New figures released today from a leading online vape retailer have shown that - as predicted - vapers are stockpiling products, leading to a ‘significant uplift in sales.’
Sales data for the final day before the duty came in, released by Vape Club, has shown a surge of over 100% on Wednesday last week (30 September).
The Vaping Products Duty tax came into force on 1 October, and for some of the most popular products, sales increased by up to 125% when compared to the average day’s trade, Vape Club revealed.
Last-minute
On top of this, the latest Google search data has also highlighted a rush to find last-minute information on the duty itself, with online searches for ‘vape tax’ increasing by 456% over the last week.
Vape Club has already warned the new duty will be a serious setback for public health, and called on HMRC to reconsider the rate at which it’s set.
However, Dan Marchant, director at Vape Club and founding member of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), has sought to allay any consumer fears: “Don’t panic just yet - retailers actually have a six-month sell through window for untaxed products.
“By law, any liquid containing a product manufactured or imported into the UK on or after 1 October will have to have a tax stamp and bear the new higher prices. But - and this is an important but - as retailers, we’re allowed to continue selling untaxed stock manufactured or imported up to 30 September this year and all the way through until the end of March 2027.”
Stocking up
Marchant added that, for his company at least, the last six months have been centred around stocking up: “Naturally, we’ve spent the last six months securing and stocking up on as much untaxed stock as possible, with the aim to try and have as many products available at the old prices for as long as we can. We’ve even had to take on extra warehouse space to store it all.
“We cannot guarantee that every product will last the full six months, and some smaller brands just haven’t had the resources or the cashflow to produce six months of stock in advance. But we’re going to do our best to keep as many products at the current pricing for as long as we can.”
Marchant went on to suggest the new duty was unfair on the general public, many of whom are using vaping as a cessation tool: “The Government banned disposables and told everyone to switch to refillable kits instead - so people did.
“Now, those same refillable products are facing some of the steepest price rises under this duty. The Government asked consumers to change their behaviour for public health reasons, and now they’re punishing them financially for having done exactly that. It’s policy whiplash.”
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