Have you noticed more vape clouds in the air recently?
Vaping has become massively popular in the past few years, with more and more consumers choosing electronic smoking alternatives over traditional tobacco products like cigarettes and cigars.
If you’re hoping to break into the vape scene and launch your very own vape shop, right now is the perfect time.
In this blog, we’ll give you a step-by-step walkthrough of how to open a vape shop and share our tips for planning a profitable small business.
1. Understand Your Local Vape Market
The first step on your path to open a vape shop is to learn more about your potential customers and your potential competition.
First, research your area’s demographics and shopping habits. Does your neighborhood’s population skew older or younger? Do you live in an affluent area, or would your customers be on the hunt for the best deal? Generally, what kinds of tobacco or vape products do you tend to see people using?
Answering these questions will help you understand your potential customers and design your vape shop to meet their wants and needs.
Next, you’ll want to size up the competition. Create a list of other smoke shops in your area, and pay each of them a visit. Take note of what types of vape products they carry, and look for opportunities to fill a gap in the market.
Analyzing your competition will help you find ways to make your vape shop stand out as the go-to spot for all things vape.
2. Research the Laws Regarding Vape Sales
One of the most important things to understand about how to open a vape shop is that there are strict laws and regulations that will apply to your small business.
Make sure to spend some time researching these laws and creating a plan to stay compliant with them.
A critical law to be aware of is that selling tobacco products or related goods to customers under the age of 21 is strictly prohibited.
To avoid the hefty fines and penalties associated with breaking this law, consider using a point of sale (POS) system with built-in age verification. This feature prompts your cashiers to check customers’ IDs during the checkout process, allowing them to either manually their birthdates or scan the ID card with an age verification scanner.
3. Find an Ideal Location for Your Vape Shop
Choosing the right location plays a major role in your vape shop’s success.
You’ll want to choose a strategic location that’s easy for your customers to find, has ample foot traffic, and isn’t too close to any of your competitors. Take special care to investigate your city’s zoning laws since they might affect where you can set up shop.
When budgeting for your location, don’t forget to account for other expenses like renovations and utilities.
4. Get Your Vape Shop Retail-Ready
Finding the perfect location is just one step on your journey to turn your vape shop dreams into reality; you’ll also need to design a great shopping environment for your customers.
Your vape shop should have an attractive storefront that intrigues shoppers and entices them to come inside. Once they’ve walked through your door, that excellent experience should continue. Your customers should be able to easily navigate your shop and find exactly what they’re looking for.
Here are some retail essentials that you need to make exploring your vape shop a positive experience for your customers:
- Clear signage
- Shelving and display cases
- Checkout counters
- Shopping baskets
Including these elements in your vape shop’s floor plan will give your business a more professional, polished look and feel, enticing your customers to stop by again when they’re in need of vape products.
5. Determine Your Vape Shop’s Product Line
Now that your store’s shelves are installed, it’s time to put something on them! The next step in learning how to open a vape shop is to choose which products to sell.
Using what you learned during the market research phase, create a list of products that your customers would expect to find in your store. If you’re planning to serve as your community’s one-stop shop for all things vape, you might carry a wide range of e-cigarette devices, e-juices, and accessories.
In contrast, if you’re planning to offer more specialty items, you might create a more curated shopping experience for your customers and only carry a selection of the most well-known luxury brands.
Pro Tip: If you’re hoping to hop on the profitable trend of CBD, delta-8, and kratom, then you’ll need high-risk payment processing to sell these new and tightly regulated products. Your best option is to secure high-risk payment processing through your POS provider.
6. Equip Your Vape Shop With a POS System
Finding the right POS system for your vape shop is a pivotal decision. This tool will power all of your small business’ operations, handling key tasks like:
- Processing transactions
- Monitoring your inventory levels
- Verifying customer ages
- Generating detailed sales reports
To handle the complexities of vape sales, you need an industry-specific POS solution like Cigars POS. Choosing a POS system designed specifically for businesses like yours will ensure that all the tools you need are right at your fingertips as your vape shop grows.
7. Hire a Great Team
The next essential ingredient for a successful vape shop is a solid team of employees. You’ll want to hire enough cashiers, stockers, and managers to keep your shop running smoothly when you’re not able to be there.
Along with making strategic hiring decisions, you’ll also need to invest time and energy into training your team. They should understand the ins and outs of your product line, how to use your POS system, and techniques for providing top-notch customer service.
8. Spread the Word About Your Vape Shop
Now that your vape shop is ready for business, it’s time to attract your first customers.
Crafting an effective marketing strategy is a crucial part of learning how to open a vape shop. Here are a few strategies to use to generate your very first sales:
- Plan a grand opening promotion that promises big savings on the best vape products.
- Leverage email and SMS marketing integrations through your vape shop POS system to stay in touch with your new customers.
- Launch a customer loyalty program that encourages your shoppers to come back again and again.
Staying consistent with your vape shop’s marketing efforts will keep the momentum going long after your grand opening.
One important thing to note about marketing your vape shop is that there are strict federal and state laws that apply to tobacco advertising. Before launching your first marketing campaigns, make sure to familiarize yourself with these regulations.
Successfully Open a Vape Shop With Cigars POS
Congratulations! Now you’ve learned how to open a vape shop in eight simple steps.
Starting a small business from scratch can be a profitable and rewarding experience — but it can also be challenging. That’s why we’ll be here every step of the way.
Cigars POS is an all-in-one POS solution designed specifically for vape shops like yours. With all the tools you need to keep your shop running smoothly, your shelves perfectly stocked, and customers flowing through your door, Cigars POS is just the tool you need to grow a thriving small business.
Take Cigars POS for a spin by scheduling a live demo, or use our build and price tool to design a custom POS solution for your shop.
