Scotland's vape capital - what's behind the boom?

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Scotland's vape capital - what's behind the boom? 6 hours ago Share Save Add as preferred on Google David Wallace Lockhart and Morgan Spence , Scotland, Greenock From selling tools to vape products - Sofy Saleem diversified the stock in his hardware shop Sofy Saleem decided to shake up the stock in his Greenock hardware shop a couple of years ago. He still sells screws, nails and DIY products, but now he has a huge section dedicated to vaping.

Initially, it started out as one small corner, but grew and grew. Now the majority of his sales come from vapes. It's all about "supply and demand", he said.

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He sees it as simply providing his customers with what they want. Sofy says vapes account for the majority of sales at his Greenock hardware shop And he was happy to admit "there's good money to be made" in moving towards vapes. The vape section of his shop is a wall of colour which needs constant restocking.

Flavours ranging from gummy bears to lemonade fill the shelves. "This one flies out," he said, pointing at a strawberry vape. Cigarettes have to stay out of sight, but with vapes he can display the "nice colours" which he explained is "attraction - it gets customers talking".

Some hardware and phone repair shops in the town also stock vapes Sofy's business shift isn't unique. New figures from the University of Edinburgh, shared exclusively with News, highlight the growth of outlets selling vapes in Scotland. With no licensing regime, a retailer simply has to register on a Scottish government online portal and then they can stock these products.

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In 2020, there were 5,573 shops selling vapes in Scotland. By 2024, that was up to 7,069 – an increase of 28%. This growth of 1,500 outlets has not been even across the country.

It's concentrated in the most deprived communities. We visited Greenock because, according to the research, its town centre has the highest density of shops registered to sell vapes per head of population in Scotland - by quite some distance. It's also the most deprived part of the country .

A short walk up one of the main streets makes it obvious that vaping is big business here. Once a global maritime hub, Greenock now struggles with high poverty levels We counted at least 20 outlets selling e-cigarettes within the town centre. And that's not including the nearby prison, which is also registered to sell vapes.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.