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October 09, 2025
Global Vape Marketing Targets Māori Youth, Research Warns
Moeawa Fransen
Posted On October 9, 2025
Download AudioNew research by Dr Lucy Hardie reveals global vape companies like Vuse – owned by British American Tobacco, are using Big Tobacco-style marketing to target young people.
Partnerships with music festivals, Formula One, and influencers are helping brands reach youth despite advertising bans.
Hardie says even with restrictions in Aotearoa, global social media campaigns still reach local audiences, putting Māori wāhine and rangatahi at risk.
“For our young Māori girls, so the 14 and 15 year olds, they’ve got the highest vaping rates of all the cohorts. And when you look at that Instagram site I was telling you about, they specifically target young women. They have this style of marketing where they, you know, it’s very glamorous. Girls are getting ready to go out. They’re sipping their vape and like, it’s really targeted marketing, and so it is really dangerous,” says Hardie.
She is calling for tougher global regulation, as WHO data shows children are nine times more likely than adults to vape.
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