Ramping up what will probably be just a start of their soon to be exponential growth, as 2019 is most certainly the year vape goes mainstream or at least hits it's early majority boom. As we've mentioned in the past a few times we aren't exactly the biggest fan of JUUL here at Northland and it's not just a eLiquid competition thing, it's a we hate big tobacco and their shadowy moves kind of a thing.
Juul, the Electronic cigarette maker has announced it will invest $125 million for a facility in Lexington County, South Carolina. The new operation is expected to create around 500 jobs, according to a news release from the company on Monday.
The plan calls for the establishment of an assembly and packaging plant that is expected to be operating as early as the summer, because as we know there really isn't much to make a JUUL pod. The plant will likely have a West Columbia address, and be located near the Columbia Metropolitan Airport. Partially because shipping logistics just pan out perfectly if you've got to take in a lot of cheap stuff from China, assemble it, and ship it back out all over the country.
“We are extremely energized about JUUL Labs’ investment,” said Scott Whetstone, Lexington County Council chairman said, in the news release. Who can blame him? 500 jobs is a great investment into a small community.
“We are excited to work with community leaders to support the creation of high-quality American jobs for a diverse and inclusive workforce drawn from across the Midlands,” said JUUL Labs Chief Executive Officer Kevin Burns. Who was in no way absolutely talking out of his butt like he wouldn't have said that exact statement regardless of where in this country they set up shop.
Ads for personnel at the plant have been appearing recently online, and for the most part it seems like they are regular blue collar jobs. What is particularly offensive to this writer is their mission statement which seems to be posted at the top of every single job listing. Which is great if you're investing, really terribly thick headed if you're just searching for a job. Anyway here's what JUUL has to say about itself:
"JUUL's mission is to improve the lives of the world's one billion adult smokers by driving innovation to eliminate cigarettes. JUUL is the number one US-based vapor product. Headquartered in San Francisco and backed by leading technology investors including Tiger Global, Fidelity Investments and Tao Invest LLC, JUUL Labs is disrupting one of the world's largest and oldest industries.
We're an exceptional team with backgrounds in technology, healthcare, CPG and biotech, and we're growing rapidly to deliver on our mission. We're actively looking to hire the world's best scientists, engineers, designers, product managers, supply chain experts, customer service and business professionals."
Gag me with a spoon if that isn't self serving and smug A F. Anyways congratulations to South Carolina for at least pulling in some what should be decent paying jobs. What do you think about JUULS expansion? Is it inevitable, or will the will people respond to their shadowy business dealings and choose different vape offerings?