Vaping is big business in Blackburn. In 2008, it was the birthplace of one of the UK's biggest e-cigarette companies.
Totally Wicked now has over 500 shops across the UK including company-operated outlets and franchises, as well as selling in Asda, Sainsbury's and Bargain Booze stores, its roots in Blackburn are a big part of the firm.
Controversially, the brand has been the shirt sponsor of Blackburn Rovers since 2018 and has been the football club's principal sponsor since January of 2023.
It's all very much a Blackburn story. Fraser Cropper, Totally Wicked's chairman, has been a lifelong supporter of the club, having sold programmes at Ewood Park when he was a youngster, and seeing his company's logo on the front of his beloved team's shirts is something he takes great pride in.
But at the beginning of the Championship season, Rovers had to defend their partnership with the vaping firm. The relationship had attracted criticism from MPs - which prompted a spokesperson for the side to state it has seen no evidence the sponsorship encourages children to vape..
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They said: "At no point during our long-standing relationship has the idea that the Totally Wicked brand might appeal disproportionately to children been raised and we have seen no evidence to suggest that our sponsorship has encouraged an uptake of vaping among children.
Regardless, it's difficult to go anywhere these days without, at some point, navigating your way through a cloud of watermelon-flavoured mist. It is seen by thousands as an effective way of steering clear of smoking.
And nowhere more-so than Blackburn. A recent survey has branded the town as the "vaping capital of the UK". The town has, for every 100,000 residents, 22.56 vape shops - which is a UK-wide high.
Despite the prevalence of vaping in Blackburn, it is something that has taken many residents by surprise.
Charlotte is a 37-year-old vaper who quit "real cigarettes" more than a decade ago. "It's like when people moan about the number of coffee shops or bookies," she said.
"Shops are only there because there's a demand for them and surely it's better than having somewhere empty? I only ever buy from regulated companies like Totally Wicked."
Barbara, who did not want to share her second name, does not approve of vaping given its attraction to children and potential health issues. "My daughter's a nurse so she's told me about the concerns," she told LancsLive.
"I've lived in Blackburn all my life and we've recently moved to Singleton. I've come into town today to drop my husband off. This is the first time I've been here for a while but I can't say that I've noticed a lot of vape shops."
Despite being considered a safer and cheaper option to more traditional smoking, E-cigarettes are clearly in the Government's sights .In his Budget speech in March, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told the Commons he is to introduce a new tax on 'vapes' in a bid to discourage non-smokers from taking up the habit. In his fiscal speech, the UK would see 'the introduction of an excise duty on vaping products from October 2026'.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is responsible for regulating the industry. The MHRA restricts e-cigarette tanks to a capacity of no more than 2ml, restricts the maximum volume of nicotine-containing e-liquid for sale in one refill container to 10ml and restricts e-liquids to a nicotine strength of no more than 20mg/ml. The ingredients within and toxicology of an e-liquid must also be submitted to the MHRA.
Vaping, or e-cigarettes to be precise, may be a relatively new phenomenon. They have been about in some form or another since the 1960s. Though it was a patent filed by Chinese Pharmacist Hon Lik in 2003 which really kickstarted the industry. Fed up with his own 20 a day habit and the fact that his father was dying of lung cancer, he set about inventing a less harmful cigarette.
But while they were introduced as a potentially-safer alternative to traditional tobacco, vaping's growth in popularity has gone hand-in-hand with a growth in controversy - particularly among children.
In Lancashire, on several occasions this year, schoolchildren have reportedly been taken ill after smoking contaminated e-cigarettes. Five teens became sick in January after smoking devices laced with dangerous Class B drugs, including amphetamine and THC.
In February, several children fell ill and one collapsed in school in Chorley after vaping.
A spokesperson for police said: "We are warning parents of the dangers of unregulated vapes and liquids after a number of young people became ill. Over the last week, we have received reports that two pupils at local high schools in Chorley and West Lancashire, have fallen ill after using vapes which are believed to be contaminated.
"The pupils experienced dizziness and heart palpitations and in one case, a child lost consciousness for a period of time."
Back on the streets of Blackburn, Mark, whose partner uses a vape, said he hasn't noticed an especially higher number of vaping shops in Blackburn compared to other towns or cities.
"My partner vapes so I have no issue with it but there are a lot of children doing it which does bother me," he added.
John, a retired council worker, said he would rather Blackburn was the vaping capital of the UK "instead of the smoking capital". He said: "I don't vape but I used to smoke, a long time ago, and it seems bizarre to me that people who use e-cigs now seem to be vilified more than smokers!
"If people are using them to quit smoking, so they don't have cancer-causing tar going into their lungs, I don't have a problem with it."
A Blackburn Rovers spokesperson said: “Blackburn Rovers has developed a strong partnership with locally-based Totally Wicked over the past five seasons, initially as our training wear partner and more recently as our front of shirt sponsor.
"At no point during our long-standing relationship has the idea that the Totally Wicked brand might appeal disproportionately to children been raised and we have seen no evidence to suggest that our sponsorship has encouraged an uptake of vaping among children.
“Totally Wicked lead the way in providing the products that have enabled hundreds of thousands of smokers to choose a safer alternative. Every adult smoker who finds vaping through our association is a positive outcome, but the products should be accessible to over-18s only. To this end, Totally Wicked adopt strict age verification protocols, as required with any age-restricted category.
“Both Blackburn Rovers and Totally Wicked advocate that vaping has a positive and proven role in supporting the reduction and ultimate eradication of smoking within our communities.
“We have and will continue to carry out education and awareness initiatives to our fans and communities around the positive role that vaping can play in reducing adult smoking rates. This continued awareness drive is a very positive outcome for our long-standing partnership.
“As our principal club sponsor, the Totally Wicked logo will appear on the front of our first team home, away and third shirts, and on adult replica kits, but not on any playing shirts or replica shirts for under-18s.
“As a football club at the heart of its local community, we acknowledge we have a responsibility to encourage healthy life choices for children and we do not see that raising awareness of the positive role that vaping plays in helping to eradicate smoking among adults and empowering more people to quit smoking for good conflicts with this in any way.”
