EVENTS
EVENTS
BY STEPHEN HANSON
INTERSTEAM 2017 . ARENA BERLIN , GERMANY - JUNE 24-25 .
Friday June 23rd , 11:35 am , sat around a table at Vapouround HQ in Derby just finishing off a meeting when the boss turns to me with a request .
“ There ’ s an expo in Berlin this weekend – I want you to go please but you will need to leave right now ,” he says . I was told to head home , get my bag packed and that I would be told where and when I would be flying from shortly . And so the challenge was accepted and the journey became like an episode of ‘ 24 ’ ( minus guns and Kiefer Sutherland ) just to catch what turned out to be the 16:30 flight from Stansted airport ! So partly through good fortune , and partly through sheer determination we made the flight , checked in to Mercure Hotel , Aleksanderplatz , near to the prominent Berlin 360 TV tower with its revolving restaurant 207 metres above the city . Berlin itself is a world city of culture and its economy is based upon established and emerging high tech companies – however e-cigarettes are moving in fast and from the German companies we spoke to it is obvious that they are doing their market research very thoroughly . I am convinced that German e-liquids will be a common sight in UK vape stores before too long . The huge 6,500 square metre warehouse hosting InterSteam 2017 wasn ’ t filled to capacity , but the visiting public didn ’ t seem to notice or to mind – they were happy trying and buying the juices from the likes of Tom Klark , Fantasi & Twisted Vape , ( among many
others ) and nodding in general approval at the very varied flavours that seemed to cater for the fans of USA and European juice tastes . It is estimated today that more than 2.5 million Germans regularly use electronic cigarettes (‘ steamers ’ as they ’ re sometimes known as in Germany ) but the potential market is very promising as the Germans continue to have one of the highest smoking rates in Europe with 38 % of men and 30 % of women being regular cigarette smokers . ( Source : No-smoke . org ) So with a population of over 80 million , the e-cigarette market could easily surpass that of the UK , but during my visit I didn ’ t see many people vaping outside the many bars and restaurants of Berlin – but I did notice a lot of them smoking . This was my second business trip to Germany during the last twelve months and I ’ m looking forward to my next visit – so in summary this was a well organised show that didn ’ t quite reach it ’ s attendance potential – however , the potential for the e-cigarette market is very encouraging with many more shows planned for this economically strong country . So dust down your German phrase book and stand by to market your products over there – because I guarantee you ’ ll be seeing German produced e-liquids and devices over here .
112 ISSUE 12 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE