The two streets are home to a staggering 51 shops dedicated to the nicotine dispensing gadgets, but the reason for the proliferation is not entirely clear
A duo of city centre roads, spanning less than 300 yards, house an astonishing concentration of one particular type of business. Harris Street and Overbridge Street in Manchester’s Strangeways district are flooded with retailers peddling nicotine-dispensing devices, though the rationale behind this clustering remains somewhat mysterious.
These two thoroughfares have become a genuine vape shop paradise, packed with a “staggering” 51 establishments dedicated to the gadgets. Among these outlets, 30 were situated on Harris Street – with every single property on the road devoted to e-cigarettes.
An additional 21 were located on Overbridge Road, primarily within a compact industrial estate on the street, which sits just across the boundary into Salford.
This phenomenon appears to have been brewing for over a decade, but has accelerated in recent years following the crackdown on the counterfeit clothing trade, reports the Express. Google street view footage from July 2014 reveals an advert for an e-cigs and e-liquids wholesale operation, which was “open now”.
Based on a Manchester Evening News investigation, both Harris Street and the Overbridge Road industrial estate previously hosted various retailers, though none seemed to specialise in vaping. By May 2018, the landscape had started to shift.
Several large vape warehouses had launched on Overbridge Road, whilst approximately half of one side of Harris Street had become occupied by smaller vape outlets. An “e-cig centre” was also promoting available units for lease.
The remainder of the street, nearer to Bury New Road, was once a hub for clothing retailers during a time when the counterfeit trade was thriving in the area. By November 2020, more vape shops had sprung up on the Overbridge Road industrial estate, with some seemingly undergoing name changes.
In recent years, adverts for vaping products have become increasingly prevalent in the area. By July 2024, vape shops had started to populate the rest of Harris Street, following Operation Vulcan’s successful purge of the counterfeit trade from the locale.
The M. E. N. covered numerous raids on Harris Street in 2023, which targeted fake designer goods. During an April 2023 raid, GMP reported that 12 units posing as legitimate shops were closed down.
By the previous summer, nearly every unit on the Overbridge Road industrial estate was dedicated to vapes. Today, many of the shops on both streets sport vibrant, eye-catching signs designed to attract passers-by.
Large advertisements also champion the products on both streets. This trend seems to be spreading to Bury New Road, with several vape shops cropping up since the counterfeit clothing trade was ousted.
At present, there is no evidence to suggest any illicit activities on either street. The M. E. N. has learned that Manchester’s trading standards officials are cognisant of the surge in vape shops around Harris Street, but they harbour no concerns at this juncture.
However, it’s also understood that Overbridge Road has previously been at the centre of multiple Salford trading standards operations over the years. The M. E. N. had earlier reported how thousands of fake e-liquids were confiscated from the identical warehouse on the street during enforcement actions in 2019 and 2020.
Harris Street has likewise witnessed prior police intervention regarding illicit vapes on several occasions. On October 10, 2023, approximately £25,000 worth of “potentially dangerous” vapes that breached regulations were confiscated from a retailer on the street.
Less than a month afterwards, on November 7, 2023, 3,132 fake electronic cigarettes – valued at £47,000 – were seized from premises on Harris Street. Whilst legitimate vapes undergo strict regulation for safety and quality standards, non-compliant products can pose risks to public wellbeing.
This development coincides with mounting anxiety surrounding the health dangers linked to vaping. Research has been conducted at Manchester Metropolitan University, which last year exposed arterial damage in vapers comparable to that observed in smokers.
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