Morgan Fischer
Audio By Carbonatix
The Canadian e-commerce giant Shopify, which boomed in the post-COVID era and generated almost $9 billion of revenue in 2024, is the latest target in Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ crackdown on teen vaping.
Mayes was among 25 Republican and Democratic attorneys general from across the country whose offices signed and sent a pointed letter to the company on Monday, claiming that Shopify needed to do more to ensure minors can’t buy vapes and e-cigarettes from the platform’s vendors.
“Shopify is currently hosting a countless number of merchants illegally selling nicotine vapes or e-cigarettes. It is blatant law-breaking and a danger to the young people and teens who should not have access to these harmfully addictive tobacco products,” Mayes said in a press release. “I’m proud to be part of a coalition of both Democratic and Republican states asking Shopify to work with us to come into compliance with the law.”
Alexandra Clark, a vice president of communications and public affairs for Shopify, did not respond to a Phoenix New Times inquiry about the letter.
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While the officials who signed the letter noted that Shopify has been responsive to previous requests made by the California attorney general to remove merchants who didn’t take proper precautions against selling to minors, they said the problem on the platform is far too systemic. They identified at least 29 e-cigarette or vape websites that were using Shopify’s platform and illegally allowing sales to minors.
“We are grateful for Shopify’s responsiveness in terminating the e-cigarette sellers we identified, but the sheer scope of the conduct and the significant injury to public health accomplished through on-line e-cigarette sales necessitates a more comprehensive solution,” the letter states.
It’s far from a war at this point. The attorneys general requested a meeting with Shopify to collaborate and exchange ideas, offering to undertake part of the effort needed to identify illegal sellers if a cooperative agreement comes to fruition.
Mayes’ office has targeted illegal vape sales closer to home, as well. She launched efforts to shut down local smoke shops that sell vape and nicotine products to minors, even busting two in an undercover operation that involved teenage volunteers. In July, Mayes filed a lawsuit against New York Smoke Shop in Chandler and Pro Source Shops, which has three Valley locations, alleging that they have consistently violated the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act by selling nicotine and tobacco products to customers younger than 18 and frequently failing to ask for identification.
“We’re seeking to dissolve their companies,” Mayes said at a press conference in July. “We are seeking what is essentially the business version of the death penalty.”
Since then, a change to Arizona law has raised the minimum age for buying tobacco and nicotine products from 18 to 21. It’s part of a wave of national concern over the addictive qualities of vapes and teens’ access to them. In April, the Supreme Court ruled that the Food and Drug Administration could place limitations on the marketing of certain vapes and their flavors out of concern that they could appeal to kids.
