Allan Kettle, co-owner of Vap-D-Lish, exhales from his electronic cigarette at his store in Centralia on Monday afternoon.
Allan Kettle walks past the sign for his electronic cigarette shop that is waiting to be attached to their store front on Monday afternoon in Centralia.
Allan Kettle, co-owner of Vap-D-Lish, describes some of the electronic cigarette inventory in his showcase at his store in Centralia on Monday afternoon. Kettle, along with his wife, Deena, plan on opening for business at their High Street location this week.
A plume of tobacco vapor billows out of the mouth of Allan Kettle, co-owner of Vap-D-Lish, at his shop in Centralia on Monday afternoon. Kettle, and his wife, Deena, plan to open up their electronic cigarette store on High Street in Centralia this week.
Allan Kettle, co-owner of Vap-D-Lish, exhales from his electronic cigarette at his store in Centralia on Monday afternoon.
Dozens of flavored syrups for electronic cigarettes wait to be tested by customers at Vap-D-Lish in Centralia on Monday.
If you want to see evidence of the growing electronic cigarette trend, look no further than right here in the Twin Cities.
At least four businesses completely devoted to the sale of e-cigarettes and vapor products have opened their doors in Centralia in recent months, two of which are just now getting off the ground.
The city of Centralia granted business licenses to two new shops that sell e-cigarettes, vaporizers and vapor products — Vape D Lish at 123 E. High St., and Vapor Dreaming at 320 N. Tower, Suite 102. Both businesses, in their infancy, join at least two other shops in Centralia and Chehalis cashing in on electronic cigarettes’ newfound popularity.
Electronic cigarettes are battery-powered devices that use a heating element to vaporize a liquid that can contain nicotine and many times come in different flavors. The devices are intended to replicate the action of smoking — without the actual smoke produced by traditional cigarettes.
Allan Kettle, co-owner of Vape D Lish — which opened its doors Wednesday — said the products can be used to help wean people off traditional cigarettes. Kettle says he is one who has used the devices to do so.
“It’s kinda like nicotine patches,” Kettle said. “You can get them in different quantities of nicotine. I started at 24 milligrams and now I’m down to six.”
Owners of the devices can only speak from personal experience as to whether or not the devices can actually help people kick the habit of smoking. Health organizations have not conducted studies on the effectiveness or safety of electronic cigarettes, but those The Chronicle spoke to say the products when used properly are completely safe and effective.
Kettle said he began to seriously think about dropping traditional cigarettes for the alternative option when a family member was diagnosed with lung cancer.
“I wasn’t planning on quitting smoking, but then I stopped cold turkey,” Kettle explained. “It’s seriously the easiest way I’ve ever seen anyone quit smoking.”
Kettle says he brought Vape D Lish to Centralia because there are already a number of shops that cater to the market for electronic cigarettes in Olympia, where he lives.
Bloomberg Businessweek reported in a Feb. 6 article that the e-cigarette market is a $1.5 billion industry — albeit just a fraction of tobacco cigarettes still. Bloomberg Industries is projecting the e-cigarette market to surpass the traditional cigarette market by 2023.
Vapor Dreaming, which plans to open inside The Plaza along North Tower Avenue within weeks, is another one of the new businesses dedicated to “vaping,” as electronic cigarette enthusiasts refer to the practice. Co-owners Ron Welch and Desiree Pannkuk told The Chronicle they also aim to help smokers drop their habit, offering their own vapor juice product with varying amounts of nicotine, and some of which contain only flavored vapor juice.
“The juice you actually put in the electronic cigarettes can definitely contain no nicotine,” Welch said. “There are a lot of people trying to get off of cigarettes, and we’ll offer a lot of products to help them do that.”
Until now, Vapor Dreaming has existed solely online at vapordreaming.com — also making its presence felt on Facebook and Pinterest — and despite online business being “a little slow,” according to Welch, the time is right to open a retail location.
“There’s a lot of anxiety in putting a business together, but we’ll be very excited about the area we’re in and what we have to offer,” Desiree Pannkuk said.
The owners of both Vape D Lish and Vapor Dreaming say they will not sell products to anyone under the age of 18 as many of their products contain nicotine.
Rather, their offerings are geared for adults who either want to just leisurely enjoy a flavored vapor or want a new way to kick smoking to the curb.
“Getting people off that addiction is a life-changer,” Pannkuk said.
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Christopher Brewer: (360) 807-8235
