On November 11, 2017, TSFA hosted the 2017 annual pre-Legislative Conference in Nashville. All vapor industry was invited to attend. We had a very successful turnout of our members and special guests. Victory Vapor North joined the association, and a few other Tennessee shops came on board over the following month. In addition to announcing restructuring of the board, we reviewed our successes with defeating bills over the past year. The year in review was wrapped up as we moved on to the present, challenges we still face, and our plan of action moving forward. Overall, it was a productive and successful event.
Erika Bell Vick, our lobbyist with Bass, Berry & Sims PLC gives the legislative update and 2018 projections.
Jake Butcher with VTA discusses state coordination.
Gregory Conley of AVA gives us a Federal update and provides guidance moving forward.
Fig Ramsey of Gonzo Vapors gets the crowd motivated….and takes a selfie.
On December 7, 2017, the two of us headed to the VTA Vapor Game Plan Conference in Chicago to represent TSFA. VTA members, guests, and Association representatives from all over the country were in attendance. We listened to many well-informed speakers who provided a wealth of information to take back to our members. While it is impossible to summarize so much material, here were some of our biggest take-aways from the conference.
And again, Fig Ramsey takes a selfie
In seriousness, Fig introduced his concept of Vape Tithing and how Gonzo Vapors is carrying out that concept. He also touched on the states helping one another. If one is facing challenges with local legislation or financing, others step in to help. It’s also past time that we start doing business with companies who invest and are active in advocacy.
We would be remiss if we didn’t mention Executive Director Tony Abboud’s heartfelt words regarding how far VTA has come in only a year, and how TSFA believed in the vision in the beginning and jumped on board. There were a handful of supporting companies on last year’s member list. These two slides tell the story of where we are today.
Finally, Tony’s words about TSFA being pioneers in state advocacy were echoed across the room several times throughout the day and how we helped pave the road for several other states. It was a day where we were not only proud to be a vapers and advocates, but proud to be part of a thriving association thanks to the support of all our TSFA members.
Tiffany Everett, President
Nicole Crumley, Treasurer
Jennie Corley with Tiffany and Nicole
Cold, fat pigeons. Just because.
YOU MUST BE OVER 21
TO ENTER THIS SITE