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message is that Cue is vaping made simple,” explains
D’Alessandris, who notes that his company did a great
deal of market research before choosing to partner with
Digirettes, the creators of the Cue Vaping System (See
sidebar: Cue 101).
SLOW AND STEADY TO WIN THE RACE
In that vein, EAS has been an anomaly in the catch-as-
catch-can world of the U.S. vapor market, where com-
panies new and old raced to compete for a foothold since
the fast-growing category first emerged on the smoking
scene. Rather than joining the contenders, EAS chose to
study the market and bide its time while the technology
and the regulatory climate around the sector evolved.
“For the first year and a half, we culled the market look-
ing at everything being done,” explains D’Alessandris.
“We talked to entrepreneurs and established companies
seeking technologies that really stood out.”
Meanwhile, of course, the fuzzy picture of vapor
product regulation was also coming into focus. In fact,
EAS brought the Cue Vaping System to market in the
second quarter of 2016, shortly after the FDA deeming
regulations were finalized. In Cue, EAS sought to offer
both convenience and quality in a device that would
comply with FDA regulations.
“We saw that many smokers were intimidated by the
vaping systems on the market and, at the same time, those
who tried e-cigarettes weren’t satisfied with the experi-
ence,” explains D’Alessandris. “With Cue, people no lon-
ger have to mix vaping liquids—they can simply click the
cartridge into the Cue and start vaping. And the amount
of thick, warm, satisfying vapor that this product delivers
is significantly better than what you get with an e-ciga-
rette, so it satisfies both smokers looking for alternatives
and also vapers looking for something simpler to use.”
In addition to Cue, EAS will continue to market its Liq-
uid Soul e-liquid as it waits for the post-deeming regula-
tion dust to settle. “What we see now is more and more
discount tobacco outlets reconsidering their assortment,”
says D’Alessandris, who says that he is confident about
EAS’s prospects. “In a post-FDA deeming regulation
world, there is a process which I call ‘cleaning’: retailers
getting rid of the brands of companies who are not show-
ing that they are invested in compliance, and moving to
work with companies like us that have said from day one
that we would work closely with FDA toward compliance.
In an infomer-
cial, because it
is long-form me-
dia, you can real-
ly go into detail
about explaining
how to use this
technology, why
it is simple, and
what the differ-
ence is between
this and any oth-
er technology
they may have
tried, such as
e-cigarettes.
’’