EVENTS
ADVOCACY AT THE
EXPO: IBVTA
How the trade show platform helps the industry’s strongest
supporters - By Leo Forfar
Regardless of which business you’re
in, the best trade shows unite three
key qualities in one location: business,
pleasure and politics. Don’t let the third
word fool you: in the vape trade, advocacy,
lobbying, activism and action are a great
success story for non-partisanship and
cooperation for the common good across
otherwise tribal lines.
The Vaper Expo UK keeps ahead of the
competition by providing space for the
men and women who fight the good fight
in the legal and political arenas of the
world when the giveaways end, the music
stops, and the lights die down. At every
show, Vapouround make connecting with
advocates a priority.
Unsurprisingly, our first stop among
these advocates was at booth B600, with
the IBVTA. There we saw membership
manager Garry Dibley, compliancy
and external affairs executive Matthew
Kersey, and interim chief executive
Gillian Golden. Matthew was the
representative who spoke to us.
“As representatives of the independent
150 | VM17
industry, B2B days are very important to
us. They’re among the best opportunities
to get to know people within that industry
who may not yet be members of our
organisation. Even if they’ve heard of
us, they may not be fully aware of what
we can do for them. We don’t just help
with business support; advocacy and
lobbying are a huge part of our purpose.
We inform potential partners of what
we’re up to in Parliament, whether they
want to sign up as members and if they
have any potential ideas for us to help
aid the independent industry.”
A momentous, fast-paced month filled
with surprises and great leaps is standard
operating procedure in the vape trade.
We’ve recently seen the emergence of
HC Bill 59 from Sir Christopher Chope,
explicitly asking “to exempt electronic
cigarettes from UK law derived from the
Tobacco Products Directive.”
The Bill is scheduled for its second reading
on June 18. As a Private Member’s Bill,
it hasn’t been given much hope is not
expected to pass. However, seeing such
a thing reach the mainstream is a hopeful
sign of progress and a confirmation that
we have allies in high places.
“We were happy to help Christopher
Chope out by briefing him. He reached
out to us, in fact, and in turn we presented
him with the concerns of the independent
industry. One of our biggest campaigns
has been getting the voice of the vape
industry heard in the Science