An e-cigarette store located in Liuhe Commercial Plaza, Pingshan District, was fined for the illegal publication of tobacco advertisements by Pingshan’s regulatory agency of the Shenzhen Municipal Market Supervision and Regulation Bureau on Wednesday, the city’s health commission said Friday.
The fine is the first of its kind in China, according to the commission.
In August this year, the Pingshan regulatory agency found that an e-cigarette store in Liuhe Commercial Plaza had posted e-cigarette advertisements.
Additionally, phrases such as “more cost-effective packaging, more intelligent vaping experience, more intelligent reminders” were posted at the store’s cash register.
According to the person in charge of the store, the store was opened in March this year. It is a franchise store of RELX, which is based in Nanshan District.
According to article 15 of the city’s tobacco control regulations, it is forbidden to publish or release in disguised form tobacco advertisements. Violation of this provision will be punished in accordance with China’s advertising law.
Considering that the store was a first-time violator and has taken the initiative to make corrections, the law enforcement department has given a mitigated penalty to the store according to relevant provisions. The case was closed after the store paid the fine.
Xiong Jingfan, a technical officer of the smoke-free city project in Shenzhen, said that the impact of e-cigarettes on teenagers is becoming increasingly obvious.
Xiong said it’s particularly important to strengthen the control of e-cigarettes, especially the supervision of e-cigarette advertising, promotion and sponsorship, for the protection of children and adolescents.