In November 2018, V2 Cigs closed its doors in the United States, and stopped filling orders for its many customers. Juul Labs had bought V2’s parent company VMR Products in October, and shut down sales of V2 Cigs products in the U.S. soon after.
The British V2 outlet remains open, and sells many of the same products. V2 Cigs UK has been operating since 2012, and according to its website does ship to the U.S. (and the rest of the world).
What happened to V2 in the U.S.?
Juul Labs purchased VMR Products, the parent company of V2 Cigs in a $75 million deal in late 2018. The transaction occurred with almost no publicity. Soon after the purchase was complete, Juul shut down V2 Cigs sales in the U.S.
The Florida-based VMR had been majority-owned by High Praise Enterprises, a subsidiary of Chinese company Huabao International Holdings Ltd. Huabao purchased a 51 percent interest in VMR Products in 2015 for $23 million, and will reportedly realize a $23.5 million profit from the sale to Juul.
Huabao is a Hong Kong-based holding company that owns, among other interests, China’s largest flavoring manufacturer. Through one of its subsidiaries, Huabao is approved to sell vapor products by the Chinese State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, the government agency that controls the tobacco industry in China.
Juul Labs has not returned our request for comment, but sources tell Vaping360 that the purpose of the deal was to give JUUL access to the Chinese market. Although e-cigarettes were invented in China, and the Chinese city Shenzhen is where most vaping products are manufactured, vaping is so far a fringe practice in the huge country. A product like JUUL, with government-sanctioned access to the market, could be hugely profitable.
China has 300 million smokers, and the state-owned Chinese National Tobacco Company is the world’s largest cigarette company. About two-thirds of Chinese men smoke cigarettes, and more than a million citizens die each year from smoking-related disease.
VMR Products owns several vapor brands, most notably V2. The company sells cigalikes and simple vape pens, and also dry herb vaporizers. The V2 brand also has a strategic partnership with Turning Point Brands, a small tobacco company that has recently ventured into the vapor industry, buying such brands as Vapor Shark and VaporBeast.
Where to buy V2 carts and vape juice?
V2 is gone from the U.S. market. V2 Cigs loyal customers were left high and dry after the company closed up shop. The announcement on the V2 Cigs forums came the day it was closed. The closing presumably hit the customers of their refill and disposable e-cig products the hardest. It was so abrupt, there wasn’t even time for anyone to stock up.
But the British V2 company is still in business, and will ship V2 products to the U.S. The shipping price is reasonable (and even free for large orders), and the company is a trustworthy longtime presence on the British vaping scene.
If you don't want to order from overseas, many options exist for American V2 customers. Granted, no one wants to be forced to switch brands, but at least there are solid alternatives to V2 Cigs. Luckily for their customers, many V2 Cigs e-cigarettes were not proprietary. That means you can find similar vapes and even some that are compatible with V2 cartridges and batteries.
V2 compatible carts, batteries, and e-liquid
Check out Vapor4life: A company that’s been around almost since the beginning of vaping as we know it, Vapor4Life has the most products compatible with V2, including e-liquid ideal for carts and clearos. V4L products cater to the beginner and simple and easy set-up.
There are several established American manufacturers of e-cigarettes that are compatible to V2 Cigs products, or very similar to them. Vapage, White Cloud, and Apollo are three brands that could be good V2 Cigs alternatives.
Similar vapes to V2 Cigs
V2 Cigs was most known for their e-cigarettes and clearos. These products were all based on mouth-to-lung vaping—similar to a cigarette draw. There are lots of other simple-to-use products still available to help smokers looking to quit, and ideal for beginner-vapers looking for simplicity. These products are more modern versions of what V2 cigs sold. Check out the following pages for some suggestions:
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