Illinois Smoke Shops Worry About How New Tobacco Age Limit Will Impact Businesses
Individuals under the age of 21 can no longer purchase any tobacco products
Illinois Governor, JB Pritzker, signed a new law Sunday, April 7, raising the state’s legal smoking age to 21. This means anyone under the age of 21 can no longer purchase any tobacco products. The new law goes in to effect on July 1st, 2019. Illinois is the eighth state to raise the smoking age to 21. The Manager of The Smoking Pipe Shop in Moline says he’s worried about business.
“It’s going to be rough in the beginning, manager Trever Gray said. “It’ll be interesting to see how much it actually affects sales.”
Gray says he sees customers from ages 18 to 70. “I have a lot of customers,” he said. “A lot of them are the ages 18 or 19.”
The shop sells alternatives to cigarettes, like vape gear, e-juice, and tobacco pieces. Gray says he helps a lot of his customers quit smoking cigarettes by showing them alternatives.
“I save people’s lives in my own little way,” he said. “I get them off smoking.”
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