The Vape Bar says the States of Guernsey is ignoring it after it challenged new rules that ban under-18s from entering its shop.
On 31 March 2026, it became illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to enter a vape specialist shop in Guernsey, even if accompanied by an adult.
Before it came into force, one of Guernsey’s two vape shops, The Vape Bar, warned it would unfairly affect parents with young children.
The States say the law, approved in May 2024, will help tackle concerns about young people vaping.
Shop worker Sophie Dorfner says they’re already seeing the impact after just two weeks.
"There's a lot of very angry parents and carers.
"They're all repeating the same thing: it would be a lot easier if I went back to smoking cigarettes because I can walk into any shop with my child and pick up a packet of cigarettes, no problem.
"People that actually had a six-month-old baby in a chest sling, they walked into the shop, and we actually had to tell them to leave.
"The policy still stands at no under 18s, and that obviously includes babies, and they don't have the option of being able to leave a six-month-old baby outside.
"We've asked them for an exemption for any child under the age of 10 to be able to come in supervised with their parent or guardian, so that it allows them to pop in, pick up what they need, and their child is then safe."
Sophie also says some customers feel they have to leave their children in cars while they shop, sometimes using unloading bays, which could be unsafe for the child and may lead to a parking fine.
Sophie says communication with the States has broken down, with multiple emails and meeting requests being ignored.
"It feels like they're just trying to now ignore our emails and just hoping we'll just go away.
"We're just really disappointed.
"They're just not understanding that we're not doing it just from a business point of view. We're doing it for the safety of our customers as well now.
"But the fact that they're not responding is just very rude."
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