A Macclesfield vape shop is expanding on their niche of producing in-house e-liquids and serving great locally roasted coffee.

Wreckless Vape Company are moving from their smaller premises on 19 Church Street, to 80 Mill Street.

The new unit is three times the size of the current shop, meaning a larger e-liquid laboratory, along with more space for people to vape and to enjoy local coffee.

Wreckless Vape Company founder Thomas Maggs (34) will also serve pastries in the new shop for the first time, working with Macclesfield bakers.

Macclesfield: Thomas 'Thom' Maggs is moving his business from 19 Church Street to 80 Mill Street. (Image - Macclesfield Nub News / Alexander Greensmith)

The new shop will also have a space for people to vape and play retro video games, a unique selling point that you can't find in Macclesfield.

Moving to a bigger and better unit is thanks to Thom's business expanding during lockdown.

"When I had to close the store during the pandemic I started making more and more juice," he said.

"I was the only person in the wider area to consider doing vape juice deliveries during lockdown.

The Bollington resident started Wreckless Vape Company in Macclesfield in 2018, but he has made his own vape juices for over seven years. The Phizz range is one of Thom's best-sellers - and is made by him! It is best enjoyed with a fresh brew of Pott Shrigley's Kickback Coffee.

"I was going to Wilmslow, Congleton and Whaley Bridge. My customers weren't just from Macclesfield. I was doing deliveries seven days a week.

"It really kept the business turning over and success has continued to go on.

"We do free delivery around Macclesfield and as well as the new store are just redesigning our website as well.

"If it wasn't for changing how we'd operate, I don't think I'd be here still."

The continued rise in vapers, combined with Thom's added value of serving Macclesfield-roasted coffee allows businesses like his to flourish.

"We used to manufacture out of house but thanks to the government loans I could start my own cleanrooms [a hygienic stainless steel laboratory used to make e-liquid]."

Thom started to manufacture vape juice on the side in 2015, when his construction worker job wasn't enjoyable.

He then found enough success to take his vape business full time and have his own premises in Macclesfield in August 2018.

The Bollington resident has one other staff member, who he will hope to offer more hours to with the opening of the new Mill Street store.

The company takes both cash and card.

If the 80 Mill Street store is a success, he will also hope to hire another part-time position.

"I've got about ten new flavours to launch in the next six months," Thom added.

"So combined with the seven we have now, that will mean we'll have seventeen flavours made by us with the new store.

"In total, we have 100 new flavours. We have a small range of devices, selling only quality stuff. I don't buy anything if I don't test it first.

The Church Street store will be open 10am-5pm Monday-Saturday until it closes and the store relocates.

"I love to manufacture. Whenever I have a spare five minutes I'll be testing out and creating new flavours of e-liquid.

"Whether it is five o'clock after we shut or until one o' clock in the morning. I live for my job.

"Juice-wise, we produce a couple of thousand units every month."

2021 estimates suggest there are 2.7 million adult vapers in England.

A perfect storm of smokers fearing catching COVID switching to vaping, along with the NHS exploring prescribing vaping, indicates demand to vape is only set to increase.

While there are multiple vape shops in Macclesfield, Thom runs a passionate independent business which manufacturers their own juices, and the only one to also serve coffee.

Thom gets his beans from Pott Shrigley's Kickback Coffee, and wants to kickstart a cultural change with his new store in normalising coffee and vaping.

"Coffee and smoking has always gone hand in hand," Thom questioned.

"So why can't coffee and vaping?

"You see people outside Macclesfield's Caffe Nero smoking cigarettes in the freezing cold.

"But when those people turn to vaping and come here, they realise how great the coffee is. Plus you can sit in the warm, and you can vape."

Vaping and coffee also share similarities. As modern coffee features an array of syrups you can add to sweeten your drink, similar to how vaping has a vast array of flavours you can choose from.

Thom has now started to develop his barista skills by mixing syrups such as popcorn and vanilla, which you wouldn't normally get at a regular coffee chain.

While Thom sells his e-liquids all around the world, he has a loyalty card system giving 3% credit back exclusively to his Macclesfield store customers, and will be carried over to the new Mill Street store.

Wreckless Vape Company can be followed on Facebook.

Thom's last day at their 19 Church Street store will be on Saturday February 26.

The opening on 80 Mill Street will open shortly after on March 5.

Opening times for the new shop will be revealed in a subsequent Macclesfield Nub News article.

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