VaprSpot aims to help smokers kick habit

Louis Rogers is no medical expert but he testifies that electronic cigarettes have helped him and his customers kick the habit of lighting up another one. He added that he also has some clients that also even quit chewing betel nut.

“I never make any medical claims and I won’t make some but based on my own experience, [e-cigarettes] got me out of cigarettes,” said Rogers, who owns the recently re-opened VaprSpot in Dandan right across the Joeten Building.

E-cigarettes are commonly battery-powered. These are vaporizers, where the term vaping was derived from, that give you the feeling of smoking but minus the tobacco.

Rogers said while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is still conducting studies on e-cigarettes, there are several researches in the United Kingdom claimed that it is 95 percent safer than regular cigarettes.

“And the signs show a lot of people quit smoking tobacco products. That’s why the FDA has extended its research until 2022 to conduct more studies on e-cigarettes,” added Rogers, who used to smoke for 27 years.

He said it was almost four years ago that he acquired his first e-cigarette. “I have not smoked a cigarette for three years when I switched to e-cigarette. The transition was pretty successful and it helped me to slowly withdraw from nicotine.”

Rogers said that using e-cigarettes, or vaping, is a good and suitable alternative to regular smoking. “The trends show that a pretty good percentage of e-cigarette users got them to quit regular cigarettes.”

Re-launch
Rogers said last April 2 was just a re-opening of his place since he had a previous spot located at the back of the same building. “Initially, I do online sales and everything is done on the Internet. My first place was like a small office and we’re like cramped inside it.”

“The growing market of local customers made me decide that it’s about time to get a bigger place. I am pretty much hands on in putting up the place since I know the style and design that I wanted,” he added.

VaprSpot’s new place gives customers a warm and cozy feeling. “It is like a man-cave for the gents. It looks like a big living room that is good to hang out with your friends. I will be adding some more shelves where customers can try other juices and flavors.”

Nick Rabauliman, one of Rogers’ regular customers, said the new place is a lot more convenient. “It has a full staff that could assist you. The hours are good for people on the go or you could always stop by after work and try the new fluids.”

For mature adults
But does Rogers promote underage smoking? “The question is, will this be a gateway for young adults to get started smoking cigarettes?”

“We have an age limit of 18 years old up. It’s an attraction for them. Seeing the smoke or the vapor that comes out, they think it’s cool. It only gives you the notion that you’re smoking but what you have is only flavors without the nicotine. We don’t promote smoking and we don’t want them to start it. This is for mature adults.”

Rogers said he won’t blame the skeptics and other people who think that vaping is also smoking. “Fear of the unknown is an unfortunate thing. I am not a pushy salesman. I let someone make the informed decision and make sure that it would be his or her own personal choice. It doesn’t harm to try.”

Satisfied customers
Rabauliman, Paul Manglona, and Mike Richter—who quit smoking more than three months ago—testify that e-cigarettes helped them abandon their respective vices.

Manglona said that he was a smoker for almost 17 years but had already quit seven months ago. “It helped me stop, but gradually. When I first started, I was using fluids that still had 6 percent nicotine. Then down to 3, right now I’m trying to reach zero.”

He added that VaprSpot, is the first of its kind on the island. “I just started vaping and its fun. Now it has become a hobby. With this facility, it’s a nice place to hang out with your friends. This is one of the best that I’ve seen so far, and I’ve been to Guam and the mainland.”

Rabauliman, on the other hand, used to smoke cigarettes, and chew tobacco and betel nut. A regular visit to the dentist, coupled by the amount of money he spends in cigarettes and betel nut, made him decide to quit his vices.

“The dentist told me that I could get oral cancer unless I stop smoking and chewing. I need to find something better and somebody told me about e-cigarettes, so I tried it. It is something different and I’ve been vaping since then. I haven’t been back since then,” added Rabauliman.

Before, Rabauliman said that he used to spend more than $25 a day—from buying cigarettes, betel nut, lime, and pepper leaf—compared to $22 for each bottle of the fluids used in e-cigarettes that could last for a month.

“It has helped me with my cigarette smoking. Slowly, it limited my nicotine levels. It is beneficial since I already stopped smoking. The smell is also not that awful compared to cigarettes that after you smoke one stick, the odor sticks.”