cigarette vendors in Denver are very concerned about compliance,” Jeremy explained.
“On the other hand, we wouldn’t hold an event if it was illegal,” Jeremy said. “So it’s a mixed bag, the blame is unnecessary, but it also gives us some peace of mind. We’re happy to see so many people in the industry expressing their concerns about the law and taking the proper action and responsibility to do things within the law.”
Jeremy also clarified with us. “We did our research. The legal team did a great job of researching the issue. The e-liquid manufacturers told us we shouldn’t be giving out free samples because it’s against federal law. But we weren’t hosting any sales, so it was completely legal. Also, the city of Denver doesn’t ban vaping, nor does it ban vaping downtown. On top of that, we had to card people in, and even if we knew them, we still asked to see ID. We followed the law. I’m happy to say that we had over five hundred people in our house today.”
It’s also possible that some stores declined to participate because Vape the Block is hosted by the state’s largest e-cigarette store. Being the largest and most well-known store in Colorado is an advantage, but also an unfortunate burden.
“We want to celebrate the local vaping community, but because of our reputation, a lot of people think we want to destroy their business. We don’t want to do that, we’re not the enemy of anyone, we don’t want to see anyone lose their job or go bankrupt. Our goal is to give back to the community, that’s all.”
(To be continued)
Source: Vapingpost
Author: Tony Ottomanelli II
Translator: The Vape Blog
