As the pounding music echoed across Zabeel Hall, flashing lights dazzled and pungent clouds filled the air, Dubai’s first world vape event felt more like a nightclub than a trade show. The vaping industry is geared up to impress the teen market, something that has attracted controversy and tighter regulation in the US. Criticism of the industry’s intentions is unlikely to fade after the three-day Dubai World Trade Centre extravaganza, where stands such as Chubby Gorilla, vapor shop, Suicide Bunny and Vroom targeted new users and smokers to switch to what many claim is a less harmful alternative to tobacco. A growing market “The UAE market is growing at a phenomenal rate because it is so new,” said Tim Philips, managing director of ECigIntelligence. “We have been tracking sales in the top 10 stores per quarter in the UAE. “Sales are generally increasing in the region and quite a bit of traffic is coming to the UAE from outside the country. For More: Vaping companies set sights on Gulf’s young smokers
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