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There’s no denying the sudden increase of vapers across the globe over the past years. What started as a small niche back in the mid-2000s has turned into a booming industry. Think about the vast vape shops sprouting elsewhere in major cities in the world, and consider the number of smokers who have switched from smoking to vaping, and the growing number of vapers who have joined the bandwagon. With this, you may be intrigued to know what led to this new community. 

In this article, we’ll cover a little history of vaping and its rise to popularity.

A glimpse of the past

Contrary to what many people know, vaping has its roots back in ancient history where the early Egyptians used hot stones to vape herbs. The modern vaping method began as an idea of an e-cigarette that came up by Joseph Robinson in 1927. Herbert Gilbert then made his “smokeless non-tobacco cigarette popular back in 1963. 

It was only in the mid-2000s when Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik made the first e-cigarette. Soon after, it made its way to the US in 2007 and the UK with two famous brothers, Umer and Tariq Sheikh, after performing some modifications to vaping – the rest is history!

The world of vaping today

Today, vaping has quickly altered the world of nicotine and tobacco. With more than 41 million users worldwide as of 2018, it has already taken the whole world by storm and grown into a massive community.

However, the question is: Is it just a fad, or is this new way of smoking here to stay? To answer this crucial question, here are some facts and figures that will provide some context:

• Nine per cent of adults in the UK said they regularly or occasionally vape (Gallup, 2018).
• More than 27.5 per cent of high school students in the US use vape products (The Truth Initiative, 2019).
• Nearly one million youth e-cigarette users use the product daily, and 1.6 million use it more than 20 times per month (US Food and Drug Administration, 2019).

Vaping versus smoking 

Did you know that the World Health Organisation’s data from 2019 shows a decline of 60 million smokers since 2012? This may be attributed to vaping! In fact, around half as many Brits have vaped as smoke, and the majority was ex-smokers back in 2019. 

According to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), 2.2 million ex-smokers in the UK who have tried vaping have now quit smoking altogether. For this reason, it is safe to say that while vaping increases, smoking declines, which is why vaping is deemed as an effective alternative to smoking.

What the future holds for vaping

It appears that there are no signs of stopping or slowing down for vaping. Some recent statistics prove that it is here to stay and will further grow. Take note of the following details:

• There will be an estimated 55 million e-cigarette users worldwide by 2021 (Euromonitor, 2018).
• Worldwide vaping sales are expected to reach $40 billion by 2023 (The Lancet, 2019).
• The US, UK, and Japan will continue to be the three largest markets for vaping products in the years to come (Euromonitor, 2018).

Conclusion

At this point, you’ve learned how vaping has grown from a relatively small market to what it is today—a booming industry. Given the facts and figures outlined above, it has indeed risen in popularity and will continue to dominate the scene for many years. If you ever thought about what it feels like to vape, you might as well take the plunge and join the community!

We’re an online vape shop in the UK offering e-juices, kits, tanks and clearomizers, coils and accessories, as well as batteries and vape mods. Check our wide selection and place your order today!