In the industrial city that electrified the country, former snuffers and smokers are switching to the battery-powered vapour. Mathias Norman steers the ship in Västerås' now only vejpshop. And where it should feel familiar to step in.
On the northern shore of Lake Mälaren, Västerås towers. Once upon a time the city was called Västra Aros, where Aros means river mouth and refers to the Svartån river's outlet into Lake Mälaren. But it would have been a bit archaic and cumbersome to go around saying that - so in the end it became simply Västerås. For the historically interested, it can be said that Östra Aros was instead located at the outlet of Fyrisån in the same lake, and is today called Uppsala.
Västerås is largely built around the fact that the companies Asea and Svenska Metallverken were started here around the turn of the last century. Both companies were highly involved in the electrification of old Sweden, so surely a craving for electrically modified small inventions such as ... vejp, should be high on the agenda?
Running after children
A short walk through Vasaparken from Västerås Central Station takes you to the city centre and the vejp shop Cigge on Hantverksgatan. Here Mathias Norman, store manager and well-known through various chronicles in Vejpkollen, against.
- I've been vejpat for nine years now, give or take. The journey started with me being both a heavy smoker and a heavy sniffer while having children. After a while, my children started running around and I very quickly noticed that I myself was not customer running around anymore. So I simply had to stop smoking," says Mathias from an armchair in the staff's small sofa group inside the shop.
Mathias tried almost everything available to quit smoking, he says.
- Vejping was not that big then. It wasn't even on the map. I even tried the prescription drug Zyban, which used to be available, but unfortunately it had a lot of side effects. So I guess I gave up smoking until a friend from Portugal said: "try this" and threw a mod in my hand when we went out to party.
Portugal is, or at least was, much further ahead in vejp than Sweden at this time according to Mathias.
- But anyway, I ended up not smoking a cigarette that whole night and I didn't even think about it. So when he pointed it out, I said: "OK, where the hell do I buy one of these then?" He said, "Well, you can have it then. So he gave me the machine and I haven't smoked since.
Not a single flare?
- I tried one New Year's Eve, but it tasted like hell, haha. But I had decided to quit but didn't really have the tools for it before.
Tobacco-flavoured smoking accessories
Once he had that tool, Mathias didn't find it very difficult to quit. But he warns against a mistake that he, and so many others, make.
- For an initial period, I made the mistake of using tobacco-based flavours. The disadvantage of that is that it is very easy that if you run out of juice in the evening, you can go to the petrol station and buy cigarettes instead.
Mathias' solution to this problem was to switch to the bubblegum flavour, which he then used exclusively for six months. After that, tobacco or tobacco flavour no longer had any power over him. Quite the opposite, in fact, and today he finds it downright disgusting.
Chain spread across the country
Cigge is one of the largest vejp chains in Sweden today with stores spread across our oblong country. If you count so-called "instores", that is, small stores in part of another store, there are 18 Cigge stores - while the head office and the basic store are located in Borlänge. In any case, it was when they decided to open in Västerås in 2019 that Mathias was encouraged by friends to apply for the job of store manager, as his background and interest would fit so well.
- I've worked in a lot of different, but mainly different technical positions. It has been everything from helping to bring digital TV to Sweden to building server halls and everything in between. But often long and stressful jobs that made the cigarette a welcome break.
No sooner said than done. Mathias applied for and got the job, and since he had worked in service for so many years before, it fit like a glove.
- I am quite used to dealing with people of different social classes and ages.
And I guess you already had your eye on different vejp products back then?
- Yes, I suppose you could say that. But today I'm a bit of a stone age compared to the others who work here, because I'm still doing my RBAs and RDAs. Not many people do that anymore. Then there's the fact that all of us who work here have different taste palettes, so we complement each other very, very well.
For the sake of good consumer enlightenment, Vejpkollen can announce that RBA means Rebuildable atomiser and is a general name for all rebuildable, more advanced, devices. An RDA, also known as a dripper, is a type of rebuildable tank system that allows the user to drip e-juice directly onto cotton and coils.
Vape Nation laid the foundation
So how popular are vejpning and electric cigarettes in the old electric city? Quite a lot, as it turns out.
- I can't give you a percentage or anything like that, but it's probably pretty good. "Vape Nation" were the first to open here in Västerås and did the groundwork. So when we opened, we were two companies running. Then we had a friendly competition really. Either we had it or Vape Nation had it and they sent customers between them.We still have contact with those who worked at Vape Nation here in town.
That store closed down a few years ago and Vape Nation today only has a store in Enköping. In total, there have been three different stores in Västerås when Skyclouds also existed for a while. But now there is only Cigge left.
The average vejp in Västerås is relatively young, compared to all other Vejpkollens visiting the city.
- The average customer here is somewhere between 25 and 35 and that is quite young. I would guess that the thing that brings the age down is disposable vapes. They are more popular among those who are a little younger, between 18 and 23 approximately, says Mathias.
Do you sell them as happily or do you have an agenda there? Some of the others we talk to are keen to switch customers to more sustainable alternatives.
- No, I don't know if I have an agenda there, but personally I'm not a big fan of them. Precisely because of the fact that people do not take responsibility for the battery that is in them. Then there are less serious players who may not be as good at checking ID and such things. And since they are cheap, it is unfortunately the case that young people get hold of them anyway, even if we try to prevent it.
Mr Norman says that disposable vejps can have both advantages and disadvantages.
- My personal opinion is that they make far too much impact on the environment. But on the other hand, they are a good gateway to vejp. People who want to quit smoking can try a disposable to see if it works. And if it works, then we'll have a discussion and we'll find something that suits you further.
Family atmosphere
As mentioned, Västerås is an industrial city, and as such there are many old smokers and snus users who find their way to Mathias and his staff at Cigge.
- I think it's common to swap one flavour for another, and it's quite rare that we get customers who don't already know what they're looking for. The most common question we get is what flavours are available.
There is a pleasant and almost familiar atmosphere inside the sofa group in Cigge Västerås, and that feeling turns out to be the target. The staff, which besides Mathias consists of Victoria, Kalle, Hampus and a younger extra help named Marcus, also socialise a lot in private.
- Let's say Victoria, who commutes, is going to stay in town for a day. Then she knows, for example, that there is always a sofa to crash on at my place.
This goes back to how Mathias wants things to be in the store. Cigge may be a chain, but each store manager still has a certain amount of freedom to put his own stamp on it and experiment with the range to suit local needs.
- I want it to be familiar, so that it doesn't feel stiff or boring to come in here. The store should be a place I would have wanted to go into myself.
Five quick ones for Mathias Norman and Cigge in Västerås
1. Who is your typical customer?
- Between 25 and 35 who previously smoked or snuffed
2. How big is vejp in Västerås?
- My gut feeling is that it is relatively large.
3. What is your personal favourite flavour?
- I mix a lot of things myself, and I like to mix fuji apples with something else. It's an apple that is less tart and more sweet.
4. What would you never put in the tank yourself?
- Liquorice. Apparently I make a pretty good raspberry and liquorice juice, but I would never vejpake it myself.
5. What made you start vejpa?
- Was a heavy smoker and sniffer and needed to quit
Shop: Ciggy
City: Västerås
Behind the counter: Store Manager Mathias Norman
Found since: 2019
