Johnson Creek Vapor Folds
Vape company that warned about the financial impact of regulations announces it has shut up shop.
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by Dave Cross
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Hartland, with its population barely over 9,000, was home to Johnson Creek Vapor Company, founded in 2008 and at its peak had over 60 employees in a 52,000-foot industrial park unit. The company’s juice flavours were purchased by Lorillard Inc. and used in Blu cigalikes. Johnson Creek also sold its products on-line and through a chain of brick and mortar stores.
Johnson Creek cemented their position at the forefront of the independent vape business market when Konstantinos Farsalinos selected them as part of an extensive toxicity study. Unfortunately, the business will now only exist as a footnote in vape’s big story.
Heidi Braun, Johnson Creek Vapor’s ex-Chief Operating Officer, posted a statement on the company’s website:
“Dear Friends,
It is with great sadness that I write this note to share with you that as of tomorrow, Tuesday, October 10, 2017, Johnson Creek will no longer be in business. I’m so very sorry that we’ve failed you.
Today, at 2PM CT, our website will be turned off.
First, we want to sincerely thank you for supporting a small business from Wisconsin for the last 9 years! We have the greatest customers in the industry; your loyalty to us has been unmatched and we leave with a deep sense of gratitude. Our business has always been about saving lives by giving adults the option to choose an alternative to traditional cigarettes. You have become our FAMILY.
Second, we want to encourage you to not give up on the industry. Please continue to support vaping vendors across all walks of life. Our hope is to come out of bankruptcy and continue to make and sell products, but this is yet to be determined and we have no timetable to determine this.
Third, please know the industry is in excellent hands with these organizations ABillionLives, AVA, CASAA, EVCA, R2BSF, SFATA, and VTA. They work diligently to protect our rights as vapors and push our industry forward. Kindly consider supporting them as well.
Fourth, to the Village of Hartland, you have supported us since 2011! Thank you for going to bat for us with FDA. It has been a pleasure and an honor to be part of the Hartland, WI community for the last 6+ years. Hartland will forever hold a piece of our hearts.
Fifth, to our long-standing vendors and professional advisors, thank you for standing by us for 9 years. We are fortunate to have some of the best companies in the country selling us raw ingredients, and best companies in the world representing us. Thank you Baker Tilly, Husch Blackwell, LLP, Keller & Heckman LLP and SBR Law Group.
Finally, I want to personally and humbly thank all of our employees, both current and former. Each of you has taught me what true leadership is. We are a family too. We’ve had NERF fights, we’ve traveled the USA and world together with our messages about quality and safety, we’ve had Thanksgivings together, we’ve welcomed children together, we’ve figured out how to both scale a business and downsize a business together. We’ve won together, we’ve lost together and I hope we bounce back together.
Vape on Johnson Creek family, friends and colleagues. VAPE ON!”
Here’s hoping that the company can swiftly find a way back and their employees quickly source alternative employment.
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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