All photos via Crawford & Masters.

Smoking rates have been in decline in the US for decades, but the electronic cigarette market is in hot demand. In the past ten years, the technology has grown from non-existence into a $3.5 billion global industry. Local retailers have hopped on the trend, with some of them attempting to create an experience that goes above and beyond the purchasing process at your average convenience store. The Rathskeller opened last month Downtown, and this month Crawford & Masters has opened their doors in the Short North.

“I’ve been a life long pipe smoker and I collect high grade pipes and it was through that community that I first was introduced to vapor,” says C&M co-owner Patrick Crawford (his partner Kevin Masters makes up the other half of the store’s name). “I’ve always loved spending time in pipe shops hanging out with the old men and hearing good stories as you got to enjoy some great tobacco.”

It was that ambiance and experience that drove the desire to create the new business. Crawford says that his intolerance for cigarettes and cigarette smoke has grown in recent years, and he wanted to create place that offered a product he could enjoy with others while lounging in a comfortable environment.

“As Kevin and I started to look at the market we realized that although there are a lot of great shops in town there was nothing quite like what we wanted to do,” he explained. “So figuring there was a hole in the market, we traveled around the country and visited all the best shops and came back home and started building ours.”

Crawford says that the Short North was an obvious fit for their new business, as it’s a place where “people are deliberate about their lifestyles”. The northern end of the district was particularly appealing as it still offers affordable retail spaces that can be gutted and transformed into something new.

“The main consumers in the industry are 18-30 year old males, but we wanted to create an environment where an older professional man or woman in the Short North would feel comfortable, maybe something a bit more sophisticated,” he said.

Crawford & Masters will carry both vaporizers and e-liquids, with a currently small product lineup that is expected to grow in the coming weeks.

“We will be carrying a variety of premium brand liquids such as Five Pawns and Lazarus Vintage,” says Crawford. “But what we are most excited about are our own line of house-made liquids.”

The new vapor bar will be open from 10am to 10pm Sundays through Thursdays and open late until 1am on Friday and Saturday nights.

For more information, visit www.crawfordandmasters.com.