New Hoboken Store Helps You Quit Smoking

Looking to quit smoking? Or to be more precise, looking to quit smoking tobacco cigarettes, the kind hazardous to your and other people's health? There's a new store in Hoboken that can help you do just that.

The store, called Smokeless Image and located at 736 Washington St., sells battery powered electronic cigarettes that give smokers the feeling of smoking without actually smoking. There's no tar, no tobacco, and no smoke either.

The owner of the store, Antoinette Lanza, was a former smoker herself before she switched to electronic cigarettes. Lanza said that electronic cigarettes lack over 4,000 chemicals that find their way into regular cigarettes.

"You're not getting that same chemical reaction," Lanza said. "You're not going to feel high the way you do with a regular cigarette."

People who use electronic cigarettes still feel like they're smoking, but they are inhaling and emitting water vapor instead of smoke. Lanza said users call the practice "vaping."

The store sells products for beginners and more experienced users. A beginner's kit, which is the equivalent of two regular packs, costs $20, but the costs thereafter drop because much of the equipment is reusable.

Electronic cigarettes have a lot more flavors than regular cigarettes. There are any flavors that taste like fruit.

“It gives people more options for making the switch,” Lanza said.

Smokeless Image started as an online business. The store in Hoboken is the company's first. Lanza said the online business will continue, but that many of her customers have said they would also visit a storefront where they could try different products in person. The physical Smokeless Image store has a lounge area with couches and a television where customers can sit and enjoy their electronic cigarettes.

Lanza said she wants this first Smokeless Image location to serve as test site for future expansion around the metropolitan area.

“We're seeing more of these shops pop up everywhere, but this area around New York City has been lacking,” Lanza said. “Hoboken is a busy city with a high education level where people might be more receptive to new ideas.”

Lanza said the store will have a grand opening in September. In the meantime, visit the Smokeless Image website for more information.

The Business Beat covers businesses opening, closing, renovating, relocating and celebrating anniversaries in the Mile Square. Have a Hoboken related business tip? Send an email to alanskontra@hotmail.com.