EVENTS
SATURDAY REVIEW OF VAPER
EXPO 2016 UK – THE RETURN
By Siddiqa Khalifa
The Vaper Expo 2016 UK – The
Return was my first ever vape event.
Before joining Vapouround, I was
new to the vaping industry but once I
learned that a vaping event was
taking place so close to me in UK,
I was eager to attend. I was looking
forward to interviewing potential
clients and finding out more about
the vaping industry.
By 9AM many people were queuing up
at the entrance. From afar, many vapers
looked eager to get inside and some
looked very excited indeed. People from
other vape stands at the show were
eagerly waiting for the vaping community
to enter as they were ready to hand out
goody bags and offer free samples of
their e-liquids.
As the vaping community entered the
venue, their eyes wandered across in
excitement as they noticed Vapouround’s
colourful bus stand. Many stopped by
and asked what the bus was all about.
Matt Coupland from Vapouround,
oversaw the juice deck on the doubledecker bus and was showing vapers the
variety of e-liquids on the bus - Naked
Fish, Mellow Budda, Dinner Lady.
Matt hardly had a moment to himself for
the entire day as there was a constant
stream of visitors wanting to sample the
juices. When I asked him how he was
getting on he said he felt hot but it
was a lot fun.
A lot of vapers appreciated Matt showing
them how to build their own coils and it
gave them a chance to be adventurous
with their mods and coils. It brought light
onto the creativity of hand-crafting coils.
The top deck of the bus was lit up with
disco lights and music was bouncing off
the walls. Matt mentioned a lot of vapers
from Sheffield visited the bus but one
vaper in particular, Morgan Hatton, stood
out for Matt. As two coil-lovers, they both
122 ISSUE 08 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE
shared their interests on coils which
influenced other vapers to build their
own coils.
As I stepped off the bus, I heard music
getting louder and louder. I was curious
as to where the music was coming from
so I followed this to the centre of the
hall and found people gathering around
a stage where the DJ and host were
keeping them entertained. People were
cheering as the DJ and host announced
vape companies that are soon going
to appear on stage to hand out
their freebies.
From hats and t-shirts to mods and
e-liquids, vape companies were
splurging out their freebies to the
vapers that attended. Hands shot up as
Strawberry Queen, Evil Cloud and Grey
Haze went on stage. Vapers cheered for
goodies and many of them were lucky
to catch mods, e-liquids, t-shirts and so
much more!
I walked around a few exhibitors to look
around and see what e-juices people
AFTER VISITING NEARLY
100 EXHIBITORS, I STARTED
TO MAKE MY WAY BACK
TO VAPOUROUND’S BUS
BUT WAS SOON CAPTURED
BY RIOT SQUAD.
AFTER BEING PUSHED
INTO A SMALL
INTERROGATION ROOM, I
WAS QUESTIONED ABOUT
MY ROLE AT THE EVENT
EVEN THOUGH MY BLACK
VAPOUROUND T-SHIRT
HIGHLIGHTED MY STATUS.
were raving about and what flavours
vapers were sampling. After visiting
nearly 100 exhibitors, I started to make
my way back to Vapouround’s bus but
was soon captured by Riot Squad.
After being pushed into a small
interrogation room, I was questioned
about my role at the event even though
my black Vapouround t-shirt highlighted
my status. Soon, I was demanded to
wear a prison-like uniform and ushered
into a second room where a second
police officer took down my email.
Finally, when I reached the third room,
the third police officer took my mug shot
and I was strongly advised not to meddle
into the rebellious vaping business ever
again. I absolutely loved this experience
and I thought the arrest attack was a
great sales technique as it grabbed my
attention and made me feel involved.
Being held captive by Riot Squad was
the highlight of my experience at The
Vaper Expo.
As well as appreciating the unique
exhibitors at the event, I noticed there
was a variety of different cultures present
at the show. I noticed companies from
Malaysia, India, USA and Japan at
the show and until that point I had not
realised how big the vaping industry
was internationally.
Double Drip also stood out to me as
they had a lottery-like machine. Only,
instead of throwing out money, they
were distributing e-juices. I thought this
was a great touch to Double Drip’s
stand as other people, including myself,
were standing in line anxiously
waiting to participate.
Overall, I enjoyed the vibrant and friendly
atmosphere. I think I must have sampled
almost every single e-juice at the show
and I am extremely pleased to have
attended The Vaper Expo 2016 UK –
The Return.