Retailers on the island reported a sharp decline in sales following the introduction of a display ban last year.
The ban, implemented in September 2024 under the Vaping Products Act, required shops to hide vapes from public view.
Mark Smith, Head of the Office of Fair Trading, gave evidence on the ban to a House of Keys committee hearing on tobacco and nicotine regulation.
He said: “When the display ban came in, a lot of retailers in those first few weeks were telling us that they were seeing sales drop down dramatically, possibly just [due to] out of sight, out of mind.”
Confusion
Mr Smith said that there was some initial confusion among consumers, saying people had to “learn to ask for it”.
He suggested the decline may have stabilised, adding: “Now might be a nice time to do a little bit of retail feedback… we’re six months in now.”
The OFT has proposed collaborating with Public Health to survey sales trends.
Compliance
Despite the drop, compliance with the ban was described as universal, which followed the OFT conducting a “three-visit approach” to educate 72 registered retailers, including pre-ban guidance and post-implementation checks
Mr Smith said: “I would call it 100% but it was only because we didn’t encounter any problems when we did our own visits and we got no calls or complaints from the public.”
When pressed on long-term impacts, Smith cautioned against premature conclusions but emphasised the need to align with evolving UK regulations to avoid “unwanted stock” entering the Isle of Man market.
Watch
You can watchh the full hearing below:
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