The Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association represents a wide cross section of the “Smoke- Free” or vapor products, industry including distributors, manufacturers, retailers and consumers of Personal Electronic Vaporizing Units such as electronic cigarettes and the liquid solutions they contain. The vapor products industry is the embodiment of the American Dream; built by entrepreneurs and visionaries, this industry has grown organically and become a vibrant mutli-billion dollar industry that is constantly innovating the creating.
SFATA membership is comprised of responsible business owners who understand that model corporate citizenship is vital to gaining the acceptance of the skeptics who believe the industry is driven or influenced by big tobacco and to ensuring a path for the continued innovation of products that researchers worldwide have agreed could eliminate the public health hazards caused by use of combustible tobacco cigarettes.
Through data gathering and information shared by distributor and manufacturer members, SFATA believes there are as many as 15,000 vape stores operating currently, 1200 manufacturers of e-liquid and 22 manufacturers of hardware and 13 assemblers of finished products in the United States; representing over 70,000 jobs and that there are as many as 1000 established distributors of vapor products representing thousands of jobs as well.
The vapor industry was built by small and mid-sized businesses, the common misconception that “big tobacco” somehow fueled its’ growth is a disservice to the very hard working people who started their businesses as a way of offering an alternative to combustible tobacco cigarettes.