Blackburn vaping company might be pioneers but there are calls for tougher regulation – Lancs Live

The concept of vaping is something few people are unaware of but back in the early 2000s it was an unknown phrase.

Although electronic cigarettes date back to the 1960s it was a patent filed by Hon Lik in 2003 which really kickstarted the industry. Fed up with his own 20 a day habit and the fact that his father was dying of lung cancer, Hon Lik set about inventing a less harmful cigarette.

The story is that the idea came to him in a dream, where he was dying via drowning, his lungs were filling with water, and suddenly the water turned into a harmless vapour, and hence the idea for the e-cig. Many companies have since jumped on the vaping bandwagon but it was way back in 2008 that Totally Wicked was launched in Blackburn.

READ MORE: Blackburn Rovers confirm new front of shirt sponsor after Recoverite partnership ends prematurely

On October 8 that year the company was launched by Jason Cropper with his brother Fraser, who is the current chairman, saying 10 years later: "It was a true pioneering moment; with the term vaping still at least three years away from making its appearance, e-cigarette manufacturers and retailers had a tremendously difficult task of creating awareness and trust in our products. Even in our earliest infancy, we were privileged to be able to rely on the support of some tremendously loyal customers, who understood first-hand the potential of vaping."

Jason is no longer involved in the running of Totally Wicked, having stepped down from the multi-million pound company in 2013, after his comments to politicians deemed 'not to reflect the views of the company'. Marcus Saxton is the current chief executive.

Although Totally Wicked now has over 500 shops across the UK including company-operated outlets and franchises, as well as selling in Asda, Sainsbury's and Bargain Booze stores, its roots in Blackburn are a big part of the firm. Totally Wicked has been the shirt sponsor of Blackburn Rovers since 2018 and has been the club's principal sponsor since January of this year after Rovers parted ways with Recoverite Compression.

Fraser Cropper, Totally Wicked's chairman, has been a lifelong supporter of the club, having sold programmes at Ewood Park when he was a youngster, and seeing his company's logo on the front of his beloved team's shirts is something he takes great pride in. The sponsorship also helped Rovers out of a budgetary quandary and Totally Wicked has also been a sponsor of St Helen's Rugby FC for the last 10 years.

Totally Wicked directly employs more than 140 people, as well as supporting many more jobs through franchises, and the company posted a turnover of 43.5m for the 12 months to March 31, 2021, up slightly from the 43.3m it achieved during the prior year. Headquartered in Stancliffe Street, the firm takes its responsibilities seriously, requiring age verification for online sales, and in 2016 was the founding member of the Independent British Vaping Trade Association (IBVTA) which was established to support the independent vape industry.

Being a responsible vaping company is a hot topic at the moment. Last month Conservative MP Adam Afriyie, the vice chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Vaping, demanded tougher regulations on e-cigarettes after a report revealed that thousands of vaping devices have been sold to schoolchildren.

Mr Afriyie warned that online sellers are using colours and flavours to target under-18s as trading standards officers have reported that thousands of children have been sold vaping devices. According to a new report by Scottish Trading Standards (SCOTSS) a total of 88,839 disposable vaping devices were removed from sale as they were either not labelled correctly in accordance with the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

In line with tobacco products, e-cigarettes and liquid have an age restriction meaning you have to be 18 to buy them, but earlier this year a BBC investigation found a third of shops selling to underage youngsters. An increase in the number of children vaping has led to calls for tighter regulations on the sale of e-cig products.

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Blackburn vaping company might be pioneers but there are calls for tougher regulation - Lancs Live